Of all of the criticisms of President Obama’s shifts on the interrogation program, the Washington Post’s David Ignatius offers perhaps the most devastating and ominous one, after speaking to CIA personnel:

Sad to say, it’s slow roll time at Langley after the release of interrogation memos that, in the words of one veteran officer, “hit the agency like a car bomb in the driveway.” President Obama promised CIA officers that they won’t be prosecuted for carrying out lawful orders, but the people on the firing line don’t believe him. They think the memos have opened a new season of investigation and retribution.
The lesson for younger officers is obvious: Keep your head down. Duck the assignments that carry political risk. Stay away from a counterterrorism program that has become a career hazard.

This, by the way, illustrates a consequence of the phenomenon that I describe as all of Obama’s statements coming with an expiration date. When Obama says that CIA personnel will not be prosecuted for their actions, no one believes that his position won’t shift when it becomes politically difficult.

Feel safer, America!