Richard Clarke's Pentagon Papers/VVAW Connection

Compiled from various sources ^ | 4/7/2003 | Original Freeper research

[Fedora]

Today I noticed that Condoleezza Rice was being criticized by Leslie Gelb:

Friends, Foes Say Rice Has Spirit, Toughness She'll Need for Sept. 11 Testimony

At the same time, Leslie Gelb, president emeritus of the Council on Foreign Relations, who has known Rice for two decades, says he has seen a stiffening in her philosophical approach over the years.

Gelb's name rang a bell, and upon searching I discovered Gelb was responsible for hiring Richard Clarke to the State Department:

Clarke Known As Abrasive but Efficient

Leslie Gelb, who hired Clarke for his first State Department job in 1979

Now Gelb has also been involved in several major national security leaks, including the Pentagon Papers:

The Pentagon Papers and Their Continuing Significance

Amid his own growing doubts about the war he had encouraged, McNamara quietly left the government in early 1968. Before doing so, however, he ordered a small staff in the Department of Defense to undertake a secret study of U.S. decision-making about Vietnam since the end of the Second World War. The study was directed by Leslie Gelb.

S. Steven Powell, Richard Milhous Nixon (Introduction), David Horowitz (Designer), Covert Cadre: Inside the Institute for Policy Studies, p. 48

About nine months into the [Pentagon Papers] project, Daniel Ellsberg of the Rand Corporation climbed aboard. Even though Ellsberg behaved erratically throughout and failed to meet deadlines, Gelb and [Paul C.] Warnke agreed to give him "personal access to the entire study."

Powell, 53:

On May 16, while testifying before the United States Senate, Ellsberg, before taking the oath, stated that Warnke, Halperin and Gelb were not involved in his theft of the Papers. No one had asked him that question. . .but later, after Sen. Strom Thurmond insisted that he be put under oath, he did not discuss this matter.

Powell, 90:

On February 14, 1985, Leslie Gelb broke a front-page story in the New York Times titled "U.S. tries to Fight Allied Resistance to Nuclear Arms." In it, Gelb revealed that the United States had drawn up plans to deploy nuclear depth charges in Canada, Iceland, Bermuda, Puerto Rico, the Azores, the Philippines, Spain, and Diego Garcia in time of war. Gelb's source for this classified information? The Institute for Policy Studies. . .These stories struck a raw nerve in the alliance. . .and subsequently led to the demise of the ANZUS alliance.

Powell, 103:

. . .Leslie Gelb, of the New York Times, described the institute [the Institute for Policy Studies] as "one of the premiere centers for foreign policy perspectives."

Further searching reveals that Gelb began his political career working for antiwar Senator Jacob Javits, whom was considered for invitation by event organizers to the VVAW's Dewey Canyon III rally:

Leslie H. Gelb

Director of Policy Planning and Arms Control for International Security Affairs, Department of Defense (1967­-69); Executive Assistant, U.S. Senator Jacob K. Javits (1966-67)

Jacob K. Javits Collection

During the 1970s, one of Javits' major concerns was the question of who has the power to make war. He was the first member of Congress to propose legislation reestablishing congressional (rather than presidential) responsibility to commit U.S. armed forces abroad in the absence of a formal declaration of war. This War Powers Resolution passed the Senate in April 1972 and again in July 1973. It became law over President Nixon's veto on November 7, 1973.

This week in history 25 years ago--February 21, 1971: Stalinists push "People's Peace Treaty"

Both the Stalinists and the ex-Trotskyists of the Socialist Workers Party proposed that big business politicians such as Democratic Senator George McGovern and Republican Senator Jacob Javits should be invited to speak at the antiwar demonstration set for April 24 in Washington, DC.

Douglas Brinkley, Tour of Duty : John Kerry and the Vietnam War, 361

Just as the VVAW members were arriving in the capital, New York Senator Jacob Javits held a private dinner at his home where Secretary of State Melvin Laird was the guest of honor. It was a carefully staged event. Javits had eight other Republican members of the House and the Senate also stop by. AFter dinner. . .Pennsylvania Senator Hugh Scott dropped the gauntlet. "You don't see any hawks around here," he told Laird in a non-nonsense fashion. "The hawks are all ex-hawks. There's a feeling that the Senate ought to tell the President to get the hell out of the War."

So Richard Clarke was hired by Leslie Gelb, an individual involved in the Penagon Papers leak, who in turn started his political career working for Jacob Javits, an ally of the VVAW. Interesting, no?

[expatpat]

That's true, you guys are just very active, I guess. But doesn't it risk giving ammunition to the world's anti-Semites, who claim Jews run this country?

[Fedora]

There's a lot to that Unocal connection involving Clinton State Department official Robin Raphel. For instance check out these old threads:

Terrorists had a friend in Clinton White House called Robin

Rep. ROHRABACHER (1999) -- How the Clinton Administration brought the Taliban to power

Politicians who are Cashing in on the Caspian

Also, the complete version of this article doesn't appear to be up anymore, but in my archives I have a version of this article which mentions Unocal being connected to Warren Christopher's diplomacy in Indonesia:

The Corruption of Warren Christopher

The version I have archived includes this information:

Not all of the information is coming from the files of John Huang. A declassified November 1998 State Dept. cable dedicated an entire section on "DEALING WITH UNWANTED PARTNERS." According to the State Dept. cable, U.S. electric power manufacturer El Paso International entered into the Sengkang power project with Suharto's second daughter, "Tutut." "Tutut holds two and one half percent in PT Triahsra Sarana, which has a 5 percent share in PT Energi Sengkang. According to Sengkang, Tutut does not intend to divest from the project at this time." The "Unwanted Partners" section also reveals yet another kickback, this time for a well-known Suharto "crony" instead of a relative. "Unocal executives told resources officer that the firm is close to reaching a deal with its partner, PT Nusamba (controlled by former President Soeharto crony Bob Hasan) to sever ties in two production sharing contracts (PSC) in east Kalmantan and East Java."

[NativeNewYorker]

"...you guys are just very active, I guess. But doesn't it risk giving ammunition to the world's anti-Semites, who claim Jews run this country?"

*I* don't lead a high-profile life.

But throughout history...literally across the millenia...wherever there's been social mobility, Jews, by dint of effort, have risen.

In our defense, you'll note we've left professional US football and basketball open to other groups. :)

[Fedora]

There's a lot to that Unocal connection involving Clinton State Department official Robin Raphel.

Lo and behold, after typing this I just turned on CSPAN and "Robin Raphael", Coordinator of the State Department Iraq Reconstruction, is testifying!

[Fedora]

It says she's testifying to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee's UN Oil-for-Food Program committee--hmmm. . .

[Fedora]

Correct spelling of her name is "Raphel"--here's her official bio:

ROBIN LYNN RAPHEL: ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF STATE FOR SOUTH ASIAN AFFAIRS

Upon returning to Washington in 1978, Ms. Raphel worked in the State Department in several capacities -- Economist in the Office of Investment Affairs, Economic Officer on the Israel Desk, Staff Aide for the Assistant Secretary for the Near East and South Asian Affairs, and Special Assistant to the Under Secretary for Political Affairs. In 1984 she was posted to London where she served in the U.S. Embassy as a Political Officer covering Middle East, South Asia, African and East Asian issues. She moved to South Africa in 1988 as Counselor for Political-Affairs at the U.S. Embassy. From August 1991 until August 1993, Ms. Raphel was the Counselor for Political Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi, India.

This is also interesting:

Deciding Who Rebuilds Iraq Is Fraught With Infighting

ORHA experienced bureaucratic intrigue even before the end of the Iraq war. Rumsfeld initially blocked eight individuals nominated by the State Department, reportedly because he considered them "too low-profile and bureaucratic" for the work envisioned. The Pentagon subsequently withdrew its objections, and a number of senior positions are now occupied by former State Department officials. Barbara K. Bodine, who was ambassador to Yemen when terrorists bombed the destroyer USS Cole at a Yemeni port in October 2000, has been named coordinator for central Iraq. Former ambassadors Robin Raphel and Timothy Carney are in charge of trade and industry, respectively. Garner's deputies for reconstruction and humanitarian assistance are both retired from the State Department.

[expatpat]

you'll note we've left professional.....basketball open to other groups.

LOL. How kind!.....but so did we Anglo-Saxons.

[HateBill]

http://www.9-11commission.gov/about/bio_ben-veniste.htm

[Fedora]

Thanks!

[ravingnutter]

Raphel's Archived Bio

[ravingnutter]

Oops...you had that bio already...

[cyncooper]

Ven-Beniste (commie partisan attack dog) is another veteran of Watergate.

So is Hillary.

Hillary Rodham's 1974 Watergate "Procedures were Ethically Flawed"

[ravingnutter]

Her name shows up on a list of witnesses some of the 9/11 families want the Commission to interview.

[ravingnutter]

Something I did not see in her bio:

Ambassador Robin Raphel, Senior Vice President of the National Defense University, and former U.S. ambassador to Tunisia, is serving as a member of the Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance (ORHA) in Iraq. ORHA will form the nucleus of an interim government in post-Saddam Iraq and is headed by Ambassador Paul Bremer. The Office will coordinate humanitarian assistance, reconstruct damaged infrastructure and set the country on the road to a representative self-government before authority is fully handed over to the Iraqis. Ambassador Raphel will serve in the Ministry of Trade.

Source

[abner]

Ping!

[bayourod]

Apparently you have done some very good research.

[Fedora]

Something I did not see in her bio: Ambassador Robin Raphel, Senior Vice President of the National Defense University,

Thanks, I hadn't noticed that, either. Wonder if that implies Clinton's moles within the military have managed to place other people there as well.

[Fedora]

Her name shows up on a list of witnesses some of the 9/11 families want the Commission to interview.

She should most certainly be subpoenaed, and would be if the Commission were serious about getting to the bottom of things. For that matter everybody in the Clinton State Department who had contact with the countries where Al Qaeda became entrenched in the 1990s should be vetted.

[MamaLucci]

Berger said he regularly turned down demands that he fire Clarke.

Is there a "Mrs. Berger"?

[Fedora]

So is Hillary.

Hillary Rodham's 1974 Watergate "Procedures were Ethically Flawed"

Thanks, looks like a good thread to review, I have bookmarked it and will go over it more closely later. Zeifman's book on Watergate is really important IMO. A while back I started crossreferencing what was in there with Hougan's Secret Agenda, Colodny and Gettlin's Silent Coup, Mark Riebling's Wedge, and some biographies of the principals involved. Didn't finish doing that, but lately I'm seeing more and more connections between Watergate and what's going on now.