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Berger’s Bonfire
WebCommentary.com ^ | 21 July 2004 | Scott Jordan

Posted on 07/21/2004 12:01:29 PM PDT by RightOnTheLeftCoast

Berger’s Bonfire

Berger’s record of inattention and malfeasance--and, yes, "sloppiness"--is unshreddable.

"[Lindsey's] nicknames have run the gamut from "the Enforcer"
to "the Consigliere," the Sicilian word for
a trusted counsel to a Mafia chieftain."
--Time Magazine, March 23 1998 [1]

The astonishing admission of Samuel “Sandy” Berger, Bill Clinton’s longtime National Security Advisor, that he stuffed “code-word”-class secret documents into his pants, sneaked them out of a secure review room at the National Archives and “inadvertently” destroyed them is highly disquieting to those familiar with Berger’s background and activities in the Clinton Administration.

In particular, the Washington Post reports [2] that Berger purloined all draft revisions of a key critique of the government's response to the millennium terrorism threat, a document that detailed Administration knowledge – and inaction – regarding al Qaeda presence in the U.S. in 1999 and 2000. Stolen were crucial notes in the margins of these drafts which reveal the thinking and agendas of the Clinton Administration relating to the mounting terrorist threat.

Cui bono? And when the losses were discovered, why did the Archives staff notify Bruce Lindsey? Lindsey, whom Time Magazine called Clinton’s consigliere, is the brilliant legal tactician both Clintons can thank for their continued freedom.

Berger has an impressive resume, but not one that obviously qualified him as NSA. He entered White House service a millionaire lawyer and lobbyist with a career centered on expanding trade with China [3]. Former FBI Director Louis Freeh opined that “he was a public-relations hack, interested in how something would play in the press” [4]. Indeed, Clinton’s brilliant poll-meister, Dick Morris, noted Berger “seemed to work overtime at opposing tough measures against terror” [5], advising vetoes of legislation aimed at crippling Iranian terror funding and working to block antiterror sanctions. It was Berger who repeatedly rebuffed Sudanese offers to hand Osama bin Laden to the United States in a deal brokered by a $900,000 contributor to Democrat campaigns [6,7]. It was Berger who allowed bin Laden and his top lieutenants to escape to Afghanistan [8]. It was Berger whose calls Bill Clinton ducked in 1998 when bin Laden was briefly vulnerable to missile attack [9]. It was Berger who was singled-out by former UN Inspector Scott Ritter for the collapse of UN inspections efforts in Iraq [10]. It was Berger who helped broker the farcical antinuclear treaty with North Korea. It was Berger who ultimately admitted that the Clinton Administration had failed to develop a war plan to fight al Qaeda [11].

At the same time, it was Berger who was the go-to man in the Administration on matters regarding China policy in the years when Communist Chinese money was being funneled into Democrat Party coffers in exchange for policy concessions and strategic nuclear technology. It was Berger whom DNC Chairman Don Fowler approached for favors for George Chao-chi Chu, a Chinagate-linked John Huang crony described as having "unusual access to high-ranking Communist officials in China" who, like the just-exited chief-foreign-policy-advisor Berger, has current ties to John Kerry [12]. And it was Berger who the Energy Department approached with warnings of Chinese spying in Los Alamos, and who stonewalled the matter for three years [13].

The list goes on and on [14]: Berger was not just the malfeasant, poll-driven, cowardly hack at the helm of our national security apparatus who enabled the global metastasis of bloodthirsty jihad; he was not just one of the key people who roadblocked cooperation between law enforcement and foreign intelligence, stacking “Gorelick’s Wall” ever higher. In fact, as bagman for the Communist Chinese, Sandy Berger was himself likely one of the key beneficiaries of Gorelick’s Wall.

Viewed against his record, Berger’s theft and destruction of “code-word”-level secret documents – and “The Consigliere’s” stealthy involvement – is all too readily understood.


Notes: 

[1] TIME, "The Ubiquitous Mr. Fix-It", Adam Cohen, http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/1998/03/16/time/bruce.lindsey.html

[2] Washington Post, "Berger Quits as Advisor to Kerry", Susan Schmidt, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A64379-2004Jul20.html

[3] Tom Laughlin, http://www.billyjack.com/jung/08_politics/articles/990515_spy.html

[4] Freeh quoted in The New Yorker, per http://www.nationalreview.com/lowry/lowry200311030753.asp

[5] Wall Street Journal, "While Clinton Fiddled", Dick Morris, http://www.opinionjournal.com/forms/printThis.html?id=95001824

[6] National Review, "Clinton & Khobar", Rich Lowry, http://www.nationalreview.com/lowry/lowry200311030753.asp

[7] Washington Times, "Miniter Responds", Richard Miniter, http://www.washtimes.com/op-ed/20030922-090028-4916r.htm

[8] NewsMax, "Aide: Clinton Unleashed bin Laden", Chuck Noe, http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2001/12/5/153637.shtml

[9] US News & World Report, Paul Bedard, 15 Mar 2003

[10] "Endgame: Solving the Iraq Problem - Once and for All" by Scott Ritter, reviewed by Daniel Pipes, http://www.danielpipes.org/article/896

[11] National Review, "Warning B.S.", Rich Lowry, http://www.nationalreview.com/lowry/lowry200310290829.asp

[12] The Hill, "Fundraiser resurfaces from 1996", Sam Dealey, http://www.hillnews.com/news/073003/fundraiser.aspx

[13] Sen. James Inhofe, http://www.matthewgoss.org/chinagate.html

[14] National Review, "The Clinton Intel Record", Mansoor Ijaz, http://nationalreview.com/nr_comment/nr_comment042903.asp


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Editorial; Foreign Affairs; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: clinton; sandyberger; trousergate
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9/11 was a valentine from Sandy Berger & Co.
1 posted on 07/21/2004 12:01:30 PM PDT by RightOnTheLeftCoast
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To: RightOnTheLeftCoast

Pretty well sums it up!


2 posted on 07/21/2004 12:08:58 PM PDT by Conspiracy Guy (Sir Guy de la Conspiracie, kuh-nigget extraordinaire. RKBA & Insane Clown Posse since 7/04)
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To: RightOnTheLeftCoast
NO question that is the bottom line with the burglar's "efforts"
3 posted on 07/21/2004 12:09:19 PM PDT by keysguy (Trust the media as far as you can throw them)
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To: RightOnTheLeftCoast; Shermy
And it was Berger who the Energy Department approached with warnings of Chinese spying in Los Alamos, and who stonewalled the matter for three years

So does the timing of this have anything to do with Los Alamos being shut down the other day? Berger's documents involved very high-level security--hmmm. . .

4 posted on 07/21/2004 12:09:35 PM PDT by Fedora (Kerryman, Kerryman, does whatever a ketchup can/Spins a lie, any size, catches wives just like flies)
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To: Howlin

There is some good stuff here.


5 posted on 07/21/2004 12:14:27 PM PDT by Bahbah
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To: RightOnTheLeftCoast

Knocked it out of the park with this one.


6 posted on 07/21/2004 12:15:33 PM PDT by Jack of all Trades (Slap some butter on the Kerry campaign - it's toast)
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To: RightOnTheLeftCoast

"9/11 was a valentine from Sandy Berger & Co"

"9/11 was a valentine from Sandy Berger & Co"

"9/11 was a valentine from Sandy Berger & Co"

Must be repeated.


7 posted on 07/21/2004 12:16:57 PM PDT by gathersnomoss
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To: RightOnTheLeftCoast

I was flabbergasted to read that Clinton commented he [and whomever] were "laughing" about the Berger pants-stuffing incident since they knew he was so sloppy and this was totally in character. I couldn't believe no-one pointed out why in the heck would someone that absented-minded and sloppy have been our NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR?????
That, of course, is assuming these claims of "accidentally" and "inadvertently" are true.
Personally I don't believe it for a second.


8 posted on 07/21/2004 12:39:31 PM PDT by visualops
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http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1175748/posts


9 posted on 07/21/2004 12:49:35 PM PDT by visualops
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To: RightOnTheLeftCoast
You pulled that right out of the upcoming 9-11 Commission Report, right? </ultrasarcasm>
10 posted on 07/21/2004 12:51:26 PM PDT by NonValueAdded ("We're going to take things away from you on behalf of the common good" HRC 6/28/2004)
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To: RightOnTheLeftCoast

Excellent if sickening post. Was he involved in the Loral exemption from the export ban which so helped their missile capability?


11 posted on 07/21/2004 12:52:02 PM PDT by Timocrat (I Emanate on your Auras and Penumbras Mr Blackmun)
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To: visualops

No one can spin their way out of a "tight" spot any better than Bubba


12 posted on 07/21/2004 12:53:28 PM PDT by keysguy (Trust the media as far as you can throw them)
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To: RightOnTheLeftCoast

to prosecute a person in the military who violates security protocol, intent matters not. A lib lawyer friend is claiming intent is everything...so are the 2 standards:one for military and one for the former National Security Advisor?
I think not, what say you freepers?


13 posted on 07/21/2004 12:53:39 PM PDT by Rakkasan1 (Justice of the Piece-leaks to China,shills for France,what's in that guy's undapants?)
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To: visualops

The inadvertently stuff cannot be true. There is no way to inadvertently stuff secret documents into trousers and socks. Perhaps if he had simply put them ina briefcase with other papers (in which case they would have been found in a search), but there is no inadvertent stuffing of docs into socks.


14 posted on 07/21/2004 12:54:16 PM PDT by Montfort
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To: RightOnTheLeftCoast
Great piece of analysis.

Given the "buzz" of denials and obfuscations from the Democrat Party, this deal must be bringing some very damaging information to light.

This story has legs.

15 posted on 07/21/2004 12:55:05 PM PDT by Senator_Blutarski (No good deed goes unpunished.)
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To: Senator_Blutarski

Yeah, they've brought out Lanny Davis and Peter Fenn, who spent many hours defending Clinton during his scandals. It must be very scary for the Clintons.


16 posted on 07/21/2004 1:12:03 PM PDT by expatpat
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To: Rakkasan1
"two standards one for military one for former NSA directors"

You forgot the most important 'third' standard, one for the Clintonistas.
17 posted on 07/21/2004 1:25:40 PM PDT by keysguy (Trust the media as far as you can throw them)
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To: RightOnTheLeftCoast

Yes indeed, Sandy Berger was just trying to help the work of the 9/11 Commission.....to whitewash the culpability of thr Clinton administration for eight years of inaction against Bin Laden. He should do some hard time.


18 posted on 07/21/2004 1:38:59 PM PDT by Big Digger (If you can keep your head when others are losing theirs, you must be a Republican)
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To: Big Digger
He should do some hard time.

I agree!


19 posted on 07/21/2004 2:03:43 PM PDT by IPWGOP (I'm Linda Eddy, and I approved this message... 'tooning the truth!)
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To: visualops
Apparently Clinton thinks thought it was pretty funny to put Uncle Billy in charge of National Security!!

Where are those papers you old fool!!!

20 posted on 07/21/2004 2:17:28 PM PDT by Dr._Joseph_Warren
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