Facts (?) About Plame-Relevant Statutes
If we're going to figure out this Plame business we'll (as I noted earlier) have to figure out what counts as a covert operative, what counts as (to use the popular term) outting, and whether there were any related crimes associated with a cover-up.
First, the reliable: Mark Kleiman has this.
But we want to be fair and balanced here at P-raptor, so we also include the perspective from Powerline. (Note: not an acutal source of information.)
Remember me speculating about some conservatives abandoning principle and frantically circling the wagons? Well, I hate being right all the time. I include the link primarily because of the following absolutely unforgettable line in the Powerline post, in the context of arguing that Rove's alleged actions weren't criminal:
What's everybody getting all bent out of shape about? There was no oral sex involved for Chrissake! It's just a vindictive and criminal use of the powers of government, undermining national security in order to get revenge against the President's political enemies!
My God. Some of these people really are quite, quite nuts.
If we're going to figure out this Plame business we'll (as I noted earlier) have to figure out what counts as a covert operative, what counts as (to use the popular term) outting, and whether there were any related crimes associated with a cover-up.
First, the reliable: Mark Kleiman has this.
But we want to be fair and balanced here at P-raptor, so we also include the perspective from Powerline. (Note: not an acutal source of information.)
Remember me speculating about some conservatives abandoning principle and frantically circling the wagons? Well, I hate being right all the time. I include the link primarily because of the following absolutely unforgettable line in the Powerline post, in the context of arguing that Rove's alleged actions weren't criminal:
"This isn't a top presidential aide accepting an
expensive gift or engaging in lewd sexual conduct."
What's everybody getting all bent out of shape about? There was no oral sex involved for Chrissake! It's just a vindictive and criminal use of the powers of government, undermining national security in order to get revenge against the President's political enemies!
My God. Some of these people really are quite, quite nuts.
posted by Winston Smith at
9:13 AM
8 Comments:
You just violated two of you own principles:
1) You're reading blogs.
2) You're going after one of the other side's "biggest kooks."
Not that I mind.
Winston,
I was struck particularly by this from Kleinman:
"So if George W. Bush asked Karl Rove "Did you talk to any reporters about Joe Wilson's wife?" and Karl Rove said, "No, sir," Karl Rove committed a felony. And if Karl Rove said "Yes, sir" and the President then told the special prosecutor otherwise, then the President committed a felony."
I know it's just speculation, but do you suppose that's why both Bush and Cheney have retained outside counsel? I mean REALLY outside counsel, as in not the 'White House counsel', whose confidentiality was brought into question when Clinton was President?
First Anonymous: You're right about violating my principle re: Powerline. My bad. Re: not reading blogs--it's not a principle, it's just that I'm currently bored with 'em. Except Kevin Drum. He's damn good. I should read him more.
Second Anonymous: Good damn point.
If this affair does not result in impeachment and/or firing and imprisonment of high-level officials, then we can be sure that future historians will regard our era as an unusually silly one. The facts are as follows:
THE REAGAN ADMINISTRATION: Sold weapons to Arab terrorists, forwarded the proceeds to Central American terrorists. RESULT: None.
THE CLINTON ADMINISTRATION: Screwed a willing intern in the Oval Office. RESULT: Impeachment (but not removal from office).
THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION: Outed US undercover agent because her husband criticized the administration. Lied about it repeatedly in the early stages of the investigation. RESULT: ?
Third Anonymous
Don't forget:
Reagan admin: Did all that in violation of an act of congress specifically passed to prevent such actions.
Bush admin: Probably didn't actually win election of 2000; lied to take us to war, Plame outting resulted when an ambassador called 'bullshit' on them.
No, history will not look favorably on our era.
"On the "no underlying crime" point, moreover, no less than the New York Times and Washington Post now agree. So do the 36 major news organizations that filed a legal brief in March aimed at keeping Mr. Cooper and the New York Times's Judith Miller out of jail.
"While an investigation of the leak was justified, it is far from clear--at least on the public record--that a crime took place," the Post noted the other day. Granted the media have come a bit late to this understanding, and then only to protect their own, but the logic of their argument is that Mr. Rove did nothing wrong either."---WSJ
The facts have been a little late catching up with the furor. Somebody's nuts, all right.
Well, tvd, there's facts and there's facts.
I especially liked this part, sure to warm the hearts of the few people in those countries who still look to us for inspiration: When Novak outed Valerie he also compromised her company and every individual overseas who had been in contact with that company and with her.
Karl Rove, whistle blower--somebody's nuts allright.
You gotta wonder at how frantic the those on the right are, though, to deny a crime took place before the facts are even out... There's clearly *prima facie* reason for concern here, but the Republicans are all like "what? What? This is *obviously* not a crime!"
Scary and pathetic.
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