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07/21/2003 Archived Entry: "Krugman: 'Who's Unpatriotic Now?'"
Krugman: 'Who's Unpatriotic Now?'
Seems all those people who were warning us that things would go wrong in Iraq - and were being called 'Saddam-lovers' for it - are owed an apology. But if you think that this gang of thugs in the White House would ever apologize for anything, you should re-acquiant yourself with reality. Krugman explains:
How serious is the strain on our military? The Brookings Institution military analyst Michael O'Hanlon, who describes our volunteer military as "one of the best military institutions in human history," warns that "the Bush administration will risk destroying that accomplishment if they keep on the current path."But instead of explaining what happened to the Al Qaeda link and the nuclear program, in the last few days a series of hawkish pundits have accused those who ask such questions of aiding the enemy. Here's Frank Gaffney Jr. in The National Post: "Somewhere, probably in Iraq, Saddam Hussein is gloating. He can only be gratified by the feeding frenzy of recriminations, second-guessing and political power plays. . . . Signs of declining popular appreciation of the legitimacy and necessity of the efforts of America's armed forces will erode their morale. Similarly, the enemy will be encouraged."
Well, if we're going to talk about aiding the enemy: By cooking intelligence to promote a war that wasn't urgent, the administration has squandered our military strength. This provides a lot of aid and comfort to Osama bin Laden — who really did attack America — and Kim Jong Il — who really is building nukes.
And while we're on the subject of patriotism, let's talk about the affair of Joseph Wilson's wife. Mr. Wilson is the former ambassador who was sent to Niger by the C.I.A. to investigate reports of attempted Iraqi uranium purchases and who recently went public with his findings. Since then administration allies have sought to discredit him — it's unpleasant stuff. But here's the kicker: both the columnist Robert Novak and Time magazine say that administration officials told them that they believed that Mr. Wilson had been chosen through the influence of his wife, whom they identified as a C.I.A. operative.
Think about that: if their characterization of Mr. Wilson's wife is true (he refuses to confirm or deny it), Bush administration officials have exposed the identity of a covert operative. That happens to be a criminal act; it's also definitely unpatriotic.
So why would they do such a thing? Partly, perhaps, to punish Mr. Wilson, but also to send a message.
And that should alarm us. We've just seen how politicized, cooked intelligence can damage our national interest. Yet the Wilson affair suggests that the administration intends to continue pressuring analysts to tell it what it wants to hear.
And by the way, the Mrs. Wilson story is going to inflict even more damage on The Thug Cabal. It's another instance of this White House fucking over the CIA (see below). And because of Richard Armitage's snub of Andrea Mitchell in favor of an apppearance on Fox News, Mrs. Greenspan has introduced this story to the mainstream media.
NBC will not take this lying down, believe it. Watch for more scathing anti-Smirk stories from now until election day.
Replies: somebody speaks up.
Tis a beautiful thing to behold. I guess it's true: GE really does bring "good things to life."
Posted by Metropolitan99 @ 07/22/2003 12:13 PM NY
