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Tell your Senator: Don’t promote a torturer

Trump just appointed a war criminal to lead the CIA. 

On March 13, 2018, a flurry of announcements and tweets revealed a shakeup in Trump’s administration. Rex Tillerson is out at the State Department. He’s being replaced by Mike Pompeo, who until now has been Trump’s head of the CIA. That leaves an open position to lead the spy agency—and Trump has given it to Gina Haspel.

Gina Haspel was already passed over for a promotion within the CIA once before because of her tortured past. There is no justification for her to become the head of the entire agency now. Each senator must immediately commit publicly to voting against Haspel, full stop.

CALL SCRIPT

Caller: Hi, My name is [name] and I’m a constituent from [part of state] calling about Gina Haspel’s nomination as head of the CIA. I want Senator [name] to immediately and publicly commit to opposing this nomination. Gina Haspel carried out torture and destroyed the evidence. She is completely unqualified to lead the CIA. Will Senator [name] oppose her?

[IF STAFFER SAYS YES]

Staffer: Thank you for calling. Senator [name] shares your concerns and will be voting against this nomination.

Caller: I’m very glad to hear that—will [he/she] be making a public statement condemning this choice and urging [his/her] colleagues to oppose, as well?

Staffer: I can relay that to my boss.

Caller: Please do. Haspel is an unacceptable choice and it’s important for the senator not just to oppose her, but to use [his/her] platform to increase pressure for other senators. I’ll be watching for [his/her] statements.

[IF STAFFER SAYS NO]

Staffer: Thank you for calling. Senator [name] supports Gina Haspel’s nomination and admires her decades of public service. She did what she was asked to do by her country, in order to keep people safe.

Caller: That’s not acceptable. Torture was, and is, illegal no matter what. There are no exceptions and it’s a crime. “Following orders” is not a justification. Additionally, her cover-up of the crimes through destruction of video evidence is enough in itself for the Senator to oppose her. I urge [him/her] to re-think his position.

Staffer: I’ll relay that to the boss.

Caller: Yes, please do. I am very concerned about this nomination and will be checking back to see if the senator has changed [his/her] position.