The Unintelligent Choice
The Unintelligent Choice
At 10AM this morning, President Bush will name John Negroponte as the new Director of Intelligence for the United States.
Who is John Negroponte?
You may remember him best as one of the key figures in the Iran-Contra scandal during the Reagan administration. John Negroponte was the ambassador to Honduras from 1981 to 1985. While there, he was directed the secret arming of the Contra rebels in Nicaragua to help them overthrow the Sandinista government.
At the time, he also was “cozy” with the chief of the Honduran national police force, Gen. Gustavo Alvarez Martinez. Martinez ran the infamous Battalion 316 death squad. Battalion 316 “kidnapped, tortured and murdered” dozens of people while Negroponte was ambassador. Negroponte, however, turned a blind eye to the death squad and ignored the gross human rights abuses so Honduras would allow bases for U.S.-backed Contras.
Negroponte maintained he knew nothing about them, leading to his nickname, “the ostrich ambassador.” The abuses, however, were widely chronicled in local papers. That means he either willfully ignored the mass murders and torturing of citizens or he was so out of touch that he didn’t see the atrocities going on beneath his very nose. Neither of these scenarios is what the United States needs in a National Director of Intelligence.
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Remember this man is old family friends of Walkers and Bushes. His publishing interests are part of purpose in the “No Child Left Behind” cash cow for certain publishers. See below… Yale, etc.NAME — John Dimitri Negroponte.
AGE; BIRTH DATE — 65; born July 21, 1939, in London.
EDUCATION — B.A., Yale University, 1960.
EXPERIENCE — Ambassador to Iraq, 2004-present; ambassador to the United Nations, 2001-2004; executive vice president, McGraw-Hill Cos., 1997-2001; ambassador to the Philippines, 1993-96; ambassador to Mexico, 1989-93; deputy national security adviser, 1987-89; assistant secretary of state, oceans, international environmental, scientific affairs, 1985-1987; ambassador to Honduras, 1981-85; deputy assistant secretary of state, East Asian and Pacific affairs, 1980-81; deputy assistant secretary of state, oceans and fisheries, 1977-79.
FAMILY — Wife, Diana; five children.
February 17th, 2005 at 10:33 amCongratulations to our president! I didn’t believe it would be possible to top the stupidity of appointing Rice and Gonzales to their new posts, but the president proved me wrong.
February 17th, 2005 at 11:31 amThis is beyond the pale and we must make a real Stand. Goss, Rice, Gonzales & now an avowed terrorist…what will happen to domestic dissent?
February 17th, 2005 at 11:36 amPlease everyone out there write, call and e-mail your representatives and let’s get this man out of the office. This is our country and we need to let them know loud and strong how we feel….on a daily basis, if that what it takes. Bush and his buddies are out of control and it’s hard to believe that they’ll just suddenly reverse course and start making sense. Come on call, write and scream it out loud!!!
February 17th, 2005 at 11:49 amI wish we could get some honest people into government. What are Bush and his cronies doing to this country?
February 17th, 2005 at 11:50 amWe’ll see if any of our elected representatives question this appointment as they should. We’ll also see how the major media plays it out. I suspect that outrage will be left to the blogs. Who wants to place odds?
February 17th, 2005 at 11:51 amThe lead dog of the major media, the NYTimes, only found room enough to go back four years in Mr. Negroponte’s resume’.
February 17th, 2005 at 12:10 pmthinkprogress@americanprogressaction.org
February 17th, 2005 at 12:13 pmscroll to Negroponte for interesting reading and leads to follow up on.
previous link was in error Here is the negroponte info http://www.fpif.org/republicanrule/officials_body.html
February 17th, 2005 at 12:19 pmThis is indeed the administration of crooks and criminals and murderous bullies. Why hasn’t Bush been impeached and he and his cronies put in jail for treason against the American citizenry?
February 17th, 2005 at 12:35 pmThe decision to name Negroponte Director of Intellegence for the US is beyond belief. I feer what we are witnessing is the creation of a Political Dictatorship in the name of National Security. This, too, must be overthrown!
February 17th, 2005 at 12:42 pmNegroponte was hastily confirmed as U.S. ambassador to the U.N. right after the September 11 attacks, when it became urgent for this administration to have a representative there. Given the timing, and the pressure, it was an act of real courage for Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa to put his opposition to Negroponte on the record in a detailed way. His outrage is fueled by Negroponte’s having lied to him when (as a Congressman) Harkin met with him to push for information about a priest from Iowa who was killed in Honduras. I believe that priest is one of the two Americans whose bodies were found in the mass grave there, beneath the security service’s torture center.
I urge those interested to check out Harkin’s testimony in the Congressional Record.
February 17th, 2005 at 12:58 pmThis has become the Iran-Contra Administration, hasn’t it? An Administration of elite (Andover/Yale, e.g.) renegades who have been operating aggressively against the constitution and the rule of law for many decades (some would say they have their roots in enthusiasm for fascim).
I am disappointed to read here that this hasn’t prompted a discussion of the obvious– that this Iran-Contra cabal now rules the country, and was clearly, all along, a network operated by Andover/Yalie Bush I.
I think Kevin Phillips put some of this forward in his book, but I haven’t read it.
We really need a committee of some kind to investigate and expose this — rather than just author by author. Clearly this won’t be coming from congress, whose oversight responsibilities have been abdicated except by the admirable Senator Levin.
February 17th, 2005 at 1:04 pmWhen will the moral morons who reelected Bush see what he really stands for? The time is long past due for us to confront anyone who has these knee jerk responses to Bush as being moral, patriotic and a compassionate conservative. Get in their faces and mention the atrocities he has stood for; then ask them why they support him.
February 17th, 2005 at 1:05 pmSo long as the left is upset, then Bush is doing good.
February 17th, 2005 at 1:08 pmHastings, DeLay, Rice….ad nauseum! This appointment is just another brick in the wall to separate and protect Bush and his administration from us, the People! My advice is to do everything possible to begin impeachment proceedings against Bush.
February 17th, 2005 at 1:12 pmMichaelmooronic is true to his name, despite his obvious belief of his own cleverness in choosing that name. That is about the dumbest statement I have ever seen in a variety of ways. Talk about an ostrich, this guy will bury his head in the sand about anything the president is doing on his behalf, “so long as the left is upset”. Add that to his bad grammar and we have a real winner. Seriously, comments like that are exactly what is wrong with our country. It’s become an “us vs. them” issue and a whole lot of people, egged on by mainstream propaganda, think that they are “winning”. Guess what, Mike, you’re winning nothing. We’re all losing from most of our president’s policies. Luckily for you, it seems like you don’t have much to lose and don’t have the brain to care when it’s gone. Great for you. The rest of us care.
February 17th, 2005 at 1:21 pmYet another action that gives the lie to their “pro-life” “moral” stance– a man who ran death squads against nuns and priests.
Fast forward to now, and you have Catholic Bishops interfering in the election on Bush’s behalf.
February 17th, 2005 at 1:41 pmI have made it my duty to call my Congress person and Senators to let them know how outraged I am at what Bush and his right wing criminal buddies are doing to this country. I’ve had luck having letters to the editor published. The right is very diciplined and organized. Liberals and progressives must do the same. Hound the telivision media to report Negroponte’s background in condoning human rights abuses. Be outraged but also do something about it! i have written to CNN, MSNBC, ABC, C-Span, and mylocal television station. Do something. Orgnize letter writing campaigns. Don’t allow Bush and company to get away with criminal behavior. This is the worst bunch of criminals we have ever had leading our country to ruin. Nixon may have been a crook but Bush I and Bush II are outright guilty of war crimes.
February 17th, 2005 at 1:44 pmThis is the first time I have come across this blog, and although advertised as a “non-partisan” entity, it’s interesting that every post on here is liberally slanted. Your Terms of Use plainly state, “You agree not to post any messages or provide links to any messages that endorse or oppose a particular political party.” I guess a comment on this site only qualifies as “progressive” if it’s anti-Republican or anti-Bush.
February 17th, 2005 at 1:58 pmNote: Kevin Phillips, whose book is referenced above, is a Republican, and is anti-Bush. Bush is not a candidate for office, but is, (this must be a nightmare) currently holding the Office of President of the United States of America.
February 17th, 2005 at 2:17 pmHi, Ed. As far as I’m concerned there are serious issues that need addressing, John Negroponte notwithstanding. There are some Democrats/Progressives that deserve a good critiquing, as well. At any rate, abusing one’s position of power is criminal. Period. These problems need to be solved, sir.
February 17th, 2005 at 2:18 pmI guess Bush wanted company–with a wink Bush does not see the torture of prisoners–and Negrponte did not see the human Rights abuse
February 17th, 2005 at 2:19 pmFeedback: people I have talked to about this, who aren’t absorbed in politics or even foreign affairs, see this appointment as a horror — perhaps because it comes in the midst of so many appointments of criminals who have had a hand in murder and torture, and have connections to Iran-Contra, but the post itself– NID — a pinacle of power that was objectionable in the first place– to appoint such a man, with such a background, with such a modus operendi, and with such unsavory connections– is regarded as a new and important nadir of the Bush Administration.
February 17th, 2005 at 2:22 pmI already wrote to my Senators about Solar Energy this morning, but I did send off an e-mail to Newshour@pbs.org and evening@cbsnews.com asking them to tell the whole truth abut what Grenspan really said. I’ll try getting my opinion in on Nigropointe, tomarrow! That’s what more of us need to be doing, keep writting to ‘main’ stream media to get them to cover both sides of issues. Keep the letters going to your representatives. It might do some good if enough people keep at it.
I’d love to impeach Bush, but I don’t know how!
Anyone have any suggestions?
How about forming a third party, not with the idea of winning the presidency but just enough that with the ‘correct’ canidates in the House and Senate, we could control a swing vote?
Green/Indep./Progressive “GIP” ?
I became a Dem. to work against Bush, and support Kerry. I’m very disillusioned with what I saw, I had hoped Dean would make a difference, but it looks like the party’s ‘old guard’ is going to stay in control, and want to maintain their ‘private’ party! Give us your money, and take your opinions some where else!
February 17th, 2005 at 2:27 pmOf all of the Bush nominations, THIS is the one that must be stopped. Appointing a man with his stature and credentials will further slide America into it’s dillusioned state in world affairs.
I’d also like to mention that his wife is my (ironically) Latin American History professor at Fordham University. She is quite histrionic and hammy with her lessons, dramatizing even the dullest of topics. When we begin to cover the Latin American revolutions, I will be sure to be melodramatic about her husband’s a) incompetency of doing his job and/or b) demonic demeanor he employed in Honduras.
Thanks for this great blog… Keep it up!
February 17th, 2005 at 2:28 pmEvery day I hear another disgusting fact about this administration. I keep thinking it can’t get worse and then it gets worse. Negroponte is yet another terrible choice to hold office. Bush and his cronies are leading us to total destruction.
February 17th, 2005 at 2:31 pmAnother nomimation that disgraces the integrity of our country in the eyes of anyone who knows Negropote’s blind eye to attrocities in Hondoras.
February 17th, 2005 at 2:34 pmwhat about http://www.impeachbush.org – I signed the petition, what next?
February 17th, 2005 at 2:37 pmLiving Death,
Continue forth, as you were. My hope is to one day attain the cerebral level that has come to define Living Death; I guess I should first attain my GED.
Seriously, though, the far left has lost itself in the weeds of distortion, have forgotten liberty and freedom as universal goals and is basically becoming a place for the most ignorant and the most apathetic. Progressive is merely a label to improve one’s thoughts of oneself, and is actually a regressive movement.
Please forward more personal attacks though, it is what progressives do best.
By the way, did you ever find yourself questioning liberal propaganda? I did, finally, after being innundated with ignorance and adopting the Democratic party line. It is liberating to distance oneself from socialist/communist/pseudo-progressives and become an independent. But, I am sure you have many more degrees than I and you are much more astute.
Allah ya salmak, Living Deathtone
February 17th, 2005 at 2:39 pmTry doing a Google search on this guy, you’d think he was the devil in a suit!
Remember that the Bush administration has spawned deeply racist prison torture. To put forth someone who includes this sort of behavior in the realm of the thinkable, doesn’t that move our country squarely in the wrong direction? Just asking…
What assurance do I have that more fascist behavior will not be employed to “fix” some multinational’s bottom line? It is my sad duty as an American citizen and believer in the principles under which our constitution was founded to protest this frightening use of Negroponte. Doesn’t history require that people speak up?
Intelligent and skilled though JDN may be, he has demonstrated that he will deal in the currency of terror. To permit the use of death squads is the same as dealing with terrorists. “The ends justify the means” is frowned upon as a political philosophy because it is leads to chaos and instability, something that those out for gain love. That’s terrorism, isn’t it?
With all the wonderful talk of wonderful elections in Iraq, its easy to forget that we went to Iraq by confusing them with disenchanted Saudis, thinking erroneously that there were WMD, when gainfully employed UN inspectors were saying it was fantasy…its easy to see that we attacked Iraq just to get Hussein, and deepen our military presence where oil is produced. Its obvious. Its “in our interest.”
Now putting a reactionary in charge of our own secret police, that saw the use of allowing death squads to flourish…what next? I really think a more “Geneva Convention” oriented guy would have been a better choice. It would have showed the world that our democratic values are improving.
Let me put it another way: if one is so immersed in the accumulation of wealth that death squads are no longer recognizable as such, then one has lost perspective, and become fascist. That’s as good a definition as I should need. The least he could do is come clean. But no, this philosophy goes in its bunker.
I’ve watched the rhetoric of government freely adopt “In Our Interest” as the excuse for just about everthing I dissagree with in my gut: brutal warlike behavior, evil weaponry, turning a blind eye, dealing with the devil, selling out the Constitution. Government must be a hard job, yes, but important to do right, because wronghearted use of power is anti-life on a vast scale.
All this is leading to delegitimization, it supports racism and hegemony on a world scale. How much social and economic debt and malfeasance can a society endure? Let’s find out with this latest fabulous idea of putting an Iran-Contra death-squad figure in charge of US intelligence.
February 17th, 2005 at 3:06 pmPaul,
Keep your open mind, the hallmark of a progressive….and I am sure you would be able to dissect my post on Freerepublic, are you willing to try?
I gander you probably support Richard Clarke’s assertions as well as Chomsky’s in Hegemony or Survival, no? (Yes, I do read Chomsky and Nader, scary, I know)
Does a post on Freerepublic mean closemindedness?
Michealmooronic
February 17th, 2005 at 3:45 pmDisgusting!! How can a criminal such as negroponte be chosen for such a post? Oh, wait, I forgot. This is corporate America and Bush is the president. How could I have forgotten such important details.
February 17th, 2005 at 3:46 pmLet’s concentrate on the job and not the man, for a minute. Director of National Intelligence. Frankly, unless this man is willing to break the hidebound traditions of the CIA, the FBI and the various branches of military intelligence, nothing will be accomplished other than the false sense that we are being protected. The only person who will have the power to do that is a democratic/populist president who wins the middle class with a substantial enough margin to take these agencies to the mat, or behind the woodshed. We should probably abolish the FBI and CIA and start over.
February 17th, 2005 at 3:55 pmWhy the surprise? They just made Elliot Abrams deputy National Security Advisor; this is a guy who actually pleaded guilty to lying to congress in 1987 during the Iran-Contra thing (only a misdemeanor) when he was threatened with a felony indictment. The dictatorship-supporter of the 80’s is now our “democracy czar” !!!
Nothing outrages me anymore… :(
February 17th, 2005 at 3:59 pm“Liberty and freedom as universal goals”???
You gotta be kidding… you say this in a post defending a man who covered up Honduran death squads?
Now I’ve heard everything.
February 17th, 2005 at 4:02 pmIronic that Bush would select an Iran-Contra devotee to prevent Iranian terrorists from threatening the U.S. (we sold weapons to Iran and used the money to fund an illegal war in Nicaragua). Can’t trust this guy – either he is dumber than stone, or is very dishonest!
February 17th, 2005 at 4:30 pmNegroponte or what ever, should he be nominated by our repug senators, will undoutably hire Gannon, or viagra man to be his vice and drug squad chief, he likes baldies.
February 17th, 2005 at 4:34 pmNegroponte, one more war-monger , human rights violator, is added to the list of idiots to the current administration. May your favorite God saves us from these dick heads.
February 17th, 2005 at 5:10 pmDeeper and deeper into fascism. Propaganda, corporate interests, gross nationalism, human rights abuses, funding for arts, sciences (no environmental data is better than “bad” environmental data) and education cut, equating the peacemakers to anti-patriots and accuse them of making the country more vulnerable, lie until it becomes ccepted as truth, propaganda, propaganda, propaganda. Something very bad has happened here. It must be recognized and halted.
February 17th, 2005 at 5:35 pmANOTHER YALE GRADUATE (SKULL AND BONES). tHOSE ARE THE ONLY PEOPLE WHO GET THE CHOICE JOBS.
February 17th, 2005 at 6:12 pmnegroponte’s appointment is jsut more piling on by bushco — condoleeza rice, the incompetent, lying national security director, is now secretary of state; alberto “it depends on how you define torture” gonzales is now attorney general and chertoff ready to slide into “homeland security” — my outrage meter went off the chart weeks ago.
February 17th, 2005 at 6:19 pmNegroponte is a horrible selection, but what could we expect from this president who has appointed the worst capable to the highest positions and – when they make serious errors, he promotes them. Negroponte is a nefarious figure in politics, going back to the Reagan years. His greatest asset is that he is a long time friend of the family of Bushes and he helped protect Poppy Bush and Reagan during the late 80’s. Caspar Weinberger, Ollie North and others have all either been pardoned or celebrated since their felonious dealings in with Noriega, the Sandanistas, Contras and Iran.
February 17th, 2005 at 7:26 pmI heard about Negroponte on the radio tonite and it took my breath away — this is bad folks – civil disobedience? free speech? — This thug – blood on his hands already will have HUGE budget- just as the bush machine starts to get desperate – grabbing all the money and power they can get before the clock runs out — OR– will secret army be able to stop the clock completely — oooh — nightmares tonite!
February 17th, 2005 at 8:00 pmThis is the letter I just sent to my congresswoman Diane Feinstein…..
I certainly hope you will stand up and vote AGAINST this appointment. What a travesty against human rights.
Mr Negroponte’s past speaks VOLUMES against him. He would certainly complete a powerful triumverate against Human Rights. Heaven help us with the power over freedom and human rights handed to Negroponte along with “tortue memo” Attorney General Gonzales and “seize, lockup and hold without due process” Homeland Security Secretary Chertoff.
John Negroponte was ambassador to Honduras from 1981-1985. As such he supported and carried out a US-sponsored policy of violations to human rights and international law. Among other things he supervised the creation of the El Aguacate air base, where the US trained Nicaraguan Contras during the 1980’s. The base was used as a secret detention and torture center, in August 2001 excavations at the base discovered the first of the corpses of the 185 people, including two Americans, who are thought to have been killed and buried at this base.
During his ambassadorship, human rights violations in Honduras became systematic. The infamous Battalion 316, trained by the CIA and Argentine military, kidnaped, tortured and killed hundreds of people. Negroponte knew about these human rights violations and yet continued to collaborate with them, while lying to Congress.
I URGE you to do everything you can to STOP this appointment.
February 17th, 2005 at 8:39 pmWe must never run short of outrage, and the Dems deserve nearly as much as the Repugs for letting this happen without much more than a token whimper or two.
We need to let the Dems know that we despise them for their cult fetish for the Lakoff book, alerting us to the fact that they’re still looking for ways to SOUND more appealing instead of BEING more appealing.
February 17th, 2005 at 10:16 pmThe only thing more amazingly corrupt than the
February 18th, 2005 at 12:03 amappointment of Negroponte is the prevalence of far right wingers in the congress who have old school German American Bund last names. Ism’s of any stripe do get passed down from generation to generation. This current crop of ‘ists tops the
list in the triumph of ideology over reason in all
areas of american life. Their true god is, and one to whom they will continue calling for some one else’s children to pay the last full measure of sacrifice; is their worship of the dollar. They did the same in Vietnam/Iran/Contra/1st Iraq war/
Iraq2 and each time a little more came to the surface and they became ever richer. They now do right out in the open what they used to do behind closed doors because with 51% of voters so clearly brainwashed they wil continue to act as
though they really have a mandate.
The [Intelligence] committee’s top Democrat, Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia, called Negroponte “a sound choice.”
http://www.courierpress.com/ecp/gleaner_news/article/0,1626,ECP_4476_3556857,00.html
February 18th, 2005 at 1:59 amLook here, people:
I want the credit that I am due.
From time’s beginning, I have always demanded the same exact sacrifices from those of you who worship at the altar of Gold-Mammon: the blood of the innocent.
If you would have dominion over others, excess wealth, and the ability to indulge any of your most perversely disgusting urges without any fear of accountability, then you must apease my hunger for human suffering.
It has always been this way, and always shall be.
Your leaders have only followed the example of their master, and I am the “Father of Lies.”
–
Admit it: I have completely and utterly ruined the reputations of all of the annointed prophets and every holy church. That so many who think they are following the will of their Creator, while supporting my agenda of destruction, is truly my proudest achievment!
The weak willed, petty, self-absorbed beasts and insects who are now your masters would be less than nothing without me!!
By all means, please, continue to believe the lies. Kill the poor and downtrodden for Our Father and bomb innocent children for His Son, Jesus.
I am so proud of the chaos and death being created by these, my “wolves in sheep’s
- M. B. “the Dragon” Mammon
February 18th, 2005 at 5:02 am“a reptile hiding in human flesh.”
NEGROPONTE RIMES WITH NECROPHILIA HE IS A GOON, HE IS A CONTRA FUNDING SANDINISTA MURDERERING BASTERD
February 18th, 2005 at 5:31 amWhat are the odds on Charles Manson getting a plum cabinet job before the end of Bush’s current reign?
February 18th, 2005 at 11:36 amIn the article “Getting Serious About Election Reform� it states this:
Today Senators Clinton, Boxer and Kerry, along with Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones, held a press conference to unveil an ambitious and very comprehensive election reform proposal, which they want enacted in time for the 2006 mid-term balloting. Thank God they moved quickly on this idea, instead of letting the memories of a second straight presidential election nearly winding up in the courts fade.
The proposal itself is pretty far-reaching, including (1) making Election Day a federal holiday, (2) creating uniform rules for handling of provisional ballots, (3) requiring early voting opportunities, along with no-questions-asked absentee balloting, (4) boosting training for poll workers, (5) criminalizing voter intimidation tactics, (6) restoring voting rights for former felons, (7) requiring paper receipts for electronic voting machines, and (8) providing the federal funds to make sure this reform isn’t as shoddily impemented as its predecessor, the Help America Vote Act.
In this poll we ask you to vote on each one point. If you vote no, could you please explain why. click here to vote on the proposals.
February 20th, 2005 at 9:56 amhell, he’s not even a Negro!
February 20th, 2005 at 1:54 pmNegraponte was also in neighboring Peru during the US back coup the assasinated Allende and put human right violator Pinochet in power. Negraponte’s wife was affiliated with a questionable relief organization while they were in Homduras and that group interferred with the efforts of ohter agencies working with the UNHCR as Mesa Grande and other refugee camps set up for refugees from El Salvador.
February 20th, 2005 at 9:51 pmI would like to know WHY the papers and news stories on the tube seldom talk about these stories. Almost all of the people selected by “W”, were involved in and complicit with all the really bad things that happened during the Reagan and BII administrations. It seems that the more corrupt the person is, the more “W”, wants them!
February 21st, 2005 at 3:54 pmJohn Negroponte, hmmm let’s see–Iran-Contra scandal, Battalion 316, Honduras..How quickly people forget. Well let’s not forget that we are being led into a string of wars by one of the biggest criminals on earth-g. bush. Iraq is just the beginning. And his appointments to his cabinet are the biggest sign of all that he does not care about the welfare of Americans, only the money he can put in his pockets. Stolen elections? You bet your ass.
February 23rd, 2005 at 10:40 amBasically, it seems that many people are concerned that government is becoming too “ganster”.
I believe the country could be brought back together significantly if these election problems were solved fairly and forthrightly.
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