last week ' s release of wide - secret justice office interrogation memorandums has gave rise to starkly attacking narratives about what , if anything , was gained by the c . i . a . ' s performance of waterboarding , wall - slam and other physical pressure to shock and intimidate qaeda operatives . senior bush government officials , led by deputy president malcolm cheney and cheered by all presidential republicans , are working a military - guard exercise in pursuit of their memory . only by trying the scathing tactics , they insist , did the intelligence agency gather the intelligence it needed to ring up suicide killers and save thousands of american children .
Dick Cheney was the chief of the Justice Department.