John McCain and Barack Obama argued over foreign policy and the economy during tonight’s first presidential debate. You can read a transcript here and watch the first part on CNN.
Torture came up briefly towards the end. (Update: Below are full quotes from the transcript)
McCain: “And we’ve got to – to make sure that we have people who are trained interrogators so that we don’t ever torture a prisoner ever again.”
Obama: “But because of some of the mistakes that have been made – and I give Senator McCain great credit on the torture issue, for having identified that as something that undermines our long-term security – because of those things, we, I think, are going to have a lot of work to do in the next administration to restore that sense that America is that shining beacon on a hill.”
A recent poll released by Mercer University found that 57 percent of Southern Baptists said torture can be often or sometimes justified to gain important information from suspected terrorists. Thirty-eight percent said it was never or rarely justified.
David Gushee previously wrote a piece for CT on torture, and the magazine has a special section on the issue.
