Graham Opposes McCain-Feinstein Amendment

COLUMBIA, SC – U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) made this statement on his vote against the McCain-Feinstein Amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act.  The measure passed by a vote of 78-21.

Graham is a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and has more than 30 years of experience in military law as a Judge Advocate in the Air Force.

Graham said:

“My position on these issues has long been clear, I oppose torture and have led the fight against interrogation practices which do not live up to our values.  However, I do not believe it is wise to have the Army Field Manual serve as the sole interrogation program available to our nation.

“In the War on Terror it is imperative we have interrogation techniques that are lawful, classified and beyond the Army Field Manual.  High Value Targets (HVTs) possess valuable intelligence and we should not limit ourselves to the Army Field Manual which is published online and was never meant to be the exhaustive, exclusive system governing interrogation.  The Army Field Manual was written for our uniform services to make sure they were in compliance with the Geneva Conventions and the Law of War.

“Finally, I share the amendments’ supporters goal of requiring humane treatment of enemy combatants in prohibiting torture, but this amendment went beyond that objective.”