El Paso’s most prominent public figure, Congressman Silvestre Reyes, backed away from an amendment to the intelligence authorization bill that imposed criminal penalties on those who use torture to gain intelligence information. Reyes said, “I thought it was completely unnecessary. It wasn’t written or crafted very well.”
This was about 48 hours after the illustrious, Kennedy-esque political figure, Lion of the Desert, and Master Commander of the Intelligence Process backed the amendment as Chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. Back then — ancient history, by DC and Democrat standards — Reyes said that the amendment “is intended to be a strong and significant step toward better oversight, which still respects the constitutional authorities of the president.”
Remind me again why there’s a giant lighted Texas star on the Franklin Mountains above El Paso, instead of a huge portrait of “Silver.”
