The administration of US President Donald Trump has begun returning to Congress copies of a 2014 report describing the CIA’s harsh detention and torture techniques under the George W. Bush administration.
The White House made the move in response to requests by Republican Senator Richard Burr, the Senate Intelligence Committee’s current chairman, The New York Times reported Friday, citing US officials.
The CIA and the agency’s inspector general’s office, as well as the national intelligence director’s office, have returned their copies, the report said. The State, Justice and Defense departments also have copies but have not returned them yet.
The decision means it could be more difficult for the massive 6,700-page report to be made public so long as Republicans control the Senate and House of Representatives, because documents held by Congress are exempt from laws requiring government records to eventually be made public.
A 500-page summary of the…