Did Bush Know or Was he Oblivious?

[kerrygoddess]

Did Bush Know or Was he Oblivious?


Whoever leaked Valerie Plame’s name to the press has “compromised intelligence sources and methods” and frittered “away the unity of purpose that President Bush has properly invoked as a necessity in combating international terrorism.”

If they destroyed the carefully constructed and expensively maintained persona given to what the CIA calls a NOC — an agent with non-official cover, who lacks the protections afforded by a diplomatic passport — Bush’s political strategist Karl Rove and Vice President Dick Cheney’s chief of staff, Lewis Libby, crossed what should be a bright red line.

Noted in an Editorial in the Boston Globe, today, “Such betrayals might have been expected in the Cold War.”

They should not occur because political operatives in the White House want to tarnish the reputation of a critic or settle scores with a CIA they may regard as too reluctant to tailor its analyses to the talking points of a vice president or a president.

Bush may soon be forced into choosing where he stands on this issue…

Did Bush know that Rove and Libby — or whoever the sources were — betrayed Plame’s cover and with it the CIA front company that supposedly employed her? Or was the president oblivious? Bush may soon have to choose between the role of participant in a coverup or an out-of-the-loop chief executive.

MORE & LINKS - http://blog.thedemocraticdaily.com/?p=78

[MichiganVote]

1. Bush chooses what he wants to know. In that he is consistent.

[whosinpower]

2. He knew

I just read an interesting diary over at Dailykos. Bush hiring outside counsel would indicate that he knew or is being overly cautious.

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/7/27/8755/16512

snip - On this subject, I spoke with an experienced former federal prosecutor who works in Washington, specializing in white collar criminal defense (but who does not know Sharp). That attorney told me that he is baffled by Bush's move - unless Bush has knowledge of the leak. "It would not seem that the President needs to consult personal counsel, thereby preserving the attorney-client privilege, if he has no knowledge about the leak," he told me.


Go and read the diary - it is excellent.

[deminks]

3. This is an excellent diary.

Smirky knew, or he would not have hired an outside lawyer. Plus, everyone in the inner circle is suspected of having a hand in the mess. There is no way he could not have known. As dumb as we think that he is, he is also a control freak, I think, if he has all of his marbles in place.

[Uncle Joe]

4. I believe the answer is both sort of,

Bush knows that he has to be oblivious, he will play ignorant because that is what comes so naturally to him, it is his defense mechanism. His motto is "what buck stopped where?" The corporate owned media of course will keep Americans informed as to the lastest developements in the Jude Law episode, and anyone else who messes around on their beloved, so at least we have that going for us. :sarcasm:

[dajoki]

5. great article...

must read!! "how bush chose stupidity" http://slate.msn.com/id/2100064

[PurityOfEssence]

6. I'll bet he knew

not that he can be pinned with it or anything.

He's a petty tyrant, and he needed to both get revenge against someone who had to gall to cross him and to fire a shot across the bows of anyone else thinking of doing the same.

He's mean, vengeful and very, very small. He demands absolute personal loyalty, and he won't return the favor.