Background to Betrayal

Has I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby, the vice president’s chief of staff, made a deal with CIA leak investigator Patrick J. Fitzgerald – and turned on his boss in return for leniency? It sure looks like it. Or else how is it that Scooter suddenly discovered his notes of a “previously undisclosed” conversation held with Cheney … Continue reading “Background to Betrayal”

Who Are We to Pick Syria’s President?

Someone should tell Condi Rice that the game is up. With the Bush administration dissolving in illegalities committed by key officials in their attempts to protect the lies that they used to justify the U.S. invasion of Iraq, the secretary of state is trying to ramp up war against Syria. Grasping a UN report that … Continue reading “Who Are We to Pick Syria’s President?”

Two Thousand Dead – and for What?

These are not the halcyon days of George W. Bush. With his approval rating below 40 percent, his reputation as a decisive leader ravaged by Katrina, his conservative base shattered by Harriet, and his closest aide facing indictment, the president is said to be shouting at and blaming subordinates for the lost opportunities of his … Continue reading “Two Thousand Dead – and for What?”

The Quiet Occupation

One of the difficulties in writing regularly about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is, in my eyes, that so little ever changes. The basic constants – above all, Israel’s overwhelming military, economic, and political superiority, all serving its colonialist aims – change slightly over years, if at all. The media concentrate on immediate episodes: a violent incident, … Continue reading “The Quiet Occupation”

Frustrated Scowcroft Assails Neocons, Cheney

One week after a top aide to former Secretary of State Colin Powell issued a blistering attack on foreign policy-making in the George W. Bush administration, Brent Scowcroft, who served as national security adviser under Bush’s father, assailed neoconservatives who persuaded the president to go to war in Iraq. In an interview with The New … Continue reading “Frustrated Scowcroft Assails Neocons, Cheney”

Fixing and Forging

On May 6, 2003, the New York Times published a column by Nicholas Kristof that included the following: "I rejoice in the newfound freedoms in Iraq. But there are indications that the U.S. government souped up intelligence, leaned on spooks to change their conclusions, and concealed contrary information to deceive people at home and around … Continue reading “Fixing and Forging”

Backtalk, October 25, 2005

Niger Uranium Forgery Mystery Solved?I solved that mystery a long time ago. Why did nobody, nobody in the government, ever say that Niger was a “bad” country? According to the evidence, Niger was selling uranium to Saddam Hussein, who was going to make a nuclear bomb and drop it on New York or London within … Continue reading “Backtalk, October 25, 2005”

Let Justice Be Done

Fiat justitia, ruat coelum. “Let justice be done, though the heavens fall.” The above Latin quotation – usually attributed to Lucius Calpurnius Piso Caesoninus, a Roman statesman and Julius Caesar’s father-in-law – succinctly summarizes both prosecutor Patrick J. Fitzgerald‘s view of the law and the possible consequences of its application in the case of the … Continue reading “Let Justice Be Done”

Putting the Plame Case in Perspective

As many now know, Patrick Fitzgerald, the special counsel in the Plame case, set up an official Web site last week. Something tells me he isn’t planning on going anywhere soon. While we await the indictments to come, consider the strange history of the 1982 CIA shield law that triggered the process (as Steve Weissman … Continue reading “Putting the Plame Case in Perspective”