Senate Grills FBI Nominee Over Torture, Spying

A few high-profile issues ...

FBI nominee James Comey may be a hero to Democrats for his dramatic, late-night stand against warrantless wiretapping in 2004, but that didn't stop senators from pressing him today on national security policies.

Comey, nominated as the next FBI director by President Obama in May, appeared Tuesday for a confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

With the Obama administration's national security policies under scrutiny by Congress and under fire from civil libertarians, committee members sought answers from Comey on his views on NSA email collection, FISA-court transparency, IRS political targeting, indefinite detention and force-feeding at Guantanamo.

And they zeroed in on an aspect of his record that civil libertarians are far less enamored of than his stand against warrantless wiretapping: his approval of enhanced-interrogation techniques as deputy attorney general under President George W. Bush.