Minnesotans reflect split on Bin Laden photos

WASHINGTON - To Rep. Michele Bachmann, the photos of Osama Bin Laden's corpse proved that "we got our man."

But to fellow Republican Rep. John Kline, they didn't "make him any deader."

That difference underscores the contrasting responses of the two Minnesota lawmakers, who were among a select few in Congress invited to view the classified photos of the dead Al-Qaida leader at CIA headquarters in Langley, Va.

Bachmann made the trip Thursday morning. Kline stayed back at the Capitol.

"I am convinced that this was Bin Laden," said Bachmann, a member of the House Intelligence Committee. "We got our man."

Kline, a retired Marine and member of the House Armed Services Committee, said he felt no need to see photos from the May 1 raid on the Al-Qaida leader's redoubt in Abbottabad, Pakistan.

"I have absolute confidence in the people I trust -- including our troops, intelligence officials, and the Navy Seals who carried out this operation," Kline said. "I have absolute confidence that he is dead, and looking at the picture doesn't make him any deader."

Taken moments after Bin Laden was killed by Navy SEALs, the photos were described as "pretty graphic" by Sen. Jim Inhofe, an Oklahoma Republican who saw them. Inhofe and other members of Congress say they depicted close-up shots of Bin Laden's head and torso.

Bin Laden reportedly was shot in the head and chest during the operation.

Lawmakers are not being allowed to take away copies, in keeping with President Obama's decision to withhold the photos from the public. Some civil liberties advocates have said the decision amounts to censorship.

Some security officials have said the release of the photos would needlessly incite violence in some parts of the Muslim world while doing nothing to convince doubters. Obama said he would not "spike the ball" by releasing the photos of the bloodied mastermind of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Among those who accepted the CIA's invitation was Rep. Peter King, a New York Republican who has pushed for the release of the photos. King told Politico that he felt he owed it to his constituents to experience the "satisfaction" and head off any further debate about whether Bin Laden is dead or alive.

Bachmann said she would support a release of the DNA match to the public.

"While these photos provide certainty of Bin Laden's identity," Bachmann said, "I also believe the best evidence of Bin Laden's identity is found through the release of the terrorist's DNA match."

Selected lawmakers were invited to schedule individual appointments, and asked to check their mobile devices before being escorted into a conference room at the CIA.