Right-Wing Talking Point Debunked
Right-Wing Talking Point Debunked
Yesterday, on CNN’s Inside Politics, right-wing political operative Rich Galen tried to rebut the idea that Karl Rove and others were leaking classified information. In this exchange with host Candy Crowley, Galen attempts to play down a Washington Post story identifying the “secret” State Department memo aboard Air Force One which administration officials may have used to out a covert CIA agent.
CROWLEY: Today there is a new development. The “Washington Post” reports on a classified State Department memo marked “S” for top secret in which Plame’s married name appears. If anyone in the White House saw that and still leaked her identity, that person could be in a world of trouble.
GALEN: I’m not sure it was top secret. It said secret.
CROWLEY: Yeah, right. It didn’t say “TS,” it said “S,” secret.
That talking point had a shelf-life of less than 24 hours. Today, the Wall Street Journal reports that the memo was indeed “top secret.”
A key department memo discussing Joseph Wilson’s Niger trip was classified “Top Secret,” and the passage about his wife’s CIA role was specially marked “S/NF” — not to be shared with any foreign intelligence agencies.
UPDATE: Crooks and Liars has the video of the Galen segment.
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Why split a few hairs over wording? TS, S it’s all the same – RIGHT!
July 22nd, 2005 at 7:20 amSoon the right will be trying to debate the meaning of the word “secret.”
July 22nd, 2005 at 7:59 amhttp://patriotboy.blogspot.com/2005_07_17_patriotboy_archive.html#112201032107354704
Rove/Libby Talking Points for Republican Activists
Rove and Libby did not betray top secret information to foreigners. They betrayed it to American reporters.
Betraying Top Secret information for political purposes is one of the most patriotic things an American citizen can do.
There were too many “non-official cover” agents working on weapons of mass destruction intelligence at the CIA. By betraying Plame, Rove and Libby forced the Agency to become leaner and meaner.
If a great American like Orrin Hatch can betray top secret information, so can Karl Rove and Scooter Libby.
Rove and Libby are good men. They once joined Supreme Court Nominee John G. Roberts in locating a missing white woman.
There is no truth to the rumor that Mr. Rove then ordered a “work up” on the woman to discover her vulnerabilities.
Joe Wilson, on the other hand, has never mentioned the problem of missing white women in any of his interviews.
The 75% of all Americans and the 71% of all Republicans who think that Rove should be fired if he leaked classified information are partisan Democrat hacks. If we have any Top Secret/No Foriegn classified information about them or their spouses, we should use it to destroy them.
The fact that the Administration prosecuted ex-DIA agent Jonathan Randel for leaking information classified at a lower level than Top Secret/No Foriegn, does not mean that Rove and Libby should receive similar treatment. Randel leaked information about a money launderer who was allied with the Administration. Libby and Rove betrayed a CIA agent for honorable reasons–her husband committed a treacherous act, he had embarrassed Our Leader.
* There seems to be an exception for Saudi princes. It must be one of the perks of royalty.
“Saturday, Jan. 11, with the president’s permission, Cheney and Rumsfeld call Bandar to Cheney’s West Wing office, and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Gen. Myers, is there with a top-secret map of the war plan. And it says, ‘Top secret. No foreign.’ No foreign means no foreigners are supposed to see this,” says Woodward.
July 22nd, 2005 at 8:24 amthe first commenter is right — it doesn’t matter whether it was s, ts, or even confidential. still classified.
July 22nd, 2005 at 9:07 amIt doesn’t matter what the media thinks about this memo. Patrick Fitzgerald believes this is an important piece of evidence.
I believe that Fitzgerald is an intelligent, experienced prosecutor knows how to prosecute a case.
Ultimately he will decide to use the evidence properly and get convictions. Or, he will decide to behave like the liars in question and drop the case.
He has an important decision to make and the pressure is on him and him only.
What will he do? Do his job or join BushCo?
America is watching Patrick Fitzgerald and his choices will make or break his career.
July 22nd, 2005 at 9:37 amSusan – Fitzgerald appears to have made his choice by pursuing
July 22nd, 2005 at 10:03 amcontempt charges and threatening jail time to force reporters
to testify. That had to be justified by presenting evidence that
serious crimes had been committed, which could only be proved
with the evidence of the journalists. The judges who saw that
sealed evidence had no doubts. Having gone that far, it seems
very unlikely that Fitzgerald could back down and give up without
any indictments.
I’ve got a Presidential Medal of Freedom waiting for anyone who can put a hit out for Fitzgerald. Please..? Who’d have thought he’d subpoena Air Force One phone records, now he’s gonna find out everything…
July 22nd, 2005 at 10:32 amSo according to Republican logic these days…the identity of a under-cover CIA operative can be leaked, putting national security in jeapordy as long as that info is marked “secret”.
Because when something is market “secret” you just HAVE to tell somebody. I mean, if it was really important it wouldn’t be just any old secret, it would be a “top secret.”
July 22nd, 2005 at 12:51 pmhttp://www.crooksandliars.com/2005/07/21.html#a4072
July 22nd, 2005 at 12:57 pmhere’s teh video segment
Actually, it only matters if in the para that mentioned Plame, THAT was the part that was S/NF, leading the para to be designated at that level. Rove could still try to claim he thought it meant something else in the para, a semi-plausible claim by anyone who’s familiar with such docs.
July 22nd, 2005 at 1:36 pmOne of Val P’s former CIA ‘undercover’ classmates has come forward to debunk the republican lies.
http://rawstory.com/news/2005/Advance_Colleague_of_outed_agent_seeks_to_setrecord_st_0722.html
He points out that it was in fact CHENEY who requested a CIA review (something he denies but the official record confirms), and he also points out that Rustman is a partisan hack who hasn’t worked with or kept in contact with Val P for 15 years, and knows nothing of her ‘undercover’ status. In otherwords, he’s an idiot like the rest of these treasonous fascist bastards!
July 22nd, 2005 at 6:20 pm#6 Richard, good point. There are new questions about Miller and why she is so adamant about keeping her secrets. She holds a lot of information. It must be info that incriminates BushCo or someone would have beaten it out of her by now. If her info would help BushCo she’d be black and blue from head to toe for not talking.
July 22nd, 2005 at 10:03 pmRyan, Plame was described by Bushco as being a desk ornament yet the “liars” claim she had enough power to send her husband to Niger.
Let em keep talking, they contradict themselves every time they open their mouths. They must like it when the noose tightens.
July 22nd, 2005 at 10:07 pmYou should see the great lengths the right-wing is going though to defend this tratior it’s unbeliveable.
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December 1st, 2005 at 4:40 pm