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If I were to rewrite that first draft of my comment, the sentence you highlighted in bold print would be missing.
In its place would be a more detailed accounting of the chain of command, including the statements of Janis Karpinski, Thomas Pappas, and Jerry Phillabaum, from the aforementioned Wiki entry.
..."Since the investigation of abuses at Abu Ghraib, some have suggested that Miller encouraged abusive tactics. In an interview with BBC Radio, former prison commander Janis Karpinski claimed that Miller told her to treat prisoners "like dogs" in the sense that "if you allow them to believe at any point that they are more than a dog then you've lost control of them".[2] Major General Miller denies that he ever made the comparison."
Colonel Thomas Pappas, head of the military intelligence brigade at Abu Ghraib, has claimed that it was Miller's idea to use attack dogs to intimidate prisoners.[3] He said the same tactics were being used at Camp X-Ray. Several of the photos taken at Abu Ghraib show dogs surrounding (and in at least one case biting) screaming, naked detainees."...
"In May 2006 Miller testified at the courts martial of the Abu Ghraib dog handlers that his instructions on the use of dogs had been misunderstood.[6] Miller testified that he instructed that dogs should be used "only for custody and control of detainees". Miller's testimony was directly contradicted, the next day, by Lieutenant Colonel Jerry Phillabaum, the commander of Abu Ghraib's Military Police detachment..."
Gen. Miller's testimony as to who gave him the okay and approval on the use of those tactics will most likely have to wait until his indictment on perjury charges- which, like all criminal charges, is always up to the discretion of a prosecutor, of course, rather than simply a function of the extant facts.
As for now, I can only hazard an educated as to who might have been providing the former commander of Camp Delta and X-Ray with his authorization to employ those tactics- which must have been approved by a superior- otherwise Gen. Miller would have faced criminal charges for ordering their use as his own unauthorized personal innovation, no?
So I suppose you have what you want from me, Elephantman- I admit that I lack proof that Cheney or Rumsfeld personally authorized Gen. Miller to use that grotesque array of tactics on detainees.
In turn, I invite you to make the case that my continuing suspicions are unreasonable inferences, wholly unwarranted by the available public record.
My cabdriving hands are doing eBay tonight- I'll be around.
