April 21, 2009

Statement by the Director of National Intelligence
Mr. Dennis C. Blair

I recommended to the president that the administration release these memos, and I made clear that the CIA should not be punished for carrying out legal orders.

I also strongly supported the president when he declared that we would no longer use enhanced interrogation techniques. We do not need these techniques to keep America safe.

The information gained from these techniques was valuable in some instances, but there is no way of knowing whether the same information could have been obtained through other means. The bottom line is these techniques have hurt our image around the world, the damage they have done to our interests far outweighed whatever benefit they gave us and they are not essential to our national security.

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