The White House put its seal of approval on a new independent panel’s finding that the CIA did not do anything wrong when it snooped on a Senate panel investigation of the agency’s enhanced interrogation techniques.
Josh Earnest, the president’s press secretary, said there have been strong views on the issue both within the Senate and at the CIA and that’s why the independent accountability review, headed by former Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Ind., was created.
“The administration has a lot of confidence in this review board,” Earnest said. “There are some procedural reforms that this committee has suggested be put in place and that’s good news.”
Earnest also said the controversy highlights the importance of congressional oversight over the CIA and other intelligence agencies.
“The president has made clear to [CIA] Director [John] Brennan how important it is for the CIA to work with Congress on their oversight role,” he said.
On Wednesday the independent review board disputed the conclusions of the CIA’s independent watchdog and asserted that CIA officers acted reasonably when they secretly searched Senate computers last year after learning that Senate aides had removed certain classified documents related to the torture investigation.
The board, led by Bayh, said the CIA employees who secretly snooped on the Senate aides did not deserve to be punished.
