Lies lies, everywhere lies

The Press As Liars
The media has reported from day one of this administration that the White House is nearly leak free. That is a lie and they created it.

Since we have learned that they do in fact leak, we now know what double-super-secret really means -- the press is required to create and perpetuate the lie that the White House doesn't leak. (I think that I should have paid more attention to passing notes in sixth grade. Who knew it was really a skill I needed for success in the 21st century?)

The White House As Liars -- and a threat to our National Security
Now that Rove through his attorneys has REPEATEDLY confirmed that he leaked Valarie Plame's name to the press and with what John has uncovered about the Democratic Convention leak here, I think it's obvious that this administration does in fact leak -- they just do it with discipline. (Really it's called "message control" and Republicans do it much better than the Democrats.)

In the Khan story, one rationale for leaking his name is that it would lend credibility an otherwise suspect raising of the terror threat level. Why might it have been suspect? Perhaps because the press and public wouldn't trust the administration when they raised the threat levels without something substantial? Perhaps because the press and public wouldn't trust an administration that had lied about WMD? It was a leak created out of weakness that people like Joe Wilson helped create by exposing their WMD lies.

In the Plame story, Wilson argues that by attacking him they were trying to stop the unraveling of the cover-up of the lies that got us into the war. He was getting too much publicity and was about to blow the whole story up.

I have always believed that outing Valarie Plame was a mistake of the gossipy hubris kind. Plame was just the icing on the Wilson character assassination cake, and it was that one step too far that the popular gossip queen in sixth grade always makes. You know, the one where she ends up with no friends by the end of the year. (How many real friends does Karl have right now? He's about to find out.)

Both of these leaks appear to have weakened our national security at a time of war. Both were made for political reasons. How many times does George Bush and this administration have to put politics before national security before everyone finally shouts "The President Has No Clothes!"? (Senator Byrd did in 2003 when he voted against the $87 billion. That's the leadership of the old Democratic Party -- and what is still lacking today. Maybe that's why we're in the minority and didn't win the White House?)

-- Rob in Baltimore

P.S. - CNN's Franken is camped out in front of Rove's house right now. Gotta love the frenzy in action.