One thing I cannot understand is why the Republicans have not taken the initiative on this and demanded investigations as to how Wilson came to be pegged for this job.
If I'm understanding this right, Tenet went to his analysts, told them he had an important job regarding critical intelligence that needed to be checked out and asked if any of them had any spouses completely lacking in espionage or investigative experience who might be up to the job. And that's how Wilson got the job.
If Plame suggested that her hack husband was the man for the job, then it's a darn good thing she's no longer in any kind of serious intelligence gathering position as a result of her outing.
But it freaks me out that there might still be analysts and operatives in the CIA as feckless as this woman was to suggest her husband.
"One thing I cannot understand is why the Republicans have not taken the initiative on this and demanded investigations as to how Wilson came to be pegged for this job."
Some people have noticed that the GOP has not really been very good about pointing out and fighting a great many of the Democrat's sins. Opposition party?
What do the Republicans take the initiative on? I saw Jay Rockefeller shooting his mouth off about the Bush Administration's culpability in intelligence weaknesses. Instead of blasting the 'rats for their stated goal of politicizing the Intelligence committee, the Republican leaders roll over and offer up the leaker of the 'rats evil strategy.
Tenet didn't even know about it. These jokers did it 'on their own initiative.'
He did not. He said the group sent Wilson on *their own initiative*, further he basically said the trip was a worthless venture.
Text of CIA Director George Tenet's statement
excerpt:
There was fragmentary intelligence gathered in late 2001 and early 2002 on the allegations of Saddam's efforts to obtain additional raw uranium from Africa, beyond the 550 metric tons already in Iraq. In an effort to inquire about certain reports involving Niger, CIA's counter-proliferation experts, on their own initiative, asked an individual with ties to the region to make a visit to see what he could learn. He reported back to us that one of the former Nigerien (sic) officials he met stated that he was unaware of any contract being signed between Niger and rogue states for the sale of uranium during his tenure in office. The same former official also said that in June 1999 a businessman approached him and insisted that the former official meet with an Iraqi delegation to discuss "expanding commercial relations" between Iraq and Niger. The former official interpreted the overture as an attempt to discuss uranium sales. The former officials also offered details regarding Niger's processes for monitoring and transporting uranium that suggested it would be very unlikely that material could be illicitly diverted. There was no mention in the report of forged documents -- or any suggestion of the existence of documents at all.
Because this report, in our view, did not resolve whether Iraq was or was not seeking uranium from abroad, it was given a normal and wide distribution, but we did not brief it to the President, Vice-President or other senior Administration officials. We also had to consider that the former Nigerien officials knew that what they were saying would reach the U.S. government and that this might have influenced what they said.
~snip~
But it freaks me out that there might still be analysts and operatives in the CIA as feckless as this woman was to suggest her husband.
Me, too. The woman's husband was writing columns for "The Nation", for crying out loud, spreading lies and disinformation far and wide, and now what we deduced as been proven--that she suggested him--certainly does cast suspicion on her motives. I think the grand jury is investigating this. It is very delicate and these people are ruthless. The media demonstrated which side they would support, so getting the ducks in a row and proving what they were doing beyond a reasonable doubt is absolutely necessary. I would like to see it move along, but I think this documentation is a huge step forward.
WHY was an Ambassador and NOT an EXPERT picked to go to Niger??? That is the REAL question!! WHO OKAYED HIS TRIP???