WHY YOO WAS INFLUENTIAL

I don't remember where I read that it was surprising that Yoo, a junior member of the Justice Department, would be the one to write the highly sensitive memos on torture and now I think we have a partial answer: Cheney wanted the memos!

Interrogation Tactics Were Challenged at White House
By Carrie Johnson and Josh White
Washington Post Staff Writers
Thursday, May 22, 2008; Page A07


A softer split occurred within the Justice Department itself. On one side was its Office of Legal Counsel, where attorney John C. Yoo -- acting in direct consultation with Vice President Cheney's then-counsel David S. Addington -- wrote a series of memos that gave legal backing to harsh interrogation techniques. On the other side were career officials such as Swartz and some top Justice political appointees, even including then-Attorney General John D. Ashcroft, who sources say disliked some of Yoo's conclusions and resented his back-channel discussions with the White House.