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November 05, 2003

Roberts Says Democrat's Memo Undermines Inquiry

Sen. Pat Roberts (R-KS) "said Democrats have undermined the inquiry he is leading into Iraq prewar intelligence by drafting a memo aimed at discrediting the Senate Intelligence Committee's work," the AP reports.

"The memo was written by Democratic committee staff and wasn't finalized or circulated among members of the committee" and "spells out steps to make the committee's inquiry irrelevant by setting up an independent commission, and in the process attempt to 'castigate' majority Republicans. It suggested 'pulling the trigger' on the plan 'probably next year.'"

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Democrat Memo Exposes Plot To Smear President On Iraq
Summary: Republicans are angered over a memo leaked from West Virginia Senator Jay Rockefeller's office that shows how Democrats planned on using the Iraq war for political gain in attacks against the Bush Administration.

A memo leaked from Senator Jay Rockefeller's (D-WV) office reveals a Democrat plan to use an investigation into pre-war intelligence for political gain. The memo describes how to time hearings on the Iraq war to gain maximum embarrassment for President Bush as the 2004 election cycle approaches.

Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Pat Roberts (R-KS) said the memo "appears to be a road map for how the Democrats intend to politicize what should be a bipartisan, objective review of prewar intelligence."

The memo also indicated that Democrats planned on using Roberts for their own political purposes to undermine the president's efforts in Iraq.

The memo shows that Democrats appear to be more concerned about destroying President Bush than they do in conducting an honest investigation into possible intelligence failures prior to the war on Iraq.

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It recommends that Democrats "prepare to launch an investigation when it becomes clear we have exhausted the opportunity to usefully collaborate with the majority. We can pull the trigger on an independent investigation of the administration's use of intelligence at any time – but we can only do so once ... the best time would probably be next year."

Committee Chairman Pat Roberts, R-Kan., seemed shocked by the memo, saying it may be evidence of a violation of Senate ethics rules.

He told reporters the leaked strategy memo from the staff of Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va, "exposes politics in its most raw form."

The memo also discusses strategy for "revealing the misleading, if not flagrantly dishonest, methods and motives of senior administration officials who made the case for unilateral pre-emptive war." It discussed how Democrats could press for an independent investigation that has already been rejected by the Republican-led Congress or launch their own investigation.

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In his own statement, Rockefeller said the memo was not approved or shared with any member of the committee. He said it "was likely taken from a waste basket or through unauthorized computer access."

He said, however, it "clearly reflects staff frustration with the conduct of the Senate Intelligence Committee investigation and the difficulties of obtaining information from the administration."

"It's very hard for me to come to believe that the White House is going to cooperate on things which potentially could put them in a different light," Rockefeller said.

The last paragraph of the memo reads: "Intelligence issues are clearly secondary to the public's concern regarding the insurgency in Iraq.

The memo as reported by Hannity reads:

"We have carefully reviewed our options under the rules and believe we have identified the best approach. Our plan is as follows:

"1) Pull the majority along as far as we can on issues that may lead to major new disclosures regarding improper or questionable conduct by administration officials. We are having some success in that regard.

"For example, in addition to the President's State of the Union speech, the chairman [Sen. Pat Roberts] has agreed to look at the activities of the office of the Secretary of Defense, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, as well as Secretary Bolton's office at the State Department.

"The fact that the chairman supports our investigations into these offices and cosigns our requests for information is helpful and potentially crucial. We don't know what we will find but our prospects for getting the access we seek is far greater when we have the backing of the majority. [We can verbally mention some of the intriguing leads we are pursuing.]

"2) Assiduously prepare Democratic 'additional views' to attach to any interim or final reports the committee may release. Committee rules provide this opportunity and we intend to take full advantage of it.

"In that regard we may have already compiled all the public statements on Iraq made by senior administration officials. We will identify the most exaggerated claims. We will contrast them with the intelligence estimates that have since been declassified. Our additional views will also, among other things, castigate the majority for seeking to limit the scope of the inquiry.

"The Democrats will then be in a strong position to reopen the question of establishing an Independent Commission [i.e., the Corzine Amendment.]

"3) Prepare to launch an independent investigation when it becomes clear we have exhausted the opportunity to usefully collaborate with the majority. We can pull the trigger on an independent investigation of the administration's use of intelligence at any time. But we can only do so once.

"The best time to do so will probably be next year, either:

"A) After we have already released our additional views on an interim report, thereby providing as many as three opportunities to make our case to the public. Additional views on the interim report (1). The announcement of our independent investigation (2). And (3) additional views on the final investigation. Or:

"B) Once we identify solid leads the majority does not want to pursue, we would attract more coverage and have greater credibility in that context than one in which we simply launch an independent investigation based on principled but vague notions regarding the use of intelligence.

"In the meantime, even without a specifically authorized independent investigation, we continue to act independently when we encounter footdragging on the part of the majority. For example, the FBI Niger investigation was done solely at the request of the vice chairman. We have independently submitted written requests to the DOD and we are preparing further independent requests for information.

"SUMMARY: Intelligence issues are clearly secondary to the public's concern regarding the insurgency in Iraq. Yet we have an important role to play in revealing the misleading, if not flagrantly dishonest, methods and motives of senior administration officials who made the case for unilateral preemptive war.

"The approach outlined above seems to offer the best prospect for exposing the administration's dubious motives." [End of Memo Excerpt.]

Hannity said the revelation that Democrats are using the intelligence committee to conduct opposition research for the coming presidential campaign demands an investigation by the Senate Ethics Committee.

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ELECTION 2004

Democrats to raise
doubts about America

Strategy memo calls for undermining public confidence in Bush

Posted: January 8, 2003

Hoping for significant gains in the 2004 elections, Democrats plan to undermine public confidence in President Bush by questioning his credibility while raising doubts about the U.S. at a time when American troops are deploying for war against Iraq, political website Capitol Hill Blue reports.

According to the report, a Democratic talking-points memo devised last year by senior party consultants and elected leaders outlines "a strategy to raise public doubts of the president's real intentions," including:

* Claims that the war against Iraq is being fought over oil and for oil companies loyal to Bush and Republicans;

* Claims the administration "manufactured" evidence against Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein to convince Britain and other allies to join the war;

* Suggestions that a wartime economy is the only way the White House can boost a sagging economic picture.

"It is clear that the current approval ratings of the administration are tied directly to strong American feelings toward traditional values," the memo says, according to CHB, which obtained a copy. "To counter this, doubt must be raised as to America's true position within the world community and the true intent of the Bush administration in waging war."

"The talking points were developed before the end of last year and sent out to operatives and friendly media," one Democratic consultant said. "No Democratic member of Congress will question the president's patriotism openly, but we will use the media and other surrogates to raise doubts."

CHB indicates that in the coming weeks Democratic lawmakers will question Bush's intentions regarding the looming Iraq war. Writers and broadcasters friendly to the Democratic Party "have already been provided talking points suggesting the war is about oil, not terrorism," CHB reported.

Not all Democrats are taking part, the newssite reported.

"My boss doesn't want anything to do with it," one senior Senate aide said Monday. "You don't undermine this country to win elections."

But others are willing to try any tactic to put the White House on the defensive and regain Democratic control of Congress.

"The real war isn't in Iraq," one Democratic consultant said. "It's right here at home, at the ballot box in 2004."

Other points Democrats will try to make in the coming weeks include the alleged influence and control over Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney by the oil and defense industries, as well as other special interest groups; that the war on terrorism has failed thus far because al-Qaida founder and leader Osama bin Laden is reportedly still alive; that the U.S. is not prepared for another terror attack on its soil because the administration is preoccupied with Iraq; and that Bush will be forced to raise taxes to finance the Iraqi war.

"It's time to take the battle to the people and make them understand just how dangerous George W. Bush's policies are to the future of America," says the talking points memo, according to CHB.

Unnamed Democratic sources named Democratic National Committee chief Terry McAuliffe, former Clinton campaign strategist James Carville, Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle and former House Democratic Leader Dick Gephardt as party leaders who developed the talking-points memo.

"This is a classic, Jim Carville, scorched-earth campaign," one DNC staffer said. "Take no prisoners. That's how you win elections."