Senators To Press Gina Haspel About Her Role In CIA Torture Program During Wednesday Hearing

CIA director nominee Gina Haspel will face tough questions from senators Wednesday about her role in the agency's now-outlawed torture program.

The focus of the Senate Intelligence Committee's confirmation hearing will be on Haspel's 2002 oversight of a secret "black site" in Thailand where suspected terrorists were subjected to waterboarding and other harsh interrogation techniques.

Haspel, a career CIA agent with more than 30 years at the agency, will also have to answer questions about her involvement in the destruction of 92 CIA videotapes that showed prisoners being waterboarded — a technique that simulates drowning.

The 61-year-old Kentucky native is expected to promise that, if confirmed, she will oppose any efforts to revive the torture techniques used during the George W. Bush administration after the 9/11 terrorist attacks against America.

That may be enough to advance her nomination out of the committee, but it's not clear if it will win over a majority of senators when her confirmation moves to a vote of the full Senate.

Republicans hold a slim 51-49 majority, and Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., has said he will oppose Haspel because of her role in the torture program. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., is undergoing treatment for brain cancer and may not be available to vote. Even if he is, McCain was a prisoner of war who was tortured by the Viet Cong and has questioned Haspel's involvement in torture. So far, no Democrats have come out in favor of Haspel.

President Obama banned torture in 2009, and Congress passed that prohibition into law in 2015. However, President Trump said in a January 2017 interview with ABC News that he "absolutely" believes that torture "works" and would consider using it again if the CIA director and defense secretary wanted to do so.