The Plame Game
I have not commented on the Valerie Plame affair
because any comments before the investigation is concluded are premature.
Either serious crimes have been committed or they haven't, and we'll find out in
the end what the special prosecutor has in store.
The revelations over the last week do show just how far down the bar has been lowered for misconduct in high office, though. Karl Rove, through his lawyer, has admitted discussing the classified status of a CIA operative with a reporter for political reasons. Whether or not this action constitutes a crime, it amounts to a serious breach of the public trust.
The latest right-wing talking points seem to be aimed at Joe Wilson personally - he's a liar, partisan hack, etc. All of this is utterly beside the point. The CIA invested a great deal of time, money, and personnel in setting up Valerie Plame as a covert operative. Even if she had not been active in her covert role for a period of time, her network of associates was still in place. Blowing her cover, even after the fact, allowed the enemies of the United States to trace back her steps for years, including her associates and contacts. An entire intelligence network aimed at fighting the spread of Weapons of Mass Destruction has been blown up because of the short-term political needs of the Bush Administration.
Even if everything the right-wing says about Joe Wilson is true, national security was compromised for politics.
This is a grave mistake. Part of the job of President is to shoulder unfair political criticism if it is in the national interest to do so. If the President has to make an unpopular decision on the basis of classified information which he can neither reveal nor discuss, so be it.
Good intelligence will dry up quickly if Presidents or their staff burn covert operatives for domestic political reasons. Regardless of how good those domestic politic reasons are alleged to be.
If it's not a crime to do what Karl Rove did, it ought to be.
The revelations over the last week do show just how far down the bar has been lowered for misconduct in high office, though. Karl Rove, through his lawyer, has admitted discussing the classified status of a CIA operative with a reporter for political reasons. Whether or not this action constitutes a crime, it amounts to a serious breach of the public trust.
The latest right-wing talking points seem to be aimed at Joe Wilson personally - he's a liar, partisan hack, etc. All of this is utterly beside the point. The CIA invested a great deal of time, money, and personnel in setting up Valerie Plame as a covert operative. Even if she had not been active in her covert role for a period of time, her network of associates was still in place. Blowing her cover, even after the fact, allowed the enemies of the United States to trace back her steps for years, including her associates and contacts. An entire intelligence network aimed at fighting the spread of Weapons of Mass Destruction has been blown up because of the short-term political needs of the Bush Administration.
Even if everything the right-wing says about Joe Wilson is true, national security was compromised for politics.
This is a grave mistake. Part of the job of President is to shoulder unfair political criticism if it is in the national interest to do so. If the President has to make an unpopular decision on the basis of classified information which he can neither reveal nor discuss, so be it.
Good intelligence will dry up quickly if Presidents or their staff burn covert operatives for domestic political reasons. Regardless of how good those domestic politic reasons are alleged to be.
If it's not a crime to do what Karl Rove did, it ought to be.
Posted: Mon - July 18, 2005 at 10:33 AM
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Published On: Jul 18, 2005 10:34 AM
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Published On: Jul 18, 2005 10:34 AM