Billmon on a heat-seeking missile and its traget(s).
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August 10, 2004
Billmon: Plame Game
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This heat seeking missile has fuzzed out. The Neocons have all this under control, meanwhile Kerry would have invaded anyway. Bushlite now becomes Bushmedium.
America, the land of the rich who don’t pay taxes.
Posted by: Cloned Poster | Aug 10 2004 20:28 utc | 1
Interesting…
Can we infer something even more dastardly here….that the Fixer Libby likes to scoot around leaking different information to different journos/media whores so that he can:
1) Have every story every which way?
2) Selectively feed the journos/whores to the wolves that don’t play ball, or at the very least threaten them with exposure based on something that was worthless to start with anyway?
Of course neither scenario is mutually exclusive and both, if valid, would go a long way to explaining the feted today/arrested tomorrow history of the Rovians’ operatives and clients…
Kinda makes you wonder if Big Tim knew this was hanging over his head when he had is exclusive with the Shrubbery in the Offal Office.
Posted by: RossK | Aug 10 2004 21:40 utc | 2
Man,
I think it would be great if Billmon was on holidays all the time.
He’s back with big Allie Greenspan as Col Catchcart.
My question for Billmon….just who might the Yossarian(s) of Wallstreet be?
Posted by: RossK | Aug 10 2004 23:56 utc | 3
To these eyes, the Plame affair still looks bigger and more expensive than the mere implication (or indictment) of Libby and the neocons.
I persist in thinking that Powell forced Ashcroft to yield up the investigation to Fitzgerald; that several people, Cheney among them, will be tarred with this thing; and that Powell’s very public announcement of his planned absence from the New York convention is part of the story.
Posted by: alabama | Aug 11 2004 0:05 utc | 4
Shoot alabama-
I knew it was you before I even got to the second paragraph!
You likely have a very good point, hypothetically speaking at least.
Re: Goss…Billmon’s analysis is good, however, I’m waiting to hear from Sy Hersh, or maybe even Outraged, as they both were likely familiar with the Night Porter’s methods from his operational days (while, I’m sure HSThompson was not).
Posted by: RossK | Aug 11 2004 3:23 utc | 5
Dammit. We keep missing that one single piece of the puzzle that would put everything together. Doesn’t matter if it’s Cheney’s energy task force class roster, or who spilled the beans on Plame.
It’s quite obvious that Libby’s in the crosshairs on Plame. That’s exactly what CheneyCo wants, and they’re throwing enough chaff in the air to make it happen. As long as Scooter can be offered up as the sacrificial lamb, everyone else skates (at least pre-election).
This is so freakin’ bizzare. Maybe it’s because (unlike the large percentage of America) those of us who are tuned in to the issue are watching it unfold in basically real time. That’s why we get so itchy for someone to finally pull the trigger.
Personally, I think the biggest mistake the Bush administration could do would be to let Novak go to jail over this. Obviously, if Novak goes to jail, this story becomes huge, huge, huge. If any of the other reporters go to jail, it’s big, but not huge. So I’m guessing Novak gets his marching orders really quickly to finger Libby, and then hope this thing dies a quick death by the next news cycle.
If I was running BushCo, that’s how I’d play it.
Posted by: Richard Cranium | Aug 11 2004 5:23 utc | 6
Bush has amends to make to the CIA. He lacked, shall we say, the will or the inclination to support the CIA in its turf wars with the DIA and the Pentagon, thereby exposing it to the ravages of Cheney and Rumsfeld’s gestapo.
Tenet endure this humiliation up to the outing of Plame, at which point he joined forces with Powell and Mueller to cut down their common enemy forever and a day.
I believe the Fitzgerald enterprise–which Bush has allowed to take place, just as he has allowed the trashing of the CIA to take place–will do lasting damage to the CIA’s enemies. I also think Cheney lost control of his destiny some eight or nine weeks ago.
Posted by: alabama | Aug 11 2004 5:49 utc | 7
@ RC
Re: pulling the trigger….you figure maybe the Rovians have decided to send Bobby N. out on a duck hunting trip with a member of SCOTUS?
@ alabama–
Eight or nine weeks ago? Your reasons for hypothesizing thus?
Finally, could anybody/thing squeeze the Fixer Libby hard enough to make him turn Rat before he Scoots off to that Subterranean Bar in Berundi where Wee Willie Casey and the Ghost of Lee Atwater are keeping his seat warm?
Posted by: RossK | Aug 11 2004 7:10 utc | 8
But seriously Richard….Is there anybody in the 4th Estate of our time who could yank the chain, hard, and keep on yanking until the bowl finally flushed completely?
I’m not sure there is.
Hell, these days even those (ie. we) who are paying attention are pinning almost all their hopes on a satirist.
Need proof…. Check out the discussion on Atrios’ Post on JStew’s tarring of Novak last night.
We’re in serious trouble here.
Posted by: RossK | Aug 11 2004 7:21 utc | 9
If you was running bushco Richard, would you have a tight enough rein on Fitzgerald and the grand jury to disable them as soon as the lanyard is pulled on Libby, and to dump all extraneous evidence leading to Cheney? (And elsewhere including higher.)
Posted by: rapt | Aug 11 2004 14:21 utc | 10
The Plame affair – it’s all over folks
Goss on the Plame leak
Posted by: Nemo | Aug 11 2004 14:42 utc | 11
Nemo, you’re correct.
I cannot believe that Goss said this:
“Somebody sends me a blue dress and some DNA, I’ll have an investigation,”
Posted by: Cloned Poster | Aug 11 2004 14:47 utc | 12
Plame for CIA Director!
(Well, why not? They ruined her other career opportunities there.)
Posted by: kat | Aug 11 2004 14:48 utc | 13
I was just guessing, RossK, that Tenet resigned when he felt that Fitzgerald was safely advanced in his inquiries. Tenet, after all, was fighting for the job-security of his agents, and he wouldn’t quit before he’d achieved that….And Richard, for what it’s worth I don’t think Libby’s the target. I think Cheney and Rove are the targets. I lost interest in Libby when Wilson published his book. Wilson published what he thought he might know, but given the way this has been playing out, there may be just one person (namely Fitzgerald) who really knows. He seems to have compartmentalized his investigation to the point of unintelligibility even for his own people. Wouldn’t we have interesting leaks otherwise?
Posted by: alabama | Aug 11 2004 14:50 utc | 14
Nemo- that article was from October, and since the article appeared, Fitzgerald has been appointed, and Porter Goss cannot stop his investigation, afaik.
In light of his comments on this issue in the past, I do hope that Fitzgerald nails Cheney’s balls to the wall, not just Libby’s, because it would illustrate what a whore Bush has installed. Goss is his bitch. That is so clear, and it is so bad for this country.
Just another reason to get rid of this dangerously corrupt crew. Yet more bad govt courtesy of the Bush junta. Americans knew what they were doing when they didn’t vote him into office, and I look forward to this fall when Bush is so voted out the people will symbollically toss his clothes out a west wing window.
…oh, and when Goss takes over his position, I wish some retired CIA person would send Goss a blue dress with Scooter’s DNA on it.
what a fucking joke that THE most politicized, 70 million taxpayer dollars because Republicans want to sniff others’ panties waste of an investigation gets compared to the Plame investigation….and the pantie sniffers win in Goss’ case.
I feel sooooo much better knowing he’s looking out for national intelligence.
Posted by: fauxreal | Aug 11 2004 21:53 utc | 15
Could it be that this is a much wider investigation than the good barkeep thinks? For example, just because Plame’s name became known after Novak’s exposure, was her status immediately declassified? If no, then Karl “Plame’s fair game” Rove has some splainin’ to do too.
You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one.
Posted by: Heimy | Aug 12 2004 3:56 utc | 16
@alabama
good point re: the Tenent hang around…I remember you made a fuss about that at the time. Now I get it.
Posted by: RossK | Aug 12 2004 6:01 utc | 17
Ha, Have any of you heard of the fair tax? If you want more info go to fairtaw.org
Posted by: Phillip | Apr 21 2005 18:20 utc | 18