Donald Trump’s willingness to torture is one of many things waterboard-weasel Sean Hannity finds so appealing about Trump. Believing lies about the morality and effectiveness of torture is another.
Hannity aired a lengthy, two-part lapdog interview with Trump last night, apparently recorded before Trump’s dustup with Pope Francis. He never came up in the interview but in a panel discussion later in the show.
In the second part of the Trump interview, Hannity gave his stamp of approval to Trump’s willingness to torture.
HANNITY: I was glad to hear you say the other day there were only three people that were waterboarded, totally. One was Khalid Sheikh Mohammed who gave the information about the courier that led to Bin Laden.
False. From ABC News (via Media Matters):
The report released today by the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence concluded that the most valuable information on Osama bin Laden was obtained outside of enhanced interrogation techniques or prior to detainees even being held by the CIA.
Several detainees provided information about Abu Ahmed al-Kuwaiti, bin Laden’s courier, which led to the raid that killed him. According to the report, the information was obtained outside the enhanced interrogation techniques program.
“While CIA detainees eventually did provide some information on Abu Ahmad al-Kuwaiti beginning in the spring of 2003, the majority of the accurate intelligence acquired on Abu Ahmad al-Kuwaiti was collected outside of the CIA’s Detention and Interrogation Program,” according to the report.
But the man who would be president said, “Right.”
Hannity continued by justifying torture with an extremely unlikely scenario.
HANNITY: And I always use the analogy if you saw your child getting kidnapped by three people and you tackled one of the three and two people got away with your child, what wouldn’t you do to get the information?
Besides the ridiculousness of Hannity's "analogy," real experts on the subject say that torture does not work.
But torture-loving Hannity either doesn’t know or doesn’t care.
“You said you would go further,” Hannity prodded Trump. “Explain.”
“This came up with Ted Cruz,” Trump said. “And he was very weak on his answer… I said I’d approve [waterboarding] immediately and I’d make it worse.”
“Mmhmm,” Hannity said approvingly. “In other words, whatever it took to get information.”
Trump took the hint.
TRUMP: Whatever it took! Excuse me, and I preface it by saying in the Middle East they’re chopping off heads. I haven’t seen that since medieval times. …Here we are, they’re chopping off heads, and we want information about them, and we can’t waterboard, OK? We can’t waterboard, no. So when they came to me… I said I’d approve it immediately but it’s gotta be worse and I got a standing ovation. …I do what’s right.
By the way, Hannity has yet to fulfill his promise to undergo waterboarding himself, which he described as “dunking” even though he said he’d do it for charity and even though Keith Olbermann offered $1000 to charity for every second Hannity tolerates the process. That was April 22, 2009, or 6 years, 9 months, and 28 days ago. And yes, we’re keeping count. Because while Hannity may want to forget his pledge, we won’t.
You can watch Hannity’s promise below, via our friends at Crooks and Liars, underneath the Trump interview, from the February 18 Hannity show.
Yes, that is Charles Grodin. Hannity’s promise to undergo waterboarding was made in a discussion with him. I think Fox has taken down the video, which is why I rely on Crooks and Liars’ video, but here’s my original post. http://www.newshounds.us/2009/04/22/charles_grodin_to_sean_hannity_youve_got_a_fascist_mentality.php
I’m glad you and your colleagues are STILL clock watching since KKKlannity made his TOTALLY BOGUS pledge to undergo waterboarding for charity. Correct me if I’m wrong, but in that video clip entitled “Trivializing Torture”, isn’t that actor Charles Grodin on the right? Furthermore, I’ve noticed that MSNBC’s ratings have really gone into the toilet since they got rid of Keith Olbermann. Yet, at the same time, I’m NOT a damn bit surprised the senior management of Comcast (i.e. the majority owner of NBC Universal) gave Olbermann the heave-ho, because remember: Comcast is one of THE MOST EXTREME REICH-WING corporations in America today.