Jay Bybee: The Man Behind Waterboarding

Times Mag ^ | Tuesday, Apr. 28, 2009 | By Randy James

[restornu]

Jay Bybee has been called the "forgotten man" in the mounting furor over the CIA's harsh interrogation of imprisoned terror suspects — but he's quickly assuming a leading role. Though the mild-mannered lawyer has ...

as a top Justice Department official he approved an array of so-called "enhanced interrogation techniques" against alleged al-Qaeda members that many observers call torture. ....

Now a federal judge, Bybee, 55, led the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel ...

Bybee infamously claimed that interrogation practices aren't legally torture unless they inflict pain resembling that of "serious physical injury" such as organ failure or death. While supporters say the policies helped keep the country safe ...

Though Bybee wasn't the only person responsible for crafting the Bush administration's....

Fast Facts:

• Served as a Mormon missionary in Chile from 1973-1975.

• Graduated magna cum laude from Brigham Young University in 1977, ...

• Confirmed by the Senate to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in March 2003 by a vote of 74-19. Some Democrats now say they would have blocked his confirmation if they had known about the interrogation memos.

Quotes by Jay Bybee:

• "Talk is cheap. There's a difference between the theoretical discussion of the law and its practice. I take very seriously the fact that I have people's economic interests, liberty, and very lives in my hands."

—Reflecting on his appointment to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. (Meridian magazine, a Mormon publication, in 2003)

• "I would like my headstone to read, 'He always tried to do the right thing.'" —(Meridian magazine, 2003)

• "Jay is universally respected for his intellect, honesty, and ability to articulate the issues, plus he is not a compromiser of principles." —Nevada federal judge Lloyd D. George (Meridian magazine, 2003)

[freespirited]

critics say the memos are illegal

Under what law is the giving of a legal opinion illegal?

[Admin Moderator]

We moved this to news, we don’t see anything religion about this other than he happens to be a Mormon but the issue here is waterboarding and judicial rulings, both news topics.

[RobbyS]

Bybee actually consulted a law dictionary, and of course case history, to get a definition of forture. How dare he! And here he had that outstanding legal mind Joe Biden sitting on the judiciary committee.