- Emptywheel » Habbush’s Freedom Fries Forgeries
- The Left Coaster: A Whole Lot of Habbush, It Seems
- Emptywheel » Not a Question of If, But Who, Forged the Letter
- The American Conservative » Suskind Revisited
- Froomkin » A White House Forgery Scandal?
- Emptywheel » Once Again, Forgeries?
- Ron Suskind: The Way of the World Transcripts
- Terror Watch: Dubious Link Between Atta And Saddam
Ron Suskind’s book, The Way of the World, hasn’t arrived yet, but his revelations about the Habbush forgeries are out there for all to see. To me, it is the most scathing indictment of the deviousness of the Administration’s lead-up to the Iraq War yet. In summary, Cheney ordered the Pentagon’s Office of Special Plans to create a forgery attributed to the Iraqis that confirmed Atta being trained by Hussein and confirming the purchase of Uranium from Niger.
Why is this "scathing?"
This forgery was released in Iraq when it became clear that the WMD/Iraq-al Qeada claims weren’t panning out. We now know that the two things in the forgery are not true. In fact they [Niger Yellowcake and Atta trained in Iraq] were things no Iraqi would’ve even known to say. Suskind may or may not have all the details correct [see above], but the center of his allegations of a Cheney directed forgery are close to unquestionable. It’s "scathing" because it confirms the worst of the things we’ve been talking about for years.
What now?
This is an awesome revelation – akin to some amateur elementary school bullies plotting to cover their asses. It’s the kind of cover up a Judge would throw out of court in a blue second. Why then isn’t it on the front page of the Washington Post and New York Times? A commenter says it clearly:
I admire your positive outlook about the latest scandal being investigated by Congressional Committees. I don’t have the same positive response because we have had a lot of explosive scandals that should have impeached Bush and Cheney already.
I agree with her. But it’s not my positive outlook that matters. I share her frustration. It’s the truth that matters here. Our television sets are bombarded with programs – Cold Case Files, C.S.I., Frontline, Dateline, etc. – that center on unearthing "old" truths, "old" crimes. I agree that with 85 days left before the elections, it is unlikely that the Attorney General will appoint a Special Prosecutor or that Congress will impeach the criminals in the White House. But there will come a future day when all the bullshit will float to the top in a different climate. Our job right now is to make this atrocity as clear as possible for when that day comes.
Why?
The Bush Administration is the worst thing to happen to the United States since the Nixon Era – maybe even the worst ever. That will have to be dealt with just as our treatment of the Native Americans, Women, and the Slaves will haunt us throughout our history until we make it right. The one thing Bush says that is correct is that history will judge him [excoriate would be more like it]. Maybe the things we want to happen right now can’t yet happen, but that is no reason for us to be discouraged. It’s a reason to just keep on digging for the truth so it will be there when the timing is right. One thing Psychotherapists learn is that lies in the past cause Mental Illness until they’re exposed.
I recall feeling this same frustration towards the end of the sixties when I was living in Europe – about the stalled Civil Rights Movement, about Viet Nam, about the then version of Conservativism. I even considered taking a job in France to flee the amazing amount of bullshit that surrounded us on every side. But I came home and saw a day when Andy Young was my Mayor and John Lewis was my Congressman. And now I get to vote for Barak Obama to be my President. And I live in a world where the words "Watergate" and "Viet Nam" are synonyms for "mistake." I hope I live to see the coming day when the words "Niger Forgeries" are also in a Junior High History book as synonyms for "mistake" and "deceit," and "Vice President Dick Cheney’s Habbush Forgeries" are in the next paragraph…
Cheney reminds me of a cattle baron(oil baron) in the old west who owns the town (our country) and buys off everyone including the sheriff (Gonzales and Mukasey). If you believe in God, you are taught to use your God given talent for good. Cheney used his talent to have checks and balances regarding the 3 branchs of gov’t made ineffective. Shouldn”t that charge alone be enough to impeach Cheney?
His steadfastness in undermining the basic tenets of our system is remarkable. It’s hard to even imagine how he justifies this kind of destructiveness in his own mind…
I think he sees himself as “the man behind the curtain”, a kink of “god”, or a Karl Rove, Sr. on a global scale. Perhaps that’s why he has built the underground bunkers.