WP: Secret Unit Expands Rumsfeld's Domain

[rockedthevoteinMA]

Secret Unit Expands Rumsfeld's Domain
New Espionage Branch Delving Into CIA Territory

By Barton Gellman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, January 23, 2005; Page A01

The Pentagon, expanding into the CIA's historic bailiwick, has created a new espionage arm and is reinterpreting U.S. law to give Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld broad authority over clandestine operations abroad, according to interviews with participants and documents obtained by The Washington Post.

The previously undisclosed organization, called the Strategic Support Branch, arose from Rumsfeld's written order to end his "near total dependence on CIA" for what is known as human intelligence. Designed to operate without detection and under the defense secretary's direct control, the Strategic Support Branch deploys small teams of case officers, linguists, interrogators and technical specialists alongside newly empowered special operations forces.

Military and civilian participants said in interviews that the new unit has been operating in secret for two years -- in Iraq, Afghanistan and other places they declined to name. According to an early planning memorandum to Rumsfeld from Gen. Richard B. Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the focus of the intelligence initiative is on "emerging target countries such as Somalia, Yemen, Indonesia, Philippines and Georgia." Myers and his staff declined to be interviewed.

The Strategic Support Branch was created to provide Rumsfeld with independent tools for the "full spectrum of humint operations," according to an internal account of its origin and mission. Human intelligence operations, a term used in counterpoint to technical means such as satellite photography, range from interrogation of prisoners and scouting of targets in wartime to the peacetime recruitment of foreign spies. A recent Pentagon memo states that recruited agents may include "notorious figures" whose links to the U.S. government would be embarrassing if disclosed.

More...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A29414-2005Jan22?language=printer

[nashville_brook]

1. Rummy's Thug Army -- does a day go by that they don't get more blatant?

[librechik]

2. the SS Branch???

"S"trategic "S"upport!!!!


Rummy is such a Nazi. He needs to go.

[IndianaGreen]

19. Yep, the SS Branch!

There is no point in pretending anymore! The Nazis running this country are quickly setting up the same police state apparatus that Hitler established in Germany, including concentration camps.

[Goldeneye]

3. What in the hell?

He gets ...what is this...like Secret police? Doesn't congress have any control over this stuff?

[reprobate]

6. What congress?

The repugs are on his side and the dems don't dare say a word.

It's fascinating to watch the destruction of a nation. Not many people in history ever got the chance to be present when an empire self destructed. We should feel special.

God Help America

Thanks George.

[paineinthearse]

11. Helllo......senator reid's war room....hello???????

Is anybody home???????

http://reid.senate.gov/record.cfm?id=228595

Reid Announces New Communications Center
Monday, November 29, 2004


WASHINGTON , DC – Democratic Leader-elect Harry Reid (D-NV) today announced he is creating a new communications “War Room” in the U.S. Capitol to provide Democrats a visible and vocal platform from which they will be heard. “As the Democratic leader, I will ensure that all Americans -- from my rural hometown of Searchlight to the nation’s big cities -- know the values and principles for which Democrats stand,” Reid said. “That is why I have formed an aggressive operation with the best talent in the country to spread the word and get the truth out.” Jim Manley, a seasoned and skilled media operative on Capitol Hill, will be Staff Director of the new Senate Democratic Communications Center (SDCC). Manley will oversee a 15-member staff, message development and communications strategy for Reid and the Democratic caucus. For the past 11 years, Manley has served as Press Secretary for Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. Prior to the HELP committee, Manley worked for former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell (D-ME). Phil Singer will come on board as Communications Director, handling rapid response and messaging for Reid and Senate Democrats. Singer has earned widespread praise for his media savvy, tenacity and know-how, most recently as National Spokesperson for Kerry-Edwards 2004. Before the Presidential campaign, Singer spent four years as Communications Director for Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY). Tessa Hafen will join as Press Secretary, working alongside Manley and Singer while also ensuring focus and priority for Nevada and regional media. Hafen, a native Nevadan, has been essential to Team Reid since she joined six years ago, most recently as Campaign Press Secretary on his overwhelmingly successful re-election in Nevada. Senator Reid also said the new Senate Democratic Communications Center will aggressively pioneer Internet outreach, including online news outlets and blogs. “We will use every tool and innovative avenue available to us to get our message out,” Reid said. “The Internet is the future, and it is vital to this new communications project.” The SDCC will be launched January 4, 2005 , when Sen Reid is sworn in as the new Democratic Leader. Contact information will be distributed at that time.

###

[UL_Approved]

25. Ministry of Propaganda?

Here again we have the start of the GOP takeover. Is this "war room" supposed to be for or against Bush and cronies?

[54anickel]

26. Heh-heh, that line is for out-going calls only, "to get the truth out".

Seems no one is interested in letting the truth IN. No two way dialog allowed. Representative gov't my ass!

Why does this sound like another marketing/propaganda tool?

“As the Democratic leader, I will ensure that all Americans -- from my rural hometown of Searchlight to the nation’s big cities -- know the values and principles for which Democrats stand,” Reid said. “That is why I have formed an aggressive operation with the best talent in the country to spread the word and get the truth out.”

[bvar22]

59. It's been so long....

...can anyone remind me what principles the Democratic Party stand for???

[Name removed]

62. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[leesa]

4. Rumsfeld, Boykin and Meyers are dangerous traitors. They are completely

deranged.

[DistantWind88]

51. OK, I gotta know

What do Boykin and Myers have to do with this? And why are they traitors? What treason have they committed?

[KoKo]

5. Didn't Chimp say in his speech that we wouldn't be doing "overt"

operations to spread democracy. Maybe he didn't use "overt" but some clip posted from his speech made me wonder...what are they doing "behind the scenes?"

Well...now, I guess we know. It's Congresses job to oversee this stuff. Where are the Senate and House Intelligence Committees on this. I assume they know about it...and have given it the "go ahead." If they don't know then this is more reason to get rid of Rummy and make sure any of our Dems who have approved of this have notice that this isn't what our taxpayer dollars should be going to. :grr:

[Warren Stupidity]

24. read seymour hersch (sp?) in the new yorker re oversight...

part of the point of moving everything covert out of the CIA domain is to do an end run around the c. 1970's congressional oversight regulations. These new organizations inside DOD and the pentagon are not covered and do not have to report to anyone outside of DOD and are not even required to have presidential authorization. There is no paper trail, no regulation, no reporting. They can do anything they want.

Who will speak out against the madness? Where are our leaders?

[Nothing Without Hope]

43. Seymour Hersh's MUST-READ New Yorker article on this is here

http://www.newyorker.com/fact/content/?050124fa_fact

The parts of this important article dealing with the secret military targetting missions in Iran, apparently in preparation for an invasion of that country, have been discussed extensively. But the other, broader, story here is the "hollowing out" of the CIA so that ALL intelligence gathering is gathered into the DOD and away from any Congressional or expert oversight.

We should all read this article and tell everyone we know about this story.

[etherealtruth]

65. If I'm not mistaken...

...last weekend, didn't the Chimp administration denigrate Mr. Hersh's character for suggesting that these "secret" operations even existed? I am sickened by the administrations attempt at character assassination for anyone who exposes any of their filthy little secrets.

[Nothing Without Hope]

66. Yeah, they tried that when he broke Abu Ghraib too

But he has more believability in his left little toe than the entire blivet** cartel has. Integrity and real investigative journalism will do that.

Everything the cartel has said against him and his reports has been shown to be lies. Eventually, people stop believing them.

[cosmicdot]

74. is this what is meant by "reinterpreting U.S. law'?

doing an 'end run around the c. 1970's congressional oversight regulations'?

[LynnTheDem]

7. OSP's twin. bushCartel sure do have a lot of "secret organizations"

Hitler did, too. Just another in a looooooong line of bushler-Hitler similarities.

[Just Me]

8. I just KNEW he was going to do this IN SPITE of,...

,...the so-called "intelligence bill". The freakin' neoCONimperialists made damned sure that they could militarize our intelligence.

They are consolidating their power.

Every single member of congress and every American citizen should be running around like their heads are on fire.

:scared:

But,...there are so many who are entirely too slow to wake.

:cry:

Our poor children

[calimary]

68. Fabulous, 'eh? Give it to the guy who personally ensured that Iraq

would be one big pig-fuck. Mr. Lean-n-Mean, we-can-do-it-on-the-cheap, you-go-with-the-army-you=have. Great. Just Great. It's almost as bad as having Contradicta in charge. A guaranteed major league botch-job if either of them gets involved.

And yes, I can FULLY believe that their main objective is to develop mechanisms that get AROUND the law as currently configured. After all, that was alberto "torture's okay" gonzales's objective with his own White House memos - how to get around the Geneva Conventions. That's been one of the major thrusts of this entire regime - how to get around whatever laws, regulations, restrictions and conventions that they don't like, or that they think stand in their way.

And, HEY, AMERICA!!?!?!?!??! You're OKAY WITH THIS???!?!?!??!??!??!?

[LynnTheDem]

9. Rumsfailed hires murderers, assassins, drug cartels...

A recent Pentagon memo states that recruited agents may include "notorious figures" whose links to the U.S. government would be embarrassing if disclosed.

Gee. What a fucking surprise that bushCartel are incredibly and utterly amoral, immoral and total hypocrites.

NOT.

THIS shit is EXACTLY why "they" HATE US.

[Acryliccalico]

67. What the worst

thing about this is, they are going after their blown up fantasies and what might happen delusions and letting the real threat ( their delusions) create real threats. :freak: This is exactly why they hate us. I wouldn't go get a crack user to go next door and snoop in my neighbors house because I thought that some day they might come and tear up my yard.:kick:

[LynnTheDem]

10. And WTF is THIS about?????????!!!

One scenario in which Pentagon operatives might play a role, O'Connell said, is this: "A hostile country close to our borders suddenly changes leadership. . . . We would want to make sure the successor is not hostile."

EXSQUEEZE ME?????!!!

[Cooley Hurd]

20. Assassinations R Us...

A better name for this new arm of the Pentagon would be "Murder, Incorporated."

[Poll_Blind]

12. You're not going to believe this...get a load of this article...

Oh boy...Check out this article, Some Question Background of Unit's Leader.

<SNIP>

Col. George Waldroup, an Army reserve officer who commands the Defense Intelligence Agency's Strategic Support Branch, is described by associates as a colorful Texan who refers to himself in the third person, as "GW."

<SNIP>

Internal Pentagon briefings describe Strategic Support Branch members as experienced intelligence professionals with specialized skills, "military operations backgrounds," and the training to "function in all environments under adverse conditions." But four special operations soldiers who provided information for this article, directly or through intermediaries, said those assigned to work with them included out-of-shape men in their fifties and recent college graduates on their first assignments.

<SNIP>

During the investigation, according to the inspector general's final report, Waldroup refused to disclose the password to his e-mail files, refused to sign an affidavit summarizing his testimony and, in a subsequent interview, "stated that he would not answer any questions" because "he wished to protect himself from exposure to criminal sanctions." The authors of the Justice Department report found insufficient evidence to file charges but said they were troubled by "recurrent failures to provide documents."

<SNIP>

There's more in the article if you can stomach it.

PB

[Liberty Belle]

13. They picked him because they can blackmail him.

He'll have to do whatever Rummy orders, or he knows his past crimes will be exposed.

[Just Me]

14. I just HAVE to believe their are true Patriots not only paying attention,.

but also executing a plan to save this experiment called, democracy, and a country called, the United States of America.

Moreover, there is increasing evidence that "the people" are coming around.

[chicagojoe]

16. The History Channel just ran

a program on the French Revolution.
Food For Thought.

[calimary]

70. Really? I sure haven't seen any.

If you have, PLEASE share. I need it desperately. ARE THERE people who actually are starting to come around? Anybody of any political consequence? I mean, Barbara Boxer is but one individual.

I'm bummed already because of Johnny Carson. And now this. Compounded by the gnawing reality that precious few people in or out of media, across the country, just don't seem to give a rat's ass anymore.

I can't believe we don't already have uprisings in the streets. I've never seen things this bad or this lawless, or this fascistic, in this country before in my life. EVER.

[oneighty]

28. Out of shape men in their fifties

recent (Young-no life experience) college grads all playing SS Troopers.

Sounds like a Chinese fire drill in the making. I hope they are not given real bullets to play with.

180

[Lexingtonian]

15. oooh and aaaah....

I wish I were impressed. Well, I am a little- that 'Grey Fox' unit is about the only thing, and the one rational thing the Bushies have done, in taking apart Al Qaeda's "military" arm.

All the rest of that 'secret' stuff sounds as if this group is supposed to work in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Iran. Not terribly sexy stuff, really, and in good part a response to all the embarrassments the Bushies have incurred in that region. And unlikely to end well.

I guess they'll plug around on Mission Catch Osama and Mission Catch Zarqawi for a bit longer. When that's entirely hopeless the Bushies will waste them on some kind of (predictably botched) coup attempt in Iran. Those mullahs are going to get payback for the hostage crisis back whenever- the American Right never forgives a slight.

The sad thing about this unit is what it means in a negative sense. It means the Bush people consider the regular military used up (politically and functionally) in Iraq, for their intents and purposes.

[keopeli]

17. Two years, eh?

Well, I had guessed that such a thing had happened. But who am I?

I guessed that there were no WMDs. Granted, it was just an educated guess. But who am I?

I guessed that the most likely way for Bush* to win again was to manipulate the election. But, maybe that's too strong of a word. I think more likely that they simply discovered how to use the electoral system to represent their cause, mostly through a religious appeal. At first, they were very hard core (His speech slandering Arizona's moderate Republican, Sen. McCain.) I could have lived with McCain, frankly. In fact, he may have had my vote against Gore. But, we'll never know because he slandered a war hero and the press and the Democrats gave him a total pass. Their efforts (by they, I mean whoever it is out there that is in charge) have become much more subtle as they have gained power. I must concede their brilliance at how they have come into power. When Florida was manipulated, it was a perversion of the electoral process.

To my great relief, I believe that most of Bush*'s supporters in America are simply Patriots who give very little time to politics and a lot of time to being good people. They have a total faith in our system to protect them from harm. They are overwhelmingly protective of our country. Many of them remember WWII vividly. And many more are the children of that tradition. While they may spend little time dwelling on government, they are willing to die - even allow their children to die for their country.

By far, most of Bush*'s supporters are these American patriots.

But who am I?

Here's a few more guesses for your general amusement.

I think it's likely there is a system being established for monitoring the American public which is in its infancy and has not been brought to the knowledge of the public.

I think that, until we can establish a system of voting that carefully and honestly listens for the voice of the people, our government will be run by the same people who currently hold the reigns.

I think we will invade another country within two years.

I think there will be another attack on US soil under the Bush* administration.

I think our economy will decline percipitously as soon as China, India, Russia and the EU get enough power - a prospect which is already being realized. Eliminating or depriving our security blankets at this time is the very height of error.

I think that Americans will continue to experience our current cultural crisis until the disparity between the electoral college and the popular vote, an issue which has not been effectively addressed since the Great Compromise which gave birth to our Constitution. The will of the people must be represented, not by land or money or race, but by citizenship. That citizenship is both national and regional, and our representatives should reflect a balance of both. The regional value of a state upon an election of the government should not favor an area sparsely populated, nor should it ignore the voice of the majority.

For fun, I have a possible solution. Americans should be required to vote in and on behalf of the state that they were born in regarding any national office election (currently, only President and Vice President). Immigrants vote in their own category, which is weighted with less voice than natives. However, the children of immigrants maintain a full voice in the state in which they are born. Americans born abroad take on the state citizenship of their birth mother. We do this within the current Electoral College structure. And, we require electoral college votes to reflect the will of it's represented people.

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

18. And so The Ministry Of Love is finally born.

Or, as they called it in "1984"- Miniluv.


"War is Peace."

[mtnester]

21. Keeping an eye out for the Thought Police too

Our family is so close to having the "meeting" to discuss our options, it is scary

[Bozvotros]

22. "notorious figures" = terrorists

It is a good thing that these guys are so scrupulous and honest, otherwise we might have something to worry about.

[ashmanonar]

47. how about hired thugs?

don't use bush's own terminology for these people. it only makes his job easier.

[UL_Approved]

23. Who will raise the opposition?

Maybe Powell can get in contact with Schwartzkopf, raise an army, and clear his name of Neo-Con shenanigans. This is the end, people. The end. :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke:

[Alpharetta]

27. "near total dependence on CIA" ???

Considering it was Chalabbi and the Pentagon's "Office of Special Projects" which generated the WMD and threat disinformation leading to Saddam's ouster, I am puzzled.

The only thing they depended on the CIA to do was look the other way and collect their medal for acting stupid.

[zanana]

29. Remember the MILLIONS MISSING from the Pentagon?

A few years ago, we were asking where this money had gone. Nobody could "pin it down". Could it be that that money went into the establishment of the "Strategic Support Branch" as the "reprogrammed" money the article talks about?

[leftchick]

31. trillions!

I believe the number was 3 Trillion dollars missing.

[ChiciB1]

30. Just Read This Article in My Newspaper!

Said Congress was NOT aware of the Unit!!! This is an outrage, they just passed legislation for NDI and we find out that Rummy has had this thing going on for 2 YEARS!

Shades of Nazis and Hitler! When are the slumbering Americans going to wake up??? And more importantly, is CONGRESS going to do anything about this??

The last paragraph in my paper says "According to written guidelines made available to The Washington Post, the Defense Department has decided that it will coordinate its human intelligence missions with the CIA but WILL NOT, as in the past, await consent!"

Why are we letting this happen??? I can't BELIEVE how far down the rat hole we're going! What arrogant BASTARDS!! I'm SICK of these people, they aren't MY kind of Americans, and this is NOT what I perceive to be a MORAL VALUE!

WAKE UP IDIOTS! YOUR president is DRUNK with POWER!! And what does that do to DEMOCRACY!!!! :wtf: :mad:

:mad:

[tmooses]

32. Are these "notorious agents" related to the "death squad" story a

week or so ago?

[TahitiNut]

33. "other places they declined to name" = Iran and Syria

We're an outlaw nation.

[Comicstripper]

34. Holy Shit

Assistant Secretary of Defense Thomas O'Connell, who oversees special operations policy, said Rumsfeld has discarded the "hide-bound way of thinking" and "risk-averse mentalities" of previous Pentagon officials under every president since Gerald R. Ford.

This stuff is genuinely frightening.

[driver8]

39. shrub and rummy are perfect for one another...

They are both crazier than a shit house rat!!!

[ashmanonar]

48. read up on John Stockwell.

it's even more frightening to know that this hasn't just started. America's Third World War

or go rent his book from the library, if you aren't worried about them monitoring your library habits...it's called In Search of Enemies, by the same John Stockwell.

[BushSpeak]

73. Here's the correct link

THE SECRET WARS OF THE CIA I - by John Stockwell
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article4068.htm
&
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article4069.htm.

Link to download the video directly. http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/video1/stockwell_cia.wmv

[cliss]

35. In a way, this is good news.

Think about it: what on earth can that old man do? Except spend the government's money.

Which brings me to my next point. I finally discovered the reason why BeelzeBush and his cronies will fail: they're just costing this country too much money. And they accomplish nothing.

RumsFool is so incompetent, that he won't be able to use the Blue Ribbon information that he's got. All he wants to do is torture people. He doesn't know what to do with his information.

Other than fuck it up. I've read about RumsFailed, how he has been incompetent his entire "professional" life, how he left the government to work in private industry. He was incompetent. Don't be fooled about his "success" story about making Searle Pharmaceuticals into a success. He just got crony contracts from the government, and fired a lot of people.

The reason it can't last is because he's going to pay these people a high wage. He's expanding the government. Spending more money that we don't have. At this rate, the US will be bankrupt within 3 to 4 years.

It's only a matter of time now.

[Solly Mack]

36. That echo chamber is getting smaller and smaller

so much power shifting to so few hands...so much danger just waiting to explode.

:sarcasm alert:

But, hey...don't you dare compare them to the Nazis!

Just because they had a Gestapo (secret police), a SS ("protective guard" that morphed into a private army for the Nazi party), and a SA (storm troopers who met with SS "control" issues..think Night of the Long Knives and who died), doesn't mean our little Rummy is taking a page from their playbook. So you can't say the two compare! Just because the SS(B) is wrestling control from the CIA in an attempt to solidify Rummy's own power and reach...don't you compare the two! Why, Rummy could be imitating any number of dictators. But don't you dare claim it was a Nazi dictator!!

Dictatorships share a lot of common traits. Just because millions haven't died yet in no way changes that a comparison can be made between the Bush administration and the structure of the Nazi hierarchy.

[Octafish]

37. Rummy admires the Wehrmacht...

Joe Blow knew about this stuff way back in '03. Funny how long it took Corporate McPravda to cover. Not.

SOCOM: The New Waffen-SS?

by Joe Blow

I noted with interest Secretary Rumsfeld’s recent announcement of the transformation of U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM). This unified command—comprised of a small, elite group of highly trained operators—normally operates in the shadows, but it is suddenly not only very visible, it is also underfunded, undermanned, and overextended.  

Rumsfeld’s recent announcement is a fundamental change and it bears closer scrutiny. This piece also attempts to draw some interesting, if not ominous, parallels between the “new” SOCOM and the Waffen-SS.  

Commanders of conventional forces have often misunderstood special operations troops, their capabilities, and how best to employ them. This sometimes resulted in them being kept “out of the way” when the shooting started. Desert Storm was no exception. Combat search and rescue (CSAR) of downed pilots was a dedicated special ops mission in that campaign, but it may soon disappear for them, along with several others due to the demands being placed upon SOCOM in the War on Terror.  

Rowan Scarborough writes in The Washington Times, “Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld announced yesterday he has given new power to the nation's covert warriors to kill and capture al Qaeda operatives and other terrorists.  

“In a significant transformation of U.S. Special Operations Command, Mr. Rumsfeld said the command in Tampa, Fla., and its satellite units around the world, can now plan and execute their own hunt-and-destroy missions.”  

CONTINUED...

http://www.strike-the-root.com/columns/blow/blow8.html

[Swamp Rat]

46. The new, Rummy approved "SSB."

[Octafish]

49. If not for the subject matter...

...that would be beautiful, Swamp Rat! Wow. You captured the essence of the evil turd. Another thing's for sure: It's beautiful art.

[gulfcoastliberal]

38. Another act in this grandest of tragedies...

Another day, another atrocity revealed to an ignorant and uncaring populace.

[TankLV]

40. It does get worse, every fucking moment, doesn't it?!?!

Just great.

"Thank you, I'll have another, sir!"

Stop this world, I want to get off!

God/Goddess/Aliens/SOMEBODY help us all!

Hello? Anybody out there?!?!?!

H-E-L-P!

[Nothing Without Hope]

41. So there's been a secret SS group including "notorious" figures

for two years now with no Congressional oversight at all.

How will this be spun? And who were the "notorious" figures -- Chalabi? Death squad leaders?

And will the press and the Congressional Democrats just lie down and close their eyes AGAIN?

[fooj]

42. Does the world feel safer yet?

[Synnical]

44. kick n/t

[daleo]

45. So now Rummy is "master of his domain".

Sienfeld was a show about nothing, while Iraq is a war about nothing.

[Name removed]

50. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Bridget Burke]

52. Great--we're already planning the next wars.

We know the 9/11 Commission really has our best interests at heart!

[DistantWind88]

53. We're ALWAYS planning the next war(s)

Why do you think each Service, the Combatant Commands, and the Joint Staff all have planning staffs?

[Bridget Burke]

54. Of course. But aren't the existing planners enough?

Why does Rumsfeld need more power?

[DistantWind88]

55. Seems these are intel "gatherers"

vice planners. I guess one can never have too much intel. :-)

[Name removed]

57. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Bridget Burke]

58. The amount of intel was never the problem....

Responding correctly can be difficult.

* Numerous warnings from domestic & foreign sources that a terror attack is impending? Ignore.

* Specious, spurious rumors of WMD in Iraq? Invade.

[ilibs]

61. your mixing domestic and military

Im not referring to 9/11 intel. Im referring to preparing sympathetic rebels and other forces in future conflicts. We really need more.

[Massachusetts]

56. The American Populace (70% +)

really don't care. "They don't have the time" to. RIPE FOR THE PICKIN!:mad: :mad: :wtf:

[AngryWhiteLiberal]

60. AMERICAN DEATH SQUAD. Let's start re-defining "their" terms...

The Repukes are so good about re-defining terms to suit their needs, so let's beat them at their own game.

From here on out, let's call this shadowy group for what it really is...an AMERICAN DEATH SQUAD.

JB

[realFedUp]

63. Has this appeared in every mainstream newspaper yet?

This should be on everyone's lips right now.

[Roland99]

64. McCain attempts to redeem himself - Wants Hearings on Pentagon Spy Unit

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,145252,00.html

[Politicub]

69. The SS Branch?

I'm going to be sick.

"It" is happening here, folks.

[msgadget]

71. When the does the small government part kick in?

Hey, maybe bypassing Congressional oversight is more important than shrinking the government:

Pentagon officials emphasized their intention to remain accountable to Congress, but they also asserted that defense intelligence missions are subject to fewer legal constraints than Rumsfeld's predecessors believed. That assertion involves new interpretations of Title 10 of the U.S. Code, which governs the armed services, and Title 50, which governs, among other things, foreign intelligence.

Does Cheney still have his own shadow government agency?

Edit: spelling

[Democrat Dragon]

72. The CIA, Pentagon, and FBI will merge into

the "Ministry of Love and Peace"