...I'm okay with being REALITY-based.




Tuesday, August 10, 2004
      ( 9:21 AM )
 
Screw Up Central

So let me get this straight. First, the administration issues a very specific, very scary terror alert two days after the conclusion of the Democratic Convention as newly minted Democratic candidate team sets off to meet the country. Then, Howard Dean says what everyone is thinking: how are we to know this wasn't done for political purposes? Then, it comes out that the information used for the terror alert was 3-4 years old. So suddenly, it is revealed by the administration to reporters that a young man had been arrested in Pakistan, and it was this man's work and his computer that led to the terror alert - so it was recent info! But then, it turns out that the administration outed this young man, Muhammad Naeem Noor Khan, who was actually a CIA mole within Al Qaeda who had been giving the CIA massive amounts of information - and so his cover was blown, his contacts scattered, and now everyone is pissed off: the Pakistanis, the Brits, the intelligence officers who were working the assignment.

So now, here is where we stand:

- The terror alerts weren't on the up and up

- The administration does play politics with Americans' fear

- The administration again leaked the name of a CIA operative - this time a mole undercover within Al Qaeda

- Al Qaeda is just as, or more, active, organized and ready to attack (as opposed to Bush's claim that we've decimated their ranks)

- The Pakistanis and the Brits, our two most faithful (if not reliable) allies, are totally pissed off at us (again)

- We are less safe now because by crashing the CIA's work with Khan, we now know less about what Al Qaeda may do than we might have known if the administration weren't trying to cover their asses for being political with the alerts last week

- Once again, we're made the suckers by the very man who is supposed to defend, protect and advocate for us.

How much longer can people take this? I just can't understand the folks who still support this group of liars and manipulators.

Digby has more on the nonsensical response of the administration to once again screwing the intelligence community in order to cover its own ass. Looks like the NY Times is being set up to be the scapegoat in this one.

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