Torture and the NRE

From the Anchoress:

Obama: No torture…except maybe when its' necessary. Never forget that in 2002 Nancy Pelosi and other Democrats were briefed on torture and some of them wondered if waterboarding would be "enough". It was later apparently decided that the best thing to do with waterboards was beat President Bush over the head with them as "a moral issue" until they got into power, at which point, they could, potentially, be used to glean information from terrorists, again. Because, as my friend Dick Meyer writes, "the moral issues related to torture are not a slam-dunk." And, as we've seen often and often, if Democrats do what Republicans do, it's usually acceptable.

NRE (n) Not Republican Exception

Just a wee reminder, because everyone always forgets: Rendition began under President Clinton - something perhaps Leon Panetta should talk about at his confirmation hearing. So did the policy of regime change in Iraq begin under President Clinton in 1998. Same year President Clinton declared that Saddam had nukes. We really need better intelligence.