Mike Levin: “first, let me comment on the statement of my dear friend, Senator Collins, that somehow or other seeking information is…”

“first, let me comment on the statement of my dear friend, Senator Collins, that somehow or other seeking information is questioning anybody's integrity. We are seeking information because it is relevant to a confirmation process. Senator Lieberman and I wrote a letter seeking information which relates to the confirmation process in a very important way. We are not going to get that information because the Department of Justice has decided they will not unredact the names of Government employees who were present at discussions relative to the procedures used, the techniques used at Guantanamo during the period that Judge Chertoff was head of the Criminal Division and where those Government employees were members of his Criminal Division. That is not a challenge to anybody's integrity. That is not demeaning. That is simply carrying out a responsibility that this Senate has to be fully informed as to the facts that relate to a nominee. It is that simple. It is that important. For the Department of Justice to say the names of Government employees somehow or other should remain secret when those employees, paid by the taxpayer, were present during conversations at which the FBI strongly objected to the techniques and tactics which were being used by the Department of Defense to obtain information is simply something that we as a Senate cannot accept. We cannot be denied relevant information. We cannot and should not be denied relevant information.…”