D. Vice Chairman Rockefeller Seeks Committee Investigation

¶On February 3, 2005, Vice Chairman Rockefeller began a formal effort to conduct a comprehensive Committee investigation of the CIA's detention, interrogation and rendition activities, including a review of the legality and effectiveness of CIA interrogations.²⁴⁷³²⁴⁷³ February 3, 2005, letter from Senator Rockefeller to Senator Roberts on "the Committee's upcoming agenda," (letter incorrectly dated February 3, 2004). On March 3, 2005, a CIA official wrote that Vice Chairman Rockefeller was "convinced that we're hiding stuff from him" and that the CIA had planned a detailed briefing to "shut Rockefeller up."²⁴⁷⁴²⁴⁷⁴ Sametime message discussion between [Redacted] and [REDACTED], March 3, 2005. The only Committee records of this briefing, which took place on March 7, 2005, are handwritten notes written by Vice Chairman Rockefeller and the minority staff director.²⁴⁷⁵²⁴⁷⁵ The notes indicate that CIA briefers provided inaccurate information. For example, the notes indicate that "f w]e screen carefully aU people who might have contact with detainees" (emphasis in the Vice Chairman's notes) and that "positive incentives" are used prior to "coercive measures." In a reference to the waterboard, the notes state, the detainee "thinks he's drowning, even though they are breathing." See handwritten notes of then-Committee Minority Staff Director Andrew Johnson (DTS #2009-2077, Image 1) and handwritten notes of Senator Rockefeller.Show full note Shortly after this briefing, the vice chairman reiterated his call for a broad Committee investigation of the CIA's Detention and Interrogation Program, which he and the ranking member of the HPSCI, Jane Harman, described in a letter to Vice President Cheney.²⁴⁷⁶²⁴⁷⁶ Letter to Senator Roberts from minority SSCI members, March 10, 2005 (DTS #2005-1126); Letter to Vice President Cheney from Vice Chairman Rockefeller and Representative Harman, March 11, 2005; Letter from Senator Rockefeller, March 11, 2005. There is no Committee record of a response to the letter.

442

¶[Redacted] ® ) On April 13, 2005, the day before an anticipated Committee vote oiuh^ncediairman's proposed investigation of the CIA program, the chief of ALEC Station,

¶[Redacted] and the deputy chief of CTC, Philip Mudd, discussed a press strategy to shape public and congressional views of the program. As previously detailed, Mudd wrote:

"we either get out and sell, or we get hammered, which has implications beyond the media, congress reads it, cuts our authorities, messes up our budget, we need to make sure the impression of what we do is positive."²⁴⁷⁷²⁴⁷⁷ Sametime communication, between John P. Mudd and [Redacted] April 13, 2005, from 19:23:50 to 19:56:05.

¶The next day, CIA Inspector General John Helgerson briefed several members of the Committee on limited aspects of the CIA's Detention and Interrogation Program. According to Helgerson, Chairman Roberts' "motive was to have a presentation that made clear that CIA IG is looking at all appropriate detention and interrogation issues, as (he told me privately beforehand) the Committee will be voting today on whether to launch their own inquiry." Helgerson added that "Roberts said 'I know how that vote is going to come out, but I want the minority to go away knowing this is in good hands.'"²⁴⁷⁸²⁴⁷⁸ See email from: CIA Inspector General John Helgerson; to: [Redacted] subject: this afternoon's briefing; date: April 13,2005. There is no Committee transcript of the briefing. CIA records state that the briefing covered' "updates on the half dozen key abuse cases," ghost detainees, and renditions. The notes do not reference the CIA's enhanced interrogation techniques. In response to a question from Vice Chairman Rockefeller, Helgerson explained that the CIA was "preparing a comprehensive briefing" on detention and interrogation activities for the CommitteeShow full note The proposed investigation was not approved by the Committee. The Committee nonetheless subsequently approved legislation requiring CIA reports on renditions and plans for the disposition of high-value CIA detainees, as well as requesting expanded Committee staff access to the program beyond the Committee staff directors²⁴⁷⁹²⁴⁷⁹ Compartmented Classified Annex to Report No. S. 109-142, Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2006, as Reported by the Select Committee on Intelligence (DTS #2005-4028). In addition, Vice Chairman Rockefeller requested full Committee access to over 100 documents related to the May 2004 Inspector General Special Review.²⁴⁸⁰²⁴⁸⁰ See Letter from Johr^OJizzo to John Rockefeller, August 16, 2005 (DTS #2005-3522). The DNI, pursuant to the advice of former [Redacted] T C Legal, [Redacted] o r t e d the CIA's proposed limitations on to: Committe^ccess to the documents [Redacted] Michael Leiter; cc: David Shedd, [Redacted] and others; subject: Review of Documents Requested by Senator Rockefeller; date: December 16, 2005; Letter from David Shedd to Andy Johnson, January 5, 2006 (DTS #2006-0373)).Show full note On January 5, 2006, after multiple rounds of negotiations with the CIA for the documents, the chief of staff to Director of National Intelligence John Negroponte wrote a letter reiectinMhe request. The letter had been prepared by the former [Redacted] T C Legal, [Redacted] [Redacted] 2481who was by then serving as a CIA detailee in the Office of the Dircctor'of National Intelligence.

443