Newsweek: Cheney's Cheney (prepare to be insulted)

[Danieljay]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9866494/site/newsweek/

THIS tops it. I nearly punched my computer. Un effing believable.

Cheney's Cheney

"Right hand: He was on a mission to protect the country from harm—(bullshit) and detonate critics in his path. Scooter Libby's ways and means."

"It is a good bet that Cheney and Libby did not think they were conspiring to trash a political foe by ruining his wife's career as an undercover agent(bullshit). Given their view of themselves and their roles in the world, especially post 9/11, it is much more likely they believed that they were somehow safeguarding the republic. It's also a good bet that they did not foresee the disastrous consequences of their conversation, as well as a series of others between Libby and government officials and several reporters in the summer of 2003. Libby, as well as his boss, operated, at least in their own minds, on a higher plane."

[niyad]

1. oh puleeeeeeeezzzzee--that is just disgusting. sadly, though, there are

those who are going to believe this bs.

[chelsea0011]

2. "A higher plane"???!!! How about pond scum?

[jsamuel]

Thanks for providing the criminals with a defense based on INTENT...

Newsweek... this just is inexcusable.

My subscription going bye-bye...

[wtmusic]

3. Whenever you see the phrase, "post 9/11"

you can rest assured propaganda will follow.

[The_Casual_Observer]

10. "It's also a good bet"

You know what's coming when they use shit like "Its a good bet" too.

It's a good bet that I haven't forgotten who was running this country on 9/11 either.

[Norquist Nemesis]

4. Okay. This says there are insane people running our country.

Those women who killed their children believed they were protecting them from the evils of the world. Did we excuse them?

[writes2000]

5. I don't read this as a glowing endorsement at all. They're DELUSIONAL

if this article is to be believed. And that makes them even more dangerous.

[Virginian]

18. So they think they are better than the rest of us. - Hypocrisy

Isn't that normal for republican officials? -- For Republicans in general since they don't think the same laws apply to them? (think Rush)

How can they see the world in Black and White when it comes to other people but in shades of gray when it comes to themselves?

Some day the phrase "All men are created equal" needs to be spelled out to them. All laws should apply equally to all citizens without exception for political affiliation.

[Humor_In_Cuneiform]

29. Exactly my take, Libby, Cheney et al are really out of contact with

reality.

There aren't a lot of people who would characterize their own motives as evil.

But I don't find that relevant to the case against them.

Most evil actions are done in the name of saving the world, helping the nation, or whatever.

But this is a nation of laws. Gov't officials don't get to ignore the laws at will and claim the ends justify the means.

I think about foot soldiers who are given illegal orders, or orders that violate the Geneva convention, which used to be disallowed by US gov't policy.

Imagine the confusion.

Anyhow they are supposed to be taught the Geneva conventions (they weren't), they are supposed to be taught what is an illegal command, and that it is required to resist illegal, criminal commands.

With an admin like the one in the WH now, boy talk about one of RW's talking points "moral relativism."

The only absolute value to them is that they can do anything, and anything they do is good.

:puke:

[Supersedeas]

6. high plane?? (MSNBC) Oh, ok

[dave29]

7. Mohammad Atta operated on a higher plane

we all saw how that turned out

[tsuki]

8. How do you spell "bend over," N-e-w-s-w-e-e-k.

[funflower]

9. The article actually makes the point that Libby was a zealot who thought

the law didn't apply to him, because his motives were so pure and patriotic. It also implies that there is more to this story than just the leak.

(snip)

But it is more likely that Libby was caught up in an ancient trap of the Best and the Brightest, the belief that they do not have to play by normal rules when they serve a higher calling, and that small lies can be told to protect higher truths. "National security" is usually the justification (see Watergate, Iran-contra). Judging from the indictment and what we know about Libby's own zeal, the vice president's chief of staff believed that he was protecting his boss in a great cause, the defeat of Islamo-fascism. If so, Libby's hubris may backfire. It's doubtful that Cheney has any legal exposure from his subordinate's alleged crimes, but the sensation over Libby's indictment is sure to bring renewed investigation into deeper and more serious charges of wrongdoing: that the Bush administration, and in particular the powerful, secretive vice president, willfully bent the facts to lead America into the Iraq war. Libby has always been known as Cheney's Cheney. He does not seem like the sort to go freelancing.

(snip)

[writes2000]

14. That's my read as well. Cheney is a zealot as well according to this

[NYCGirl]

20. I agree. It's not a flattering article. NT

[wtmusic]

22. It strives to justify his actions as patriotism

which is reprehensible. Just as in Iran-Contra, there is no justification.

[funflower]

25. I think it suggest Libby justified his own actions as patriotic, not that

they were justified. It's not obvious on the first page of the article, but that's basically where the author goes with it.

[wtmusic]

26. I doubt there was anything ideological in Libby's mind

but following through on Cheney's Energy Task Force vision of huge profits for the oil and defense sectors.

The author has no basis to conclude that Libby's actions were borne of such noble intent.

[wtmusic]

11. Wilson is "a flamboyant ex-diplomat with a taste for publicity"

according to goose-stepping Evan Thomas.

We have to respond to this shit:

[e-mail]

my letter:

Mr. Thomas:

I'm curious what basis affords the luxury of concluding that Scooter Libby "was on a mission to protect the country from harm" or that "It is a good bet that Cheney and Libby did not think they were conspiring to trash a political foe by ruining his wife's career as an undercover agent."

You offer that "they believed that they were somehow safeguarding the republic". Far more realistic (and likely, judging by past actions) is that they were reading from Karl Rove's playbook and trashing opponents of the administration's agenda by whatever means possible. This particular misstep crossed the line from unethical sleazy politics typical of Cheney to breaking federal law, and Scooter got nailed.

That you have chosen to defend this behavior is pathetic.

wtmusic

[dennis4868]

12. I just....

vomited my breakfast

:puke:

[notadmblnd]

13. they've been political sharks all their lives and suddenly they are naive?

either way they should both resign.

[TahitiNut]

15. "on a higher plane" - Air Force Two at 50,000'?

Or are they talking about smoking pot? :puke:

[H2O Man]

16. The nice thing about Evan Thomas

is that when he has an opportunity to kiss Dick Cheney's pale fleshy ass, he wastes no time asking, "The left cheek? Or the Right?" No, our boy Evan humbles himself, and burrows his sad face between Dick's cheeks for a nice French kiss. He is a pathetic fuck.

[peekaloo]

23. eeewwwwww

Bet they call it the Pacific Rim. None of that Frenchy nonsense.

[emulatorloo]

17. Saying somebody thinks they are on a "higher plane" is not a complement.

Pretty much saying they thought they were above the law. They ain't.

[tularetom]

19. Not only are they nuts if they thought like this

but they are phuckin incompetent in the way they carried it out.

[Bob3]

21. it doesn't matter what the hell they "think they were doing"

it's what Libby DID that earned him the indictment. Always allowing for the innocent until proven guilty bit (very hard to link the word innocent with crawling toads like Scooter or Cheney) what Scooter did was to lie to law enforcement and to a grand jury that was investigating a possible crime not once but several times. It doesn't matter if he was thinking higher thoughts or he wasn't thinking at all, the law doesn't give a shit about your mindset, or motivation - you break the law and you convicted, you get punished. End of story.

This whole noble mind set is absurd. If he really thought he was defending the republic wouldn't he have seen after a while that his works were harming the republic. God if his motives were as noble as this msnbc fart catcher implies wouldn't he have confessed in order to spare the nation the burden of a trial? That would be the action of a patriot, but since he's a self serving power junkie that didn't occur to him.

Jesus what rot. :eyes:

[Hubert Flottz]

24. "operated, at least in their own minds, on a higher plane."

So did Charlie Manson and James Jones.

[insane_cratic_gal]

27. So they are heroes?

Uh.. hate to say it but they were not putting the safety of the country into the for front.

If they had been they never would of compromised an agent who was under cover. But instead they compromised any one affiliated with Plame or Brewster & Jennings cover. They destroyed the cover of an agent who was renowned in her field for her work in searching for WMD. You think she'd have a small clue about the yellow cake of Niger, or perhaps she did, and that is exactly why they came out against her.

They KNEW the Intel on yellow cake was fake. They used it anyway to make a case for war. It wasn't until AFTER they used it in the State of the Union address did Wilson call their bluff.

ALL and all it was a downright vindicative move not for national security but to yet again use bully tactics against those who dared to challenge them.

I really despise these people and those who support them. Amoebas have more depth then these guys.

[spanone]

28. How the fuck does the author know what's 'in their own minds' ????

This is insulting at best.