Wednesday, November 30, 2005

An interesting mix of intelligence issues

Via a column at "Accuracy in Media", I find this column from the Washington Post, by Jim Hoagland (11 november 2005.) Here's an interesting excerpt, emphasis mine:

The hidden management of the criminal justice process and the news media practiced by the CIA to protect itself in Wilson-Rove-Libbygate is nothing short of brilliant. So you were right to fear the agency.

I did read the column, but until I was directed to Kincaid's own column, I didn't make the connection he did:

Think about that statement to the President — "you were right to fear the agency."

Here we have a columnist for a major paper saying that the CIA has been acting independently of the elected President of the U.S., and that Bush had reason to fear it. He said the CIA had engaged in "hidden management of the criminal justice system and the news media." In effect, he is saying that the CIA is pulling the strings behind the scenes, and that reporters following the Wilson/Plame storyline are CIA puppets. He went on to say that the CIA also "triggered the investigation" into the CIA leak about Valerie Wilson by itself leaking. That is, the CIA leaked to the press the fact that it had requested an investigation.

This seems to fit right in with something we were discussing on YARGB some time ago. Now, the puzzle is, who is Fitzgerald investigating?

I continue to predict that further indictments are coming, and that they won't be in the White House.

But let's continue. it turns out that Sen. Harry Reid, (D-NV), let it slip that "he had heard" Usama bin Laden had been killed in the recent earthquake in Pakistan:

"I heard that Osama bin Laden died in the earthquake, and if that's the case, I certainly wouldn't wish anyone harm, but if that's the case, that's good for the world."
(Quoted from John Fund's Political Diary, via GOP.com.)

A quick quiz in tradecraft: how many ways can you think of that this is harmful? How many good side-effects can you see? (Although, I'll say, my grandmother always said it was impolite to actively wish someone harm; I guess Reid is an old-fashioned guy in some ways.)

9 comments:

Unknown said...

Maybe they can indict Reid for leaking. I would like to see that.

I think the CIA went after Bush because they knew that they were going to be in big trouble for all the intel screwups and so they tried to discredit the only people powerful enough to make them accountable.

That and some good old fashioned ass CYA.

Charlie Martin said...

well, that plus (from the farm boys I know) I can imagine them deciding they didn't like the way an election came out and wanting to change it.

I'm holding out for indictments for ex State Deptartment people. (*cough*Armitage*cough*)

Morgan said...

Reid,has positioned his party to claim that the WoT failed in one of the principle objectives,catching bin Laden.

Ahhh, but without the war on terror Bin Laden wouldn't have been in that crumbly building in Pakistan.

Syl said...

Well I and many others were thinking fitz was getting at the 'real' culprits. Then he indicted Libby.

I think fitz bought into the Wilson/Corn narrative and is determined to find some conspiracy coming out of the WH.

I don't hold out much hope anymore.

buddy larsen said...

People just never catch on, I guess, that an agenda and police power can put you in prison over your haircut--and through the power of volume & detail, overwhelm the senses to the extent that your haircut will be soon enough that thing most foul and wicked.

I wonder if the idea is to make the WH hit back, then set MSM onto THAT bone.

Come to think of it, they'll do it anyway, no need for the WH to do anything--the bums can just allege it. And allege it, and allege it, and allege it.

Robert Pearson said...

Interstingly enough, I posted something today on the subject--using State's own website "How to identify misinformation":

http://usinfo.state.gov/media/Archive/2005/Jul/27-595713.html

Quote: "Conspiracy theories are rarely true, even though they have great appeal and are often widely believed. In reality, events usually have much less exciting explanations."

Priceless!

buddy larsen said...

I get your point, newvictorian, and appreciate the realiry of the point-of-view.

However, the discussion hangs on the definition of 'conspiracy'. Your point is the stronger the narrower the definition. broadly, an institutional culture can have a bias that is as well-known as it is non-discussed.

In the hothouse of DC, where a pin-drop is heard 'round the world, a vague, seemingly nonchalant bias can cause the death of nations.

buddy larsen said...

Which begs the question, why did Tenant last so fricken long?

Anonymous said...

Quake Prompts Questions on Bin Laden(Did Alla get him for us?)
AP ^ | 10/11/05 | KATHERINE SHRADER,

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1501075/posts

Posted on 10/12/2005 6:50:30 AM PDT by TigerLikesRooster


Quake Prompts Questions on Bin Laden

By KATHERINE SHRADER, Associated Press Writer
Tue Oct 11, 4:04 PM ET

Did Osama bin Laden's secret lair crumble in the earthquake that devastated northwest Pakistan? So far, U.S. government officials and terrorism experts caution against too much speculation about whether the al-Qaida chief may have been killed, injured or forced from hiding.

"There's a lot of people who know that that's an obvious question" was the most Pentagon spokesman Lawrence Di Rita would say Tuesday about U.S. thinking on bin Laden's fate.

Federal officials who track terrorism for a living said there's no evidence yet to suggest that bin Laden or his top deputy, Ayman al-Zawahri, was injured or killed in the quake.

Yet the quake has caused many in and out of government to ask, "What if?"

Bin Laden has managed to avoid capture for nearly a decade, including a feverish manhunt since he ordered the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. The United States is offering up to $25 million for information leading to his killing or capture.

He has been rumored to be taking cover anywhere from urban areas of Pakistan to remote cave structures winding along the Afghan-Pakistani border to villages in western Pakistan's lawless tribal areas.

Any of these possible hideouts could have been at least shaken by Saturday's 7.6-magnitude quake, forcing bin Laden to move.

Bruce Hoffman, a terrorism expert at the RAND Corp. in Washington, noted that some also theorize that he may be hiding in the disputed region of Kashmir, controlled by the Pakistani military, which was devastated by the temblor.

The region is difficult to move in and out of, Hoffman said, and Islamic extremist groups friendly to bin Laden have camps and operations there.

"It's enormously tempting to speculate" about bin Laden's situation, Hoffman said. But "without knowing where he is, it's impossible to say."