Enough Already
Dean
Winds of Change has an in-depth roundup of news on the so-called Plame affair and other spurious accusations against the Bush administration. For those of you who don't remember, there has been an accusation floating around that the Bush administration intentionally blew a CIA operative named Plame's cover as an act of political revenge against her husband.
Well, just like the false accusations that Bush was AWOL when he was on National Guard duty, lied about Saddam trying to obtain uranium in Africa, and pressured the CIA to provide false information on Saddam's WMDs, the so-called "Plame affair" has now also been shown to be based on nothing but a thin tissue of half-truths and empty accusations.
You know what's most sad about this? The left could have spent the last couple of years concentrating on making their arguments for policies they believe in, explaining why their ideas for the country are better. Instead they've spent almost all their energy calling the President names and making up lies about him and his administration.
And then there's the Washington Post's deceit about our management of Iraq.
We're in the middle of the biggest war in over 30 years, and instead of trying to convince people they have better ideas they make up vile insinuations about our leaders and intentionally slanting their reporting to make things look bad.
If I were a cynic I'd say they've done all this solely because they don't have any ideas that matter anymore.
What Dean links won't resolve anything if you don't read it.
If, on the other hand, you had read this, you'd have seen that the working theory now is that Plame was "outed" to explain why her husband was chosen for this job, not in revenge for anything.
You know what's most sad about this? The left could have spent the last couple of years concentrating on making their arguments for policies they believe in, explaining why their ideas for the country are better. Instead they've spent almost all their energy calling the President names and making up lies about him and his administration.
In pursuing that approach, the Democrats and those others on the Left have given the rest of us ample excuse to conclude that there are no policies they believe in, and no ideas to explain.
Not only have they squandered the time they've spent on this approach, they've set themselves up for a long wander in the wilderness until they get their heads back together and can re-establish the credibility they've shredded.
I don't think they can achieve that in four months.
The Plame affair is bullshit because she WAS NOT AN UNDERCOVER OPERATIVE. She was simply a CIA employee working at Langley, contrary to what Wilson has said publicly.
There is no risk to her if she was just another CIA employee. Naming her is no more dangerous than naming Tenet.
Wilson is a big fat liar.
"You know what's most sad about this? The right could have spent the last couple of years concentrating on making their arguments for policies they believe in, explaining why their ideas for the country are better. Instead they've spent almost all their energy calling the President names and making up lies about him and his administration."
Ever hear of Flat Tax? Social Security Privatization? Contract with America?
Yeah, all the right did was lie about Clinton having sex. Oh, wait they didn't do that.
The left complained a lot about this during the '90s. You'd think that would make them feel honor-bound not to behave even worse toward Bush. Especially because Bush was one of the few prominent Republicans to oppose Clinton's impeachment.
Instead they've acted worse, accused him of worse. So you know, as a great man once asked: "Have you no shame? At long last, sir, have you no shame at all?"
Meanwhile, Moran outlined his decades of service to his constituents, pressed the flesh, had coffee with constituents, and campaigned on both his record and his beliefs.
The result? Rosenberg captured a good 40 percent of the vote. I honestly think he could have garnered at lest 5-6 percent more with a solid affirmative message.
The hell of it is that Rosenberg had views. He just did a lousy job of putting them before the public.
--|PW|--
And this from Ledeen:
If Plame was undercover or hiding behind a front business or some such thing, then I'm opposed to letting her name or specific identity out no matter what the reason was. (If the WH wanted to say "this jackass Wilson was in the job because his wife recommended him," they should have told Novak to gloss it as "he was recommended by a family member" or "he was recommended by a close personal acquaintance" or something like that to keep from blowing her cover, if she had a cover.)
Mr. Falwell is not nor was not an elected official of the united States. Mr. Gore was vice-president of the United States and he has made some rather vile statements regarding Pres. Bush's motivation for war with Iraq.
There is a difference there. I'm not saying that Mr. Falwell is better (I dislike him), but Mr. Gore should know better, should not have allowed himself to be so swayed by emotion that he lost all reason.
BTW, this is only done anecdotally because I have way too much to do to put the time in doing a full-bore analysis, and frankly, I don't care nearly enough at this point to make the time.
Regards, Mike
Then one day, I believe before the 1996 election, I heard Rush Limbaugh say that Republicans needed to get off this scandal stuff and get back to talking about our policies and ideas. I knew the moment I heard it that Rush was right. Bob Dole didn't, and as I recall he never did actually become President, did he?
The Democrats' problem is that unlike the pre-1996 Republicans, they haven't even tried to talk ideas like Gingrich did in 1994.
The Dems have got momentum, but it's not forward -- it's down.
The right did go overboard against Clinton. It was a huge circus like what this country went through during the O.J trial. How many of us knew (we were all there when it happened, right?) we saw the white van chase, we saw him gleefully put on his famous glove. That trial was terrible. But I bet most all of us in this country *knew* he did it. Was he caught in any lies? I have my opinion on that and through the media circus I was ready to send him directly to jail, do not pass go and no free get out of jail pass! I do not know, if he did it. It is not for me to say.
The circus around former President Clinton was Un Believeable! Monica, Linda Trip, Kenneth Star, And yes the extreme right was very bad. I know most of us were soooo tired of this whole circus!!! Clinton was impeached, lost his liscense to practice law for a few years.
It is so important right now to use your better judgement. We do not know everything a President knows. We must be a country of unity. Our soldiers deserve that, our firemen, our precious children, our senior citizens. Go read those blogs that You feel are telling the truth. Read the papers you feel you can trust. Write to your congressmen. Support the party you want this year. Do not let rumor, lies and deciet rule your intelligence. Get in the party of your choice and bring out voters. Many people have lost their faith in one thing after another and are now suffering Apathy. Help them, debate them. Make a difference.
I read Dean's Blog everyday. Sometimes I laugh and sometimes I find myself angry. Well I say GOOD! Let your blood boil some but move into ACTION.
Phew, just one ole' Irish Lady here living in Texas speaking her mind. Lot's of you see me post and you know I can at times be a real goof ball.
Carry On...
I always carry on, and sometimes I get carried away.
But I always have fun with it. When it ceases to be fun, why bother. Imagine using your free time to get yourself all angrified - definitely would be time for that ol' forensic evaluation.
Being seein' ya around here.
Mike
You're still missing the point. For some reason you are convinced that whoever mentioned Plame with regard to Wilson knew she was covert. The original story, that she was outed to get revenge on Wilson, requires as a corollary that the leaker knew. But the now far more plausible theory, that her name was used to discredit Wilson, removes any logical requirement that the leaker knew she was covert. That's very fundamental and, in fact, might well make it not a crime to have mentioend her name (because the law requires intentional leaking). Based on Novak's claim about the CIA reaction to his question about using her name, Wilson's claim that Plame told him that she was CIA the night they met, and that the CIA forwarded Plame's name as the recommender, it doesn't seem far fetched that the leaker had no idea she was covert (based on the last point, he may well have assumed that the if CIA was passing her name around, she could hardly be undercover). In that case, the whole issue evaporates.
You have to have something to bring to the table - in the best of circumstances, ejecting an incumbant President is exceptionally hard; given tbe best possible Democratic candidate (Joe Lieberman) running on the best possible Democratic program, President Bush would still likely be returned to office this November 2nd - but even if things are going badly for the economy and the war on October 30th then President Bush will win big on November 2nd if all we've gotten from Kerry is complaints about what a bad President Bush has been.
Of course we all lose our tempers now and then. Dean freely admits to being imperfect in this regard, which is why regulars to this establishment will generally be cut more slack than people who we don't know very well.
Still: behave like an adult, or go find somewhere else to play. Thanks.