ThinkFast: February 9, 2007
ThinkFast: February 9, 2007
The Pentagon’s Inspector General has found that Rumsfeld aide Douglas Feith’s rogue pre-war intel group was an “inappropriate” use of intelligence by Pentagon civilians, and was “predisposed to finding a significant relationship between Iraq and Al Qaeda.” Senate intel chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) says he will probe whether the Pentagon broke the law by “failing to notify Congress about the group’s work.”
All 435 House members will be allowed to view the classified version of the National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq, providing “fuel for a House debate” next week in which all members “will be given five minutes to speak” on Bush’s escalation plan.
For the first time in history, “more of America’s poor are living in the suburbs than the cities — 1.2 million more, according to a 2005 survey. ‘The suburbs have reached a tipping point,’ says Brookings Institution analyst Alan Berube.”
Sir Richard Branson and Al Gore announced $25 million will go to the winner of the Earth Challenge Prize, a competition announced to see “who comes up with the best way of removing significant amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.”
The White House released a “fact sheet” yesterday saying Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Joint Chiefs Chairman Peter Pace didn’t mean it when they said voting on an anti-escalation resolution will not hurt the morale of U.S. troops. The White House insists both believe in “the importance of Congressional support for our mission in Iraq.”
Deputy Attorney General Paul J. McNulty told a Senate panel this week that six U.S. attorneys were forced to resign for “performance-related” reasons. Yesterday, John McKay, the recently fired U.S. attorney based in Seattle, said McNulty’s comments were “unfair” and “he was told of no performance problems when he was asked to resign.”
Frustrated “by the slow response from Sudan’s government to international demands to ease the plight of refugees in Darfur,” a new group — Enough — has formed to “create a social and political network that can identify potential wide-scale atrocities, particularly in Africa, and stop them before they occur,” the Washington Post reports. The group is co-founded by Center for American Progress Senior Fellow Gayle Smith.
“The Homeland Security Department has failed to tell Congress how it is spending billions of dollars on major programs ranging from aviation security to Gulf Coast rebuilding, House appropriators said Thursday.”
And finally: Rep. Rodney Alexander (R-LA) has taken up the fight for turtle power. Alexander is working to repeal the Food and Drug Administration’s ban on the sale of baby turtles as pets. “Modern research has shown that turtles can be treated to eliminate the risk of salmonella, and I think it is time to amend this outdated ban that has hindered an important industry in Louisiana,” said Alexander.
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Oh man, start your Friday morning off right and head
over to crooks and liars.com. Check out the video of Barney Frank
smacking down an annoying little ankle biting umpa-lumpa
in one swift quip.
priceless.
February 9th, 2007 at 9:06 amFriday, February 09, 2007
Pentagon report confirms Iraq/al Qaeda intel was "dubious" -- a "devastating condemnation" of Bush Iraq policy
by Joe in DC - 2/09/2007 08:37:00 AM
A report from the Pentagon's Inspector General used the word "dubious" to describe the intelligence provided by Douglas Feith, an neocon who served as Undersecretary of Defense. Feith basically substituted the political agenda of George Bush for the work of the U.S. intelligence community as he tried to manufacture links between al Qaeda and Iraq. So much of what we all need to know about the Bush Administration is summed up in the response from Feith to The Washington Post:
In a telephone interview yesterday, Feith emphasized the inspector general's conclusion that his actions, described in the report as "inappropriate," were not unlawful.
Inappropriate, not unlawful. Tell that to the families of dead soldiers here or any of the Iraqis who've lost family members.
The new standard for the Bush team is, hey, we didn't break the law, we just lied and manipulated evidence so we'd go to war with Iraq -- without a plan. Senator Carl Levin has a more apt description:
"The bottom line is that intelligence relating to the Iraq-al-Qaeda relationship was manipulated by high-ranking officials in the Department of Defense to support the administration's decision to invade Iraq," Levin said yesterday. "The inspector general's report is a devastating condemnation of inappropriate activities in the DOD policy office that helped take this nation to war."
Now, that's an accurate assessment.
http://americablog.blogspot.com/
February 9th, 2007 at 9:06 amThe "performance-related" reason? I'm guessing they all were too good at uncovering and convicting Republicans.
February 9th, 2007 at 9:12 amThe White House released a “fact sheet†yesterday saying Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Joint Chiefs Chairman Peter Pace didn’t mean it when they said voting on an anti-escalation resolution will not hurt U.S. troops’ morale. The fact sheet says both believe in “the importance of Congressional support for our mission in Iraq.â€
Now that is the way a facist country SHOULD be run. After you say what you really mean they will make you sign something to the contrary. America, America god shed his light on thee....
February 9th, 2007 at 9:13 amThe Pentagon’s Inspector General has found that Rumsfeld aide Douglas Feith’s rogue pre-war intel group was an “inappropriate†use of intelligence by Pentagon civilians, and was “predisposed to finding a significant relationship between Iraq and Al Qaeda.â€
Meanwhile, in more important news....ANNA NICOLE SMITH IS DEAD!!!
Let's see which gets the most airtime, eh?
February 9th, 2007 at 9:15 amThe Pentagon’s Inspector General has found that Rumsfeld aide Douglas Feith’s rogue pre-war intel group was an “inappropriate†use of intelligence by Pentagon civilians, and was “predisposed to finding a significant relationship between Iraq and Al Qaeda.†Senate intel chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) says he will probe whether the group broke the law by failing to notify Congress about the group’s work.â€
Great! Then, everybody in Washington was in favor of attacking Iraq preemptively, trampling the UN and every one of the dissenters and not hearing the milions of voices around the world against the complete fiasco. Now, no one was in favor of starting a war.
Sadly, there a lot thousands of deads in Iraq and a few thousands of deads in the USA that will not rejoice of the new mindset.
And some years in the future, the USA population would forget what happened really, and when some Iraqi fundamentalist stages a terrorist plot against the USA, every one will ask "Why us?". Been there, done that.
February 9th, 2007 at 9:21 amSir Richard Branson and Al Gore announced $25 million will go to the winner of the Earth Challenge Prize, a competition announced to see “who comes up with the best way of removing significant amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.â€
Remove the Bush Administration.
Did I win?
February 9th, 2007 at 9:22 amI can't get over all the Anna Nicole coverage. I mean, it's sad but the non-stop coverage is ridiculous. I think this is the "dumbing down of America" syndrome. Along with American Idol and all those idiotic new "game shows".
February 9th, 2007 at 9:25 amIf ALL of the players in this Bush crime cabal don't pay a HUGE personal, political, and financial cost...
...America can kiss the rule of law good-bye...
...this is some SERIOUS sh*T...
...I don't even think I want a Democrat, woman or minority for President...
...bec I believe sh*t is so fu*ked up...
...the next person to hold the presidency will be blamed for the mess these inbred al Crackkker TRAITORS have made...
February 9th, 2007 at 9:26 amLooks like "No-Faith-In Feith" is taking the Pentagon down the tubes.....or is it the other way around? Maybe Feith will become the "next songbird"??
February 9th, 2007 at 9:29 amDidn't our illustrious new Sec'y of Defense, Robert Gates, almost go down for this during Bush 41 and Iran Contra?
February 9th, 2007 at 9:30 amComment by alp3 — February 9, 2007 @ 9:06 am
Thanks alp, that was funnier than hell.
February 9th, 2007 at 9:31 amFeith based policies, heh?
-GSD
February 9th, 2007 at 9:31 am#8 the sycophantic media whores are pouncing on ANYTHING which is not going to further indict the GOP! That's the name of their game. Good thing the public is onto their biased reporting. When Anna Nicole and some starstruck astronaut trump our soldiers being killed daily in Iraq, then we know that this country is in very serious trouble.
The MSM is trying to hard to keep BushCo out of the news that it's pathetic and sooooo incredibly transparent.
February 9th, 2007 at 9:31 amsix U.S. attorneys were forced to resign for “performance-related†reasons.
Don't forget, folks, because of an obscure clause in the PATRIOT Act, Chimpy can now appoint whoever he likes to these vacant positions, without all the bother of Senate confirmation.
This administration is unraveling our country right before our eyes.
February 9th, 2007 at 9:32 amAnd, with the avalanche of dirty deeds of this administration and it's cavalcade of "animal crackers", it's a daily WH soap opera and impossible for the MSM to continue to run interference for.
February 9th, 2007 at 9:33 amHow To Divide Iraq Into 3 Nations?
9th of February 2007
by Jay Randal
During W.W.I the British invaded Arabia to fight the Ottoman Turks, who were allies of Germany/Austria. After the war ended the British Empire was awarded Mandate to oversee 3 former Ottoman states: Mosul, Baghdad, and Basra which were joined to form Iraq.
The British chose a member of the Hashemite clan, King Faisal I, to govern Iraq as a puppet monarch. He died in 1933 a year after Iraq Independence from the British occupation. Modern day Iraq was born.
The US occupation of Iraq has framented populace into 3 ethnic Islamic goups: Kurds, Sunnis, and Shias. Which happens to coincide with the original 3 states of the Ottoman Empire that Britain forced together.
Since Iraq has now degenerated into a sectarian civil war between Sunnis and Shias, and Kurds demanding their independence from them, therefore it is wise to divide Iraq back into the 3 states for those 3 groups.
The United Nations, in conjunction with Arab League, and the US must partition Iraq into 3 viable nations!
( Jay Randal, political activist and writer in Georgia, USA.)
PS: This must be done ASAP, so US troops can be home by 1-1-08.
February 9th, 2007 at 9:34 amWhat did Peter Pace and Robert Gates mean then? This retraction either means that the WH is lying through their teeth or these guys are intellectually retarded and unaware that lying is still considered by most people to be devious and amoral....which is it? This Orwellian WH would like to have it both ways - wrong!
February 9th, 2007 at 9:36 amSomewhere there's a picture of Doug without the rug.
February 9th, 2007 at 9:37 amThe funding for the coup was stolen by DOD Comptroller Dov Zakheim in advance of 9/11. He stole $7 trillion and sent it to Israel.
Why do you think Cheney has no fear of Congress cutting off funding for the Crusade?
Arrest David Rockefeller - they all work for him.
It's time to raise the level of discourse where the term "Conspiracy" is concerned:
http://www.globalsecurity.org/intell/library/reports/2005/franklin_indictment_04aug2005.htm
We've all been conditioned to snicker and ridicule when non-professionals offer theories about conspiracies. It's time to talk about all of these theories and unravel the whole thing.
The Abramoff, AIPAC and Libby Trials are ALL THE SAME CONSPIRACY:
http://plungerspeaks.blogspot.com/
Cheney sent Ledeen to meet with Ambassador Mel Sembler in Italy to plant the forged Niger document.
COINCIDENTALLY...
Mel sembler heads up Scooter Libby's Legal defense fund
AND
Despite the fact he's a lifelong Republican, Sembler held a fundraiser for Lieberman in Palm Beach - in coordination with Rove and the WH.
Connect ALL the dots...
Lieberman is now assigned the task of protecting Chertoff.
How does McCain factor in?
A New Jersey-based investment banker deeply involved in fund-raising efforts for the 2004 Republican convention, Lewis Eisenberg, is signing on with Mr. McCain. Mr. Eisenberg is a former Goldman Sachs partner who served as chairman of the Port Authority board at the time of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
WHAT A COINCIDENCE!
It was Eisenberg who passed the $15 billion Asbestos Liability represented by the Twin Towers onto Larry Silverstein, the man who confessed publicly to having Building 7 "PULLED" by explosives – despite the fact that no plane struck it:
Pull the entire thread and don't stop pulling.
The Asbestos liability belonged to Halliburton, having acquired it along with his acquisition of Dresser.
GW included the issue in his State of the Union speech in 2005:
"To make our economy stronger and more competitive, America must reward, not punish, the efforts and dreams of entrepreneurs. Small business is the path of advancement, especially for women and minorities, so we must free small businesses from needless regulation and protect honest job-creators from junk lawsuits. (Applause.) Justice is distorted, and our economy is held back by irresponsible class-actions and frivolous asbestos claims -- and I urge Congress to pass legal reforms this year."
FULL CIRCLE.
February 9th, 2007 at 9:37 amAs it unravels right before our very eyes (thanks Tripmaster!) I suggest people visit http://www.9/11truth.or to see precisely the "how and why" it may have occurred and precisely why it is not unraveling.....looks like we've been lied to about MANY, MANY things - including 911.
February 9th, 2007 at 9:37 amwhoops....meant "now unraveling".....
February 9th, 2007 at 9:40 amFrom the Wonderful Folks Who Brought You Iraq
The same neocon ideologues behind the Iraq war have been using the same tactics—alliances with shady exiles, dubious intelligence on W.M.D.—to push for the bombing of Iran. As President Bush ups the pressure on Tehran, is he planning to double his Middle East bet?
http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/2007/03/whitehouse200703?printable=true¤tPage=all
February 9th, 2007 at 9:44 amThat story about Halliburton acquiring the asbestos liabilities of Dresser Industries raises an interesting point...
Cheney KNEW that Dresser had the most massive liability issue on planet earth (he had to have known) yet decided to pay good money to bring Dresser's problems under Halliburton's tent.
This raises the question...who were the largest shareholders of Dresser - in need of a lifeboat to save their own personal bacon? Anyone named Bush? Anyone named Carlyle?
The deal went like this:
Cheney agrees for Halliburton to take on the Dresser asbestos liability.
It is determined that Bush and Cheney will be (s)elected, and that the PNAC plan will be implemented - using 9/11 as the essential pretext.
Ken Lay plays his role using his Enron smoke and mirrors tactics to create a faux energy crisis in California, causing the public to demand an energy-savvy administration be elected.
With the asbestos liability and other matters hanging in the balance, the election of 2000 simply had to be rigged in order for the plan to go in to effect.
Following the appointment of Bush and Cheney, the secret energy planning meeting established which oil companies would reap the rewards of the pending invasion of Afghanistan, Iraq and Iran.
The timing and the pretext were predetermined, and 9/11 was greenlighted for 9/11/2001. Cheney outsourced the implementation to Mossad, and ran the show from his bunker on D Day under the cover of preplanned drills simulating the exact attack that was proscribed, with NORAD as coconspirator. At least 50 administration officials and countless foreign agents were in on it.
Once the entire charade was concluded, the Administration generally, and Cheney specifically, had every reason in the world to blame Iraq.
The Afghanistan mission could not provide Halliburton with enough revenue to offset the massive asbestos liability claim. Iraq and Iran are essential wars in order to provide cover for the infusion of the billion of TAX DOLLARS necessary to both profit Halliburton for its actual work AND cover the massive asbestos liability claims.
Now you know why Halliburton was awarded the contracts without the need to bid for them. This was all prearranged.
NOTE: Private enterprise pushed its legal/financial obligations onto tax payers using war as the excuse.
The asbestos liability claims of Dresser Industries were ultimately paid by you and me, and our troops in the field, all to ensure that the investors in Dresser didn't take the multibillion dollar loss.
Just one piece of a very large chessboard.
Hang them for TREASON.
February 9th, 2007 at 9:46 amComment by Jay Randal
I love the idea of partitioning Iraq, but how? How do you force relocation?
February 9th, 2007 at 9:48 amhttp://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/06/01/cheney.halliburton/
Isn't it clear that Cheney has committed fraud against the United States for the purpose of illegal financial gain? Cheney was acting specifically on behalf of the Contractor, Haliburton, to ensure no-bid contracts were awarded, based on knowingly fraudulent information generated by his own Office Of Special Plans. It might also be construed that any official who had a relationship to the Carlyle Group was also lying on their behalf - for their own financial benefit.
Section 1031. Major fraud against the United States
(a) Whoever knowingly executes, or attempts to execute, any scheme or artifice with the intent -
(1) to defraud the United States; or
(2) to obtain money or property by means of false or fraudulent pretenses, representations, or promises, in any procurement of property or services as a prime contractor with the United States or as a subcontractor or supplier on a contract in which there is a prime contract with the United States, if the value of the contract, subcontract, or any constituent part thereof, for such property or services is $1,000,000 or more shall, subject to the applicability of subsection (c) of this section, be fined not more than $1,000,000, or imprisoned not more than 10 years, or both.
(1) the gross loss to the Government or the gross gain to a defendant is $500,000 or greater; or
(2) the offense involves a conscious or reckless risk of serious personal injury.
http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/casecode/uscodes/18/parts/i/chapters/
The financial links between those who lied, and those who benefitted as a direct result of the lies are clear. The evidence that the President's speech knowingly included a lie about the Niger Yellow Cake is proveable in a court of law under oath.
The Vice President knew for a fact that the claim was based on a forgery. He ordered Ledeen to meet with Sembler in Rome to plant the forged document with Italian Intelligence.
February 9th, 2007 at 9:48 amCheney was so upset about Rumsfeld's dismissal because Cheney and Rummy were literally co-conspirators in the crime of the century.
Jusy months prior to 9/11, Rumsfeld was the one who installed Israeli Agent Dov Zakheim as Pentagon's comptroller in order to enable the theft of $7 TRILLION for Israel - enough to fund a military coup.
Zakheim's company, SYSPLAN, makes the fly by wire technology that was used to slam the planes into their targets.
Dov Zakheim, called for "some catastrophic and catalyzing event - like a new Pearl Harbor" - when he signed the PNAC.
Zakheim was INSTRUMENTAL in 9/11.
Perhaps not so coincidentally, it was an SPC subsidiary, TRIDATA CORPORATION, that oversaw the investigation after the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in 1993. He had the BLUEPRINTS necessary for Mossad's "Dancing Israelis" to plant the explosives in the towers.
When you view any video of the plane striking the second WTC Tower, isn't it astounding how huge the fireball is that results? How much jet fuel was that...really?
Remember the big Boeing Tanker lease scandal that arose just prior to 9/11?
According to the SPC website, a recent customer at that time was Eglin AFB, located in Florida. Eglin is very near another Air Force base in Florida-MacDill AFB, where Dov Zakheim contracted to send at least 32 Boeing 767 aircraft, as part of the Boeing /Pentagon tanker lease agreement.
The Boeing lease deal involved the replacement of the aging KC-135 tanker fleet with these smaller, more efficient Boeing 767s that were to be leased by Dov Zakheim's group.
The plane you saw hit the WTC was a TANKER, equipped with this:
http://www.sysplan.com/Radar/FTS
Considering his access to Boeing 767 tankers, remote control flight systems, and his published views in the PNAC document, it seems very likely he is in fact a key figure in the alleged terrorist attacks in New York City on September 11, 2001.
http://onlinejournal.com/artman/publish/article_1047.shtml
http://www.thetruthseeker.co.uk/article.asp?ID=2775
February 9th, 2007 at 9:52 amHow sad I feel for the White House.It seems no matter who they put in charge (the new SECDEF or Joint Chief) the Presidents lap dogs end up contradicting what they say. Also note that both Gates and Pace personally said that the voting doesn't hurt troop morale but then some faceless/nameless flunky has to "clarify" that what was said wasn't what was meant.I mean who in the White house refuted their comments? What is their job or their qualifications for disputing the Secretary or the General? Even if it was instigated by "5 deferments" Cheney or the "I served part of an enlistment" Bush ,neither of them has ever asked the troops what they think (unless it was some General or Admiral who had to watch what they say or lose their job).I wonder how long Pace will keep his job?
February 9th, 2007 at 9:54 amWow that is timely, 4 years after the fact, the pentagon determines that the intelligence was bogus and manipulated. Aren't they supposed to do this before we act on it? It gives me no comfort knowing that these people working for our nation in the information age are so efficient and accurate with their work.
Also it seems to me as if the rigth is steppign up their bogus attacks and disinformation. To me this signals that they are trying to divert the nations attention from something bad pointing at them. Is it the NIE? This latest Pentagon report? Thhe presidents budget? Libby? Something else? All of the above? I say all of the above and more. They must be thanking god for Anna Nicole's death as it has diverted the easily diverted attentions away from the trivial matters of our government towards the things that really matter like B-list celebreties.
February 9th, 2007 at 10:11 amBob,
I don't think you would have to force relocation, I have a feeling the Iraqi's would do it all by themselves. There are already massive problems of Sunnis and Shias trying to kill each other to get them out of the neighborhoods. The real problem, is no one, with the exception of the Kurds possibly want to give up the oil wealth. I think even splitting the country, will leave the region in disarray for the next generation at least.
February 9th, 2007 at 10:15 am#
From the Wonderful Folks Who Brought You Iraq
The same neocon ideologues behind the Iraq war have been using the same tactics—alliances with shady exiles, dubious intelligence on W.M.D.—to push for the bombing of Iran. As President Bush ups the pressure on Tehran, is he planning to double his Middle East bet?
http://www.vanityfair.com/ politics/ features/ 2007/ 03/ whitehouse200703?printable=true¤tPage=all
Comment by mrJJ — February 9, 2007 @ 9:44 am
Yes, I believe the Bush administration is determined to attack Iran. We are hearing the same rhetoric from it's sycophants as well. And the MSM is, again, not using their critical investigative skills, but being part of the echo chamber. Check out the video...this is the country Bush wants to destroy next.
http://www.lucasgray.com/video/peacetrain.html
February 9th, 2007 at 10:18 amComment by Krazny
How about splitting into 2 provinces and the collective oil wealth being dumped into a single pool managed by a pan-Arab "UN" style organization that distributes the wealth fair-share style based on needs of the population?
Basically an oil based joint banking account.
February 9th, 2007 at 10:26 amAnyone have the email addy for the president of G-town U. I would like to write him/her and ask why that great Catholic University has a proven liar like feith on it's faculty.
February 9th, 2007 at 10:27 amNot a bad idea, but I have a feeling, that any such joint operation would be pretty open to corruption.
February 9th, 2007 at 10:33 amKrazny & hacker bob,
Turkey has already said they would never permit a Kurdish state. Are we going to cross an allie like that? Well, this administration probably would.
February 9th, 2007 at 10:38 amAce, you always post some intriguing information. I, too, believe that 911 was an inside job, after a few years of refusing to consider it. However, I think you go too far with the anti-semetic tone of your postings. You'd probably get a better reception and some positive feedback if you'd let the facts speak for themselves.
February 9th, 2007 at 10:48 amComment by Zooey
It would have to be have major international support or we all know it would not work.
Comment by Krazny
I agree with the corruption threat. There would have to be some way to impliment checks and balances (no pun intended)
February 9th, 2007 at 10:52 amZooey,
I agree A kurdish state would be a difficult situation in dealing with Turkey but can you imagine how much this administration would want a Kurdish State that owed its existence to the US? Right there between Syria, Iran, Iaq and Turkey? Prime real estate for a puppet regime.
Not that I think its a good idea or that it would work. It's just the kind of crazy thinking that these fools have.
February 9th, 2007 at 10:53 am#5 DRxJ,
Here is CNN's Jack Cafferty's question on the Anna Nicole Smith story? Kind of indicates how big a story he considers it...
http://youtube.com/watch?v=JgiwkcZxj7c
February 9th, 2007 at 11:02 am#24 ace
Ken Lay plays his role using his Enron smoke and mirrors tactics to create a faux energy crisis in California, causing the public to demand an energy-savvy administration be elected.
Are you talking about the 2000 election or the Davis recall? If you mean the 2000 election, your timing is off. The rolling blackouts came after Bush was in office. And California went to Gore, anyway.
February 9th, 2007 at 11:13 am#39
February 9th, 2007 at 11:23 amSorry, Exley, can't access video and audio files from work. I'll make sure, tho, to check it out when I get home!
COME ON!!!
This is just dishonest:
The White House released a “fact sheet†yesterday saying Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Joint Chiefs Chairman Peter Pace *didn’t mean it* when they said voting on an anti-escalation resolution will not hurt the morale of U.S. troops.
The fact sheet says NOTHING OF THE KIND. In fact, the underlined quote is completely consistent with the original claim about morale. The point is that you shouldn't infer from the fact that they won't be demoralized about debate that they don't think it's important that "they are supported in terms of the mission given and resources provided".
This is the second thinkprogress piece in two days which has been BLATANTLY DISHONEST. (The first was the piece on Jonah Goldberg, which suggests he lost a bet -- though he never did. "Debt"? What "debt"? You don't incur a debt if the bet is never accepted.)
COME ON THINK PROGRESS -- you can do better than this. Don't make me start fact-checking you.
February 9th, 2007 at 11:27 amActually, DRxJ, ThinkProgress has now put part of the video in the thread above...Maybe you can access that.
February 9th, 2007 at 11:27 amIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACH
February 9th, 2007 at 11:29 amIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACH
IMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACH
IMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACH
IMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEACHIMPEAC
also, how can it be problematic for the White House to quote General Pace? If there's a conflict in the two remarks, surely the problem lies with Pace. But the crucial point is that NOTHING in the fact sheet suggests he "didn't meant it" when he made the original comment.
February 9th, 2007 at 11:30 am#42 Ruttiger
This is just dishonest:
I don't think it's dishonest. I think there's a difference of opinion between what TP thinks the White House's intentions are and what you think they are. TP's point is that the White House sent out a fact sheet that was intended to appear as a contradiction of what most people understood the two men to have said. You don't think that was the White House's intention.
February 9th, 2007 at 11:48 amAfghanistan war stuff too!
February 9th, 2007 at 11:57 am#46:
TP’s point is that the White House sent out a fact sheet that was intended to appear as a contradiction of what most people understood the two men to have said. You don’t think that was the White House’s intention.
okay, dishonesty implies intention to deceive, and who knows what the intention was. but go check out the "fact sheet". tell me what in there suggests the white house is saying they "didn’t mean it when they said voting on an anti-escalation resolution will not hurt the morale of U.S. troops." first of all, they didn't even say that. they said "debate" wouldn't hurt morale. minor point. but secondly -- "didn't mean it"? read the "fact sheet" -- far from saying they didn't mean it, it *quotes* them to that effect.
thinkprogress was either dishonest or extremely sloppy. either way it doesn't look good. and, trust me, i'm on their side. there's no need to make up outrages when there are so many real ones.
February 9th, 2007 at 12:16 pm"I think there's some serial numbers, there may be some markings on some of the projectile fragments that we found,"
SecDef Gates, guessing and projecting about Iran.
I think? May be some?
February 9th, 2007 at 12:31 pmThis isn't evidence, it's frogdroppings...
Here's my attempt to summarize the Feith story:
1. The Senate Intelligence Committee says Feith may have broken the law by doing intelligence work without notifying the committee.
2. Feith says he wasn't doing intelligence work, he was just critiquing the work of the intelligence agencies. He said yesterday, "This was not 'alternative intelligence assessment,' ... It was from the start a criticism of the consensus of the intelligence community, and in presenting it I was not endorsing its substance."
3. How can one "critique" the intelligence without having done intelligence work himself? On what basis can he be critical of it? One would have to have knowledge of intelligence other than that provided by the intelligence agencies.
4. Feith provided intelligence (I thought he wasn't doing that) on a supposed link between al Qaeda and Saddam to the White House and the CIA. He provided one version to the White House and a different one to the CIA. According to the Inspector General, the one he gave the CIA left out "a slide that said there were 'fundamental problems' " with the way the intelligence community was presenting the evidence.
5. Feith WAS doing intelligence work and he was clearly manipulating results.
My opinion: He's going down and he's going to drag Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz with him.
February 9th, 2007 at 12:38 pm#48 Ruttiger
It wasn't an accurate way to present it. But, I took "didn't mean it" as shorthand for the White House's contention that, contrary to what the media reported the day before, the two men weren't in disagreement with the White House and the GOP. For them to say that debate in Congress wasn't hurting troop morale would run counter to GOP talking points. To say that the troops need to know they're being supported wouldn't. The White House was trying to reframe and move focus away from the first statement.
February 9th, 2007 at 12:49 pmSo basically this is the admission, that the intelligence was altered to suit the plans to attack Iraq. I wonder if how the right wing tear this apart?
February 9th, 2007 at 12:51 pm#52
the White House’s contention that, contrary to what the media reported the day before, the two men weren’t in disagreement with the White House and the GOP.
can you indicate where this contention is made? i just don't see it. sure it is suggested, but the question is whether they used illegitimate means to do so. tp makes it sound like they did, by engaging in a kind of orwellian historical revisionism. but come on -- nothing even close to that happened.
The White House was trying to reframe and move focus away from the first statement.
of course they were. and there's nothing necessarily wrong with that. the question is their methods.
now let me ask you this: how outrageous would it be if the white house came out and said "they didn't really mean it"? i mean if they literally said that. it would be horrendous. and that's what tp said they did. but they didn't do anything nearly that bad.
in fact, i'm still not even sure they did anything bad at all. tp, and the horse's mouth, made something rather innocent look outrageous -- something we rightly condemn when the other side does it.
it pains me to have to keep making this argument. but it pains me even more when a source i usually trust turns out to be not so trustworthy -- scoring partisan points by being misleading. (yesterday's post on jonah goldberg is a much more egregious example.)
February 9th, 2007 at 1:20 pm#54 Ruttiger
I think "contention" is implied. It's my interpretation. I understand your point. I just don't see it as a terribly egregious example of inaccuracy, especially compared to the kinds of things being said on the Pelosi-plane flap.
February 9th, 2007 at 1:33 pmRegarding the Feithh story, this actually dovetails back into the old Downing Street Memo's. Will anyone in the press dare to bring up that this new report seems to validate the downing street memos? WIll congress look into the two related issues?
February 9th, 2007 at 1:53 pmDavid Feith has just irrevocably finished off this administration with the admission that the intel was "fixed" to fit the policy - something which we'd all suspected and known in our guts but now the facts are in so we know for sure. The trust of the people for this white house is irretrievably damaged and they need to now either step down or be impeached. This is the only way this country will ever resurrect a shred of it's former reputation internationally now.
February 9th, 2007 at 2:06 pmSenator Kerry now needs to reinstate his dropped investigation into BCCI and the weapons for drugs connection to this WH.
Also how about looking into Dubya's dubious relationship with both Saudi heavyweight Mahfouz & Salem bin Laden (osama's brother) both of whom he had as investors in 1977 in his company, Arbusto Energy, Dubya's First Oil Company??
Mahfouz leter became the majority stockholder of BCCI and helped broker a deal for Bush when he wanted to unload his Harken Energy stock. Mahfouz was later branded by a report to the UN Security Council as one of the 7 top Saudi al Quaeda money men....ahem! Senator Bob Graham was onto all of this - where is this investigation now??
February 9th, 2007 at 2:14 pm#55 The People need to press forward on the hearings originally held on the Downing Street Memo because it is all coming to the fore right now - how the intel was rigged - as well as the outing of a covert CIA operative (treason???) when her husband refused to "play their little war game".
February 9th, 2007 at 2:16 pmEvidently Bruce Hines, Brooklyn District Attorney and Dennis Kucinich are beginning an investigation into how all this fits into the 911 scheme of things as well....Anyone ever hear of 'Christmas In July'? I'm not giving up hope that the Truth will prevail on all of these issues and since humans are hard wired to accept Truth, it will be the pivotal point of our own resurrection from the depths of filth, corruption, and evil. Check out 911.truth.org or 911scholarsfortruth.org
February 9th, 2007 at 2:18 pm#54
I just don’t see it as a terribly egregious example of inaccuracy, especially compared to the kinds of things being said on the Pelosi-plane flap.
oh, absolutely. nothing like it -- and nothing like a million other disgusting distortions in recent years. in fact, that's partly the root of my problem. at this point i tend to simply assume that whenever something egregious is attributed to republicans it is true, and at least as bad as being reported (since that's so often how it turns out). but i suspect thinkprogress is actually capitalizing on that sort of attitude -- and i don't like being misled in that way. the comments on the jonah goldberg post illustrate this point perfectly. i think the post and the comments insulting goldberg are as egregious as some of the things i get furious about when they are done to people i like.
(to be clear, goldberg is an ass -- but it's still not right to make up stories about an ass. especially when there's no need! that attempted wager with cole was easy material for an honest post criticizing goldberg. why resort to making things up? i don't like it. it makes thinkprogress look like partisan hacks.)
February 9th, 2007 at 2:37 pmDouglas Feith is one of the neo-Nazi war criminals of the Bushland Uber Allies Fourth Reich who must be brought before the International War Crimes Tribunal at The Hague...along with his co-conspirators Wolfowitz, Dumbsfailed, Perle, Addington, Yoo, Gonzales, Rice, Armitage, Powell, CHIMPya, Torticola Cheney, Rove, Snow, et cetera ad nauseum...war crimes CAN and WILL BE punished!!!!!
February 9th, 2007 at 5:05 pmveritas sez:
It's nice to see that more and more people are discussing this sort of thing openly. Only by fostering open dialogue can we hope to see through the veil of lies that's been pulled over our eyes.
It's also nice to see that posts discussing 9/11 truth aren't being zealously deleted like they used to be. Perhaps with the passing of Judd, TP has entered into a new era od detente. ^_^
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