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03/26/2004 Archived Entry: "Running scared."
Running scared.
That smell wafting from the White House is abject fear.
The swiftness and ferocity of the Bush White House's attack on Richard Clarke tells you two things: his story may be largely true, and the Bush administration is terrified that the American people will believe it.The central allegation - that Mr Bush was so obsessed with going after Saddam Hussein that he openly challenged his counter-terrorism adviser to find a link between September 11 and Iraq the day after the attacks took place - is serious.
It threatens the fundamental platform of the Bush-Cheney re-election campaign: that you are safer with them than you are with the Democrats.
The White House did not let a single news cycle go by before questioning that the alleged encounter between the president and Clarke had ever taken place, assigning dark motives to a man who has served four presidents, three of them Republicans.
But you don't have to be Bob Woodward to check Clarke's story out. There were other witnesses to this meeting, one of whom spoke to me.
"The conversation absolutely took place. I was there, but you can't name me," the witness said. "I was one of several people present. There was no doubt in anyone's mind that the president had Iraq on his mind, first and foremost."
This former national security council official was too terrified to go on the record - he knows how vengeful this administration can be.
Replies: 4 people speak up
The administration said that Clarke's position was downgraded, so that they could dismiss him as a disgruntled and bitter ex-employee. The administration also said that he was "out of the loop." One question -- how serious can you be about fighting terrorism if your chief of counter-terrorism is downgraded and kept "out of the loop?" How come none of the "reporters" have asked that question?
Posted by Mike @ 03/26/2004 11:58 AM NY
Great comment, Mike!
Posted by LML @ 03/26/2004 12:29 PM NY
Well, he's not exactly a reporter, but on The Daily Show, after playing a clip of Cheney's comment on Limbaugh's show about Clarke being out of the loop, Jon Stewart said (and this isn't an exact quote, but it's close) "And a follow-up question for Mr. Cheney, why didn't you have your counter-terrorism expert in the loop? Wouldn't he have been a good guy to talk to?"
Posted by Tina @ 03/26/2004 01:35 PM NY
jon stewart is just as much a reporter as anyone on FOXSNBCNN.
it's all fake news, the simulacra has become more powerfull than that which it represents. welcome to life in a fascist state. get used to it.
Posted by justin @ 03/26/2004 02:54 PM NY
