I saw a commercial last night for the movie where Robin Williams runs for president. I see the line "I did not have sex with that woman" is now a big joke. The lefties in my circles adore Clinton and wish he could run again. Wrongdoers on the left get promoted while innocent people on the right get torn down for sport.
I thought the silence around Sandy Berger's criminal caper and William Jefferson's criminal caper was bad enough, but the silence around beloved criminal Colin Powell is particularly grating. The entire persecution of Bush and Rove that led to disingenuous indictment of Scooter Libby was a knowing sham. Where is the outrage?
Greater self-love hath no man than to sacrifice a friend's life for his own. Our grateful nation awards the Medal of Honor to those few whose valor in combat is above and beyond the call of duty. But what is the polar opposite of the Medal? It is essential we decide, because Richard Armitage -- former Deputy Secretary of State -- has earned it for his uncommon treachery, beneath and beyond the call of knavery.
Wilson bellowed -- and the media and the Democratic leadership chimed in -- demanding a criminal investigation into the leak of Plame's name. Wilson accused Karl Rove of trying to smear him, and said Rove should be "frog-marched" out of the White House in handcuffs. The 527 Media -- the New York Times, Washington Post, CBS, NBC and ABC -- all covered the story not as even liberally biased publications, but as political activists making campaign commercials for the Dems.
Long before the indictment, Wilson's story had fallen apart. His lies about the Niger "investigation" were revealed by the 9-11 Commission, British intelligence and many others who found that Saddam had pursued a uranium deal in Niger. But as more and more of Wilson's claims were disproved, serial liar Wilson and his media pals didn't slow down.
Now we know, as Paul Harvey might say, the rest of the story. Neither Karl Rove nor Scooter Libby was Novak's source in July 2003. Richard Armitage was. And, at least as of October 1, 2003, Colin Powell knew that. Almost three months later, when Patrick Fitzgerald was appointed on December 30, 2003, he knew there was no crime to investigate. No covert operator's name had been divulged. It is an entirely separate scandal -- one probably including real criminal conduct -- that the Fitzgerald investigation was even begun despite knowledge that no crime had been committed.
Libby's crime, if there was one, was manufactured by Fitzgerald in the grand jury room. And all the while Fitzgerald knew what neither the White House nor the public did: that Armitage was the source.
To his credit, Novak is making clear now what his pledge of confidentiality to Armitage made him conceal earlier.
It was an act of supreme disloyalty for Armitage to keep the fact that he was Novak's source from the president -- and thus the public -- for three years. The same goes for Powell. There was no reason whatever -- other than the desire to do political damage to the administration -- for Armitage and Powell to remain silent while the 527 Media and the Dems fired a three-year long barrage of political fire at the President, the Vice President, Karl Rove and Scooter Libby.
We expect the Dems and the political-activist media to do this. But we don't expect the craven, cowardly conduct of Armitage and Powell.
How many times have we heard Schumer, Rockefeller, Durbin and the rest say we can't trust this administration, using Wilson-Plame as proof? Where does the Bush administration go to get its reputation back?
The facts that neither he nor Powell told the president, that both allowed the Democrats and the media to damage the Bush administration for almost three years afterward and let Scooter Libby's life to be ruined, disqualifies both Armitage and Powell from ever holding public office again. Let them retire in the ignominy they deserve.
They may deserve it but they will never get it.
No comments:
Post a Comment