While House Speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) was away, The House tried to dismay.
The House voted 252-172 to block a resolution sponsored by Rep. Rob Bishop (R-Utah), which would establish a bipartisan panel to investigate whether the CIA misled Pelosi in 2002 about the use of waterboarding on suspected terrorists, The Associated Press reported this afternoon. The House speaker was giving a commencement speech at Johns Hopkins University at the time of the vote, The AP said.
“This is partisan politics and an attempt by the Republicans to distract from the real issue of creating jobs and making progress on health care, energy and education,” said Pelosi spokesman Nadeam Elshami told The AP.
House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) told The AP that Pelosi’s claims can’t be brushed aside.
“To have this charge out there and not have it resolved I think is damaging to our intelligence efforts, and certainly will have a chilling effect on our intelligence professionals around the world,” Boehner told The AP.
