CIA Insider Reveals Origins of US Torture Program and Dick Cheney's Motives

Origins of the Torture Program

• 💡 The U.S. torture program originated from two psychologists who reverse-engineered the Air Force's SEIR training (Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape).
• 💰 These psychologists, James Mitchell and Bruce Jessen, were contracted by the CIA for approximately $108 million (later reported as over $80 million) to implement these techniques, termed "enhanced interrogation techniques."
• ⚠️ The program was approved by the President and the Justice Department, but the speaker, a former CIA officer, immediately recognized it as torture.

The Role of Dick Cheney

• 📌 Dick Cheney, or someone close to him, is credited with the idea of keeping detainees in Guantanamo Bay forever, removing their rights.
• 🎯 This decision shifted the purpose of Guantanamo from a temporary holding facility to a permanent detention site without due process.

CIA Operations and Personal Consequences

• ✈️ The speaker, then Chief of CIA counterterrorism operations in Pakistan, was unaware of the torture program's development at headquarters.
• 📦 Initially, detainees captured in Pakistan were to be sent to Guantanamo temporarily, awaiting decisions on federal court trials.
• 🚫 When asked to be certified in enhanced interrogation techniques, the speaker refused, stating it was a torture program, and subsequently faced professional repercussions, including being passed over for promotion.
• 📉 Despite his refusal and reporting the illegality, he was the only one of 14 approached individuals to go to prison.

FBI's Stance on Torture

• 🚫 The FBI was so opposed to the torture program that they removed all FBI personnel from the country where the secret prison was located.
• ⚖️ This highlights the deep division and ethical conflict within U.S. intelligence agencies regarding the program's legality and morality.

The Psychologists' Involvement

• 🧠 Mitchell and Jessen, the psychologists, not only advised but also personally carried out the torture at secret CIA prisons.
• ✈️ The Air Force's SEIR training was designed to teach pilots how to withstand interrogation if captured, but its application to prisoners was a choice, not a necessity.