GovernmentExecutive.com

House Armed Services Committee Chairman Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., and other key negotiators agreed Friday afternoon to accept language from Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., that would prevent the torture of detainees, removing a significant hurdle to passage of the defense authorization bill, congressional aides said.

Hunter had expressed concern Thursday that language agreed to by McCain and the White House might hinder the country's intelligence-gathering capabilities, despite a letter from National Intelligence Director John Negroponte that assured that would not be the case.

Hunter and others continued to swap proposed language Thursday night and Friday until the deal was sealed. Details of the s agreement were not immediately available. The White House initially opposed McCain's amendment, but President Bush announced his support Thursday.

Meanwhile, conferees continued to work on the authorization bill behind closed doors. While Hunter's acceptance of McCain's language improves the chances for final action on the bill before Congress adjourns for the year, some issues remained unresolved.

One sticking point is an amendment from Hunter that would transfer an island off the coast of Southern California to the Defense Department for hunting and other recreational activities for the military, congressional aides said.

Hunter's plan for Santa Rosa Island is coming under fire in part because it was not included in either chamber's version of the $441.6 billion authorization bill.

"There are a lot of people angry," said one congressional staffer. "This is a conference add out of the clear blue sky."

The former cattle ranch, purchased by the National Park Service in 1986, is the largest of the Channel Islands and is home to deer and elk. The owners of that ranch operate a hunting business under an agreement that expires in 2011.

Opponents of the measure say it would create an exclusive hunting area for the military.

COMMENTS

• Hey, Taxpayer, why don't you just stick your head in the sand, and pretend everything's peachy, like an ostrich? Get with it, this is the real world, and it's full of bad guys who play rough. Your isolationism won't work today, just as it didn't work in 1917, 1941, 1950 or 9/11! Withdrawing our troops before the Iraqi and Afghan governments are ready to take care of their own internal security would be foolish, and lead to a bloodbath. We need to do it when they are ready, not before, and to do it in such a way as to keep the terrorists guessing. Besides, we still have a score to settle with a guy named Bin Laden. GovExec.com reader Posted December 21, 2005 3:47 PM
• This is a different story than the one I commented on last week. While it no longer makes the ridiculous implication that Bush supported anti-torture legislation any way but grudgingly, I am troubled that the edit is not acknowledged anywhere I can see. It's not listed in the corrections area of the site. And the whole thing about the island for military hunting seems to have been tacked on as an afterthought. It’s an odd subject to add, given that the representative involved is named "Hunter." My initial objections to rewriting history have only grown. The original article was wrong, and the new one is a trick to hide that fact. Just tell the truth. GovExec.com reader Posted December 19, 2005 1:17 PM
• Next week Rep. Hunter will be just like Bush, it will be there idea in a few days. These Bush people are all alike. They don't like anyone’s ideas until the public pressure is so great they have to accept them. Then they make it sound like it was their idea. I give you the 9/11 commission, the Department of Homeland Security and other programs. Remember when Condi Rice was not going to testify until the pressure was unbearable, then it was a great idea for her to testify before the subcommittee. It is the same old broken record with these people and I am tired of listening to it. At least we all know the president has been withholding information about spying on American citizens. Guess that will be someone else’s fault in a couple weeks. Have a great Christmas everyone -- well, that would be the millionaires and billionaires and the middle class and poor of the country, well, you just do the best you can and by the way, get another job and quit sponging off the government. That is what the rich people do and they have a right to your money. rds Posted December 17, 2005 8:46 PM