Sen. Feinstein’s Signing Statement Confusion

SEN. FEINSTEIN: ‘According It E-Mails… You Were Involved In Preparing That Signing Statement’

SEN. DIANNE FEINSTEIN (D-CA): “When President Bush signed the detainee treatment act, he issued a statement that basically said he would only construe the law consistent with his powers as commander in chief. According to press reports, administration officials confirmed and I quote, the president intended to reserve the right to use harsher methods in special situations involving national security, end quote. In other words, the signing statement reflected the president's belief that he had the power to not comply with the law he had just signed. According to e-mails, and this you'll verify, you were involved in preparing that signing statement and you advocated for the issuance of the signing statement.” (U.S. Senate, Judiciary Committee, Hearing, 3/21/17)

FACT: ‘Judge Gorsuch Did Not Write The Line In The Final Signing Statement,’ ‘Addington… Drafted That Line,’ ‘Judge Gorsuch Had Been Pushing For Different Language’

“…internal Justice Department emails made public late on Friday showed that Judge Gorsuch did not write the line in the final signing statement that essentially claimed that Congress cannot limit what interrogation techniques a president chooses to use in wartime. Instead, David S. Addington, the counsel to then-Vice President Dick Cheney, drafted that line. Instead, the documents show, Judge Gorsuch had been pushing for different language that would have essentially claimed that the new torture ban merely codified existing practices and would not require any change.” (“Six Highlights From The Gorsuch Confirmation Hearing,” The New York Times, 3/21/17)

‘Judge Gorsuch… Pushed Strongly For A Signing Statement — In Part, He Wrote In An Email, Because It Could Make Clear The Bush Administration’s View That The New Torture Ban Was “Best Read As Essentially Codifying Existing Interrogation Policies”’

“In December 2005, when Congress enacted the Detainee Treatment Act, tightening restrictions against torture but barring lawsuits by Guantánamo detainees, Neil Gorsuch stood at the center of the internal debate about whether President Bush should issue a signing statement about the bill. Judge Gorsuch, whose Supreme Court confirmation hearing is set to start on Monday, was then a senior official in the Justice Department. He pushed strongly for a signing statement — in part, he wrote in an email, because it could make clear the Bush administration’s view that the new torture ban was ‘best read as essentially codifying existing interrogation policies.’” (“Newly Public Emails Hint at Gorsuch’s View of Presidential Power,” The New York Times, 3/18/2017)