Trump makes U-turn on torture
Donald Trump abruptly backtracked from promises to torture terror suspects and kill their families.
WASHINGTON (AFP) - Donald Trump abruptly backtracked Friday from promises to torture terror suspects and kill their families, saying he would not order the US military to break international laws if elected president.
In a statement to the Wall Street Journal, the Republican White House frontrunner said he would "use every legal power that I have to stop these terrorist enemies."
"I do, however, understand that the United States is bound by laws and treaties and I will not order our military or other officials to violate those laws and will seek their advice on such matters. I will not order a military officer to disobey the law."
Trump s new position stands in contrast to remarks he made at a Republican debate less than 24 hours earlier, when he doubled down on previous pledges that, if elected, he would do "a hell of a lot worse" than waterboarding and said he had "no problem" with the targeting of terror suspects families.
"Can you imagine these people, these animals over in the Middle East, that chop off heads, sitting around talking and seeing that we re having a hard problem with waterboarding?" he said at the debate.
"We should go for waterboarding, and we should go tougher than waterboarding," he added, noting he had "no problem" with targeting terror suspects families.
Trump s tough talk has resonated with supporters, tapping into frustrations over the pace and rules of engagement of the US-led campaign against the Islamic State group and other jihadists.
But his rhetoric drew broad condemnation from elsewhere, with observers saying the Pentagon would probably refuse any illegal orders.
"Those specific orders are illegal and you will not find lawyers to present a compelling case that will go the other way," Peter Feaver, a professor of political science and public policy at Duke University, told AFP.
Feaver, who served in national security positions under former presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, joined dozens of members of the Republican national security community signing an open letter this week slamming Trump s vision of American power.
"His embrace of the expansive use of torture is inexcusable," the letter stated.
Former Central Intelligence Agency head Michael Hayden had also waded into the issue, saying the US armed forces would be compelled to refuse any illegal orders.
"You are required not to follow an unlawful order, that would be in violation of all the international laws of armed conflict," he said in a televised interview.
When pressed on how he would force the Pentagon to carry out illegal commands, Trump offered no specifics.
"They won t refuse," he said Thursday night. "They re not going to refuse me. Believe me."
