The C.I.A. Versus Bush

[Helga Scow Stern]

Perhaps they will help.

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/13/opinion/13brooks.html?oref=login&th

The C.I.A. Versus Bush
By DAVID BROOKS

Published: November 13, 2004


Now that he's been returned to office, President Bush is going to have to differentiate between his opponents and his enemies. His opponents are found in the Democratic Party. His enemies are in certain offices of the Central Intelligence Agency.

Over the past several months, as much of official Washington looked on wide-eyed and agog, many in the C.I.A. bureaucracy have waged an unabashed effort to undermine the current administration.

At the height of the campaign, C.I.A. officials, who are supposed to serve the president and stay out of politics and policy, served up leak after leak to discredit the president's Iraq policy. There were leaks of prewar intelligence estimates, leaks of interagency memos. In mid-September, somebody leaked a C.I.A. report predicting a gloomy or apocalyptic future for the region. Later that month, a senior C.I.A. official, Paul Pillar, reportedly made comments saying he had long felt the decision to go to war would heighten anti-American animosity in the Arab world.

White House officials concluded that they could no longer share important arguments and information with intelligence officials. They had to parse every syllable in internal e-mail. One White House official says it felt as if the C.I.A. had turned over its internal wastebaskets and fed every shred of paper to the press.

--snip

[corporatemedia]

1. So how long before Bush starts bombing McClean, VA???

[cassiepriam]

2. More info please

The attempts of the CIA to jolt the American people into
reality failed. Does anyone have more info about other CIA activities
or strategies?

[The Backlash Cometh]

5. That's because they never included video.

You put video up there showing how insensitive Bush really is, or how deep Cheney is involved in the behind the scenes machinations and people will wake up.

Remember, a picture is worth a thousand words.

[Missy M]

3. Never shared anyway

This White House Administration is so secretive it never shares arguments and information anyway. How can intelligence be effective if the White House is not cooperative? The White House also used the CIA as a scapegoat.

[rfranklin]

4. CIA = Blame America First...

Maybe it was the CIA that outed Plame just to make Dumbya look bad. Yeah, that's it!

This may be a campaign to innoculate the Bushistas against the CIA if they release information that really nails them?

[greenman3610]

6. look for the military to join in this

during the second term, and soon.
those in know at the Pentagon, know that
* is literally destroying the army, the
institution that they love.

[Sperk]

7. I HAD to write Brooks on this one, what a piece of crap article!!!

Dear Mr. Brooks,

Reality check from the reality based society!!!! The CIA knew Bush was full of crap about Iraq, which is exactly why the OSP was created. The leaks were an attempt to wake up the sleeping masses as to how corrupt their president was. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough. The people fell for another Bush con job, hook, line and sinker. What's happening now is nothing more than payback. Bush will make sure that he has LOYAL CIA agents, loyal to HIM that is, not to the USA. What a dangerous proposition.

I know this sounds offensive, and I honestly do not mean to be. I am sincere when I ask this.....Have you people in the media always been this stupid? Or is the truth even worse....are you deliberately misleading and conning the American people? For your sake, I hope your just dumb.

[gordianot]

8. This is the real story of 2004.

These are either the seeds of Bush destruction or the destruction of the Republic.

[teryang]

9. David Brooks, spokesperson for the obscurantists

I don't believe much of the attempted window dressing of this fight by defense/oil industry totalitarians against the CIA. It is a power struggle pure and simple.

Generally the operators don't really have much to do with the analysts anyway but the social dicotomy between neo-fascist Straussian ideologues at DOD, and highly educated and urbane CIA bureaucrats and analysts is another. It is only natural that the latter would feel more in common with the Kerry candidacy.

The institutional independence of the CIA was built into the organization primarily by its lack of transparency and the huge amount of unaccountable financial activities it has undertaken over past decades. Generally, CIA operators have sided with the defense department muckety mucks because there was a natural patriotic affinity to do so. I take that and its heritage of dirty work for what its worth. Now that the practice of spinning off endless NGOs to front desired policy outcomes has been ripped off from the CIA and adopted directly by corporatist fanatics on the right, the CIA is surplusage that needs to be put to plow. Wannabe covert operators at Defense are only too willing to steal CIA thunder and at the same time shut them up. The CIA public front of analyst's product is easy to admire as it is almost academic in nature. It is misleading to confuse the analysts function with the agency's covert product and mission.

The problem is one with the administration and its corporate string pullers. From their point of view the CIA is a frankenstein monster. (That's rich coming from them.) This is a stepping stone on the path to totalitarian rule. Unfortunately, the CIA showed the corporatists their methods and are now the victim of their own devices.

[donhakman]

10. This power struggle IS NOT innately benign

The ramification is a full scale nuclear war.
But we are all good at forgetting that.

[DuaneBidoux]

11. Bush vs. Everyone. But don't worry, God's on his side.