Bradley Manning comment costs State Department spokesman his job
State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley resigned over controversial comments he made about the treatment of alleged WikiLeaks source US Army Pfc. Bradley Manning.
US State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley briefs reporters in July, 2010. He resigned following critical remarks he made about the treatment of alleged WikiLeaks source US Army Pfc. Bradley Manning.
Newscom
Debate over the controversial treatment of alleged WikiLeaks source Bradley Manning apparently has cost State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley his job.
Manning is the US Army private first class being held in solitary confinement at the US Marine Corps brig in Quantico, Virginia. Crowley has been the assistant secretary for public affairs 鈥� the main briefer on behalf of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. A retired Air Force colonel, he served on the National Security Council staff under former President Bill Clinton.
Crowley鈥檚 exodus 鈥� reported in several news sources Sunday 鈥� probably was inevitable.
Speaking at a seminar at M.I.T. last week, he described Manning鈥檚 treatment as 鈥渞idiculous and counterproductive and stupid,鈥� although he added 鈥渘onetheless, Bradley Manning is in the right place.鈥�
Manning鈥檚 treatment since being arrested last May and charged with providing thousands of classified documents 鈥� many of them diplomatically embarrassing 鈥� has been the subject of considerable debate.
He鈥檚 being held in solitary confinement 23 hours a day in a windowless 6-by-12-foot cell, and for a time he was stripped naked at night 鈥� due to concerns about the possibility of suicide, according to defense officials.
Pentagon sources deny that Manning has been abused since being brought back from Iraq or that his confinement is anything other than standard operating procedure.
'Aiding the enemy' added to Manning charges
Twenty-two additional charges recently were filed against Manning, including 鈥渁iding the enemy鈥� 鈥� a capital offense.
Pentagon Papers whistle-blower Daniel Ellsberg has likened Manning鈥檚 treatment to torture.
Prolonged isolation, sleep deprivation, nudity 鈥� that's right out of the manual of the CIA for 鈥榚nhanced interrogation鈥�,鈥� Ellsberg wrote on the website for the British newspaper the Guardian. 鈥淲e've seen it applied in 骋耻补苍迟谩苍补尘辞 and Abu Ghraib. It's what the CIA calls 鈥榥o-touch torture鈥�, and its purpose there, as in this case, is very clear: to demoralize someone to the point of offering a desired confession.鈥�
Ellsberg sees the increasing pressure on Manning as part of the Obama administration鈥檚 effort to stifle dissent of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
鈥淲e see a campaign here against whistleblowing that鈥檚 actually unprecedented in legal terms,鈥� Ellsberg told Monitor Pentagon correspondent Anna Mulrine earlier this month.
Crowley鈥檚 leaving the State Department 鈥� which may have been in the works anyway due to his relationship with Secretary Clinton 鈥� no doubt was accelerated by his statement at M.I.T., which caused an awkward moment for President Obama.
Obama had to answer Crowley's criticism
At his press conference Friday, Obama was asked about Crowley鈥檚 sharp criticism of Manning鈥檚 treatment.
"I have actually asked the Pentagon whether or not the procedures that have been taken in terms of his confinement are appropriate and are meeting our basic standards,鈥� he replied. 鈥淭hey assured me that they are."
In other words, Obama 鈥� who campaigned against the mistreatment of Iraq War prisoners and who pledged to close the military prison at 骋耻补苍迟谩苍补尘辞 Bay 鈥� was put in the position of having to take the Pentagon鈥檚 word for it, despite continuing criticism from domestic and international human rights organizations.
In his statement regarding his resignation, Crowley acknowledged that.
"My recent comments regarding the conditions of the pre-trial detention of Private First Class Bradley Manning were intended to highlight the broader, even strategic impact of discreet actions undertaken by national security agencies every day and their impact on our global standing and leadership," he wrote. "Given the impact of my remarks, for which I take full responsibility, I have submitted my resignation as Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs and Spokesman for the Department of State."
There鈥檚 been speculation that Crowley鈥檚 comment about Manning鈥檚 treatment may have been influenced by his own father鈥檚 time as a prisoner of war in World War II.