[font size="-1"][/font][font color="black" face="arial" size="4"][/font][font style="font-weight: bold;" size="5"]Hypocrisy, Thy Name Is "Bush".[/font]
[hr style="width: 100%; height: 2px;"][font style="font-weight: bold;" size="5"][span class="headlines"]Selective truth[/span]
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9 April 2006
[/span][font color="black" face="arial" size="2"]IRAQ continues to haunt Washington. And we are not talking about the daily and hourly dose of grim news from the war front. If the US media and the high and mighty of the Capitol Hill had thought they had heard the last on the CIA leak case, they had a rude shock waiting for them this weekend.[/font][span class="wcfont"][p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 13pt 0in;"][span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"]By disclosing that it was President Bush himself who had, through Vice President Dick Cheney, authorised him to reveal the identity of covert CIA operative Valerie Plame, I Lewis Libby has stunned the US establishment. [o:p][/o:p][/span][/p] [p class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 13pt 0in;"][span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"]The CIA leak case has been sending waves across the official Washington and US media for over a year now. It has already landed the high brow New York Times in a bit of a spot which sent many heads rolling including that of its star reporter, Judith Miller. The reporter played into the hands of Scooter Libby (as he is popularly know) and Co., by revealing the CIA connection of Valerie Plame for her diplomat husband's criticism of the administration on Iraq WMD claims. Former ambassador to Iraq, Joseph C. Wilson, who had visited Niger to examine if it had supplied uranium to the Saddam regime, had demolished the government claim on Iraq WMD.[o:p][/o:p][/span][/p] [p class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 13pt 0in;"][span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"]The indictment of Scooter Libby last year had led the media and probe trail to the White House. It was speculated that the inquiry could bring down Cheney himself. No one at the time expected it to reach the President himself. The White House, which has admitted Bush had indeed authorised the leak, has insisted that the president had ordered the disclosures in 'national interest.' [o:p][/o:p][/span][/p] [p class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 13pt 0in;"][span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"]Which shouldn't come as a surprise. US presidents have the authority to keep 'national security' information from the Americans and 'declassify' the same in 'national interest'. If Bush has done it, he is not the first president to do so. Many before him have manipulated, disclosed or withheld information as part of their political strategy. [o:p][/o:p][/span][/p] [p class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 13pt 0in;"][span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"]What is important about this episode though is its timing. Bush is facing growing flak at home over Iraq and his popularity ratings are at their lowest. Scooter Libby couldn't have chosen a more inappropriate timing to spill the beans.[span style=""] [/span]The Republicans are already worried over the Iraq fallout on the upcoming elections in November. Pressure on the Republican president from within and outside his party is growing to bring the troops home.[span style=""] [/span][o:p][/o:p][/span][/p] [p class="MsoBodyText" style="margin: 13pt 0in;"][span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"]Clearly, time to settle the Iraq business is fast running out for Bush. Having invaded Iraq against the saner counsel of America's friends and well wishers, the president needs to clear the current mess at the earliest. Iraq, the once peaceful, developed and oil-rich Arab country, is craving for basics such as food, water, electricity and — most importantly — security. Bush can't afford to lose any more time in Iraq.
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