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Here's something on Mel Goodman, who is a Senior Fellow at Dana Priest's husband's place and a former CIA Analyst. Turns out he had his turn in the spotlight for the Post's online readers to worhship.

http://discuss.washingtonpost.com/zforum/03/sp_world_goodman061003.htm

War in Iraq
With Mel Goodman
Senior Fellow, Center for International Policy
Tuesday, April 15, 2003; 10 a.m. ET

Where are the weapons of mass destruction? Before U.S. invasion, the Bush administration made a detailed case to the world about Iraq's extensive weapons capabilities. However, there has been no proof of prohibited weapons reported by coalition forces.

Mel Goodman, senior fellow at the Center for International Policy and former CIA analyst, will be online Tuesday, April 15, at 10 a.m. ET to talk about intelligence investigations and inspections for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.

The transcript follows.

For two decades Mel Goodman was a CIA analyst on Soviet affairs. After the assassination plot on Pope John Paul II he was one of the most ardent critics of anyone who tried to link the Soviets to the failed murder attempt.

Despite the fact that DDCI Bob Gates tried to lean backwards and make an as objective reassessment of the case as possible (according to the testimonies of other CIA analysts: Kay Oliver, Beth Seger, and Lance Haus), Mel Goodman in a testimony to the Congress tried to have Bob Gates' nomination to DCI blocked. Goodman claimed that Gates (and Casey) had unduly tried to influence the analysis, to suit his political convictions.

(See also post #6 here)

Eventually Gates was nominated and Goodman left the CIA for academia.

Now, some 15 years later we know who was right and who was wrong in this case. It seems that the person who let his political conviction cloud his analytical judgment was Mel Goodman rather than Mr Gates. In all likelihood Mel Goodman was one of the CIA analysts that leaked info to discredit Claire Sterling's book the Terror Network (and later Time of the Assassins). In actual fact one source (one article she quoted) could be traced to the CIA station in Rome. However, it is a far cry from "one item" to call it "largely a product of the CIA's disinformation department" (J Adams: The Financing of Terror. New English Library, 1988, p 3).

At that time Mel Goodman was definitely not the only one within the CIA trying to whitewash the Russians. Here is a story concerning one of ravingnutter's "good friends":

The DI's reluctance to link the KGB to murder and terrorism was matched elsewhere, including in the CIA's Rome station where Clarridge informed an influential visitor, Senator Alphonse D'Amato, that as yet there was nothing to support Claire Sterling's allegations of Soviet complicity in the assassination plot. This view, unwisely expressed directly to her at a Rome cocktail party by Vince Cannistraro, one of Clarridge's staff, had elicited a furious response, and Casey got to hear of both incidents. When offered a meeting with Sterling by Herbert Meyer, his special assistant whom he had brought in from Fortune magazine, Casey seized the opportunity and, accompanied by the deputy director of operations (DDO) John McMahon, delivered a diatribe about how his staff was better at finding excuses for the Soviets than digging for the real dirt. General Haig was equally dissatisfied....

(Nigel West: The Third Secret, The CIA, Solidarity and the KGB's plot to kill the Pope. Harper Collins, 2001, p 30.)

All this is of course old affairs, but it seems that the same people pop up time and time again. Of course anyone can make a mistake; there were no water tight evidence that the Soviets were involved in terrorism. However, when they never acknowledge their errors, and continue to discredit the people who were right, then if not before, one may clearly start to doubt the honesty of those persons. (I'm trying to be fair although it is counter to my nature ;) )

The revelation that Mrs McCarthy was a "leaker", that she is connected to the pro-Kerry cabal, and that the journalist she leaked to is connected to far-left organizations is huge. I hope that this will get the attention it deserves.