US Officials Lean Toward Keeping Iraq Report Quiet
WASHINGTON - A new National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq is scheduled to be completed this month, according to US intelligence officials. But leaders of the intelligence community have not decided whether to make its key judgments public, a step that caused an uproar when key judgments in an NIE about Iran were released in November.
The classified estimate on Iraq is intended as an update of last summer’s assessment, which predicted modest security improvements but an increasingly precarious political situation there, the US officials said.It is meant to be delivered to Congress before testimony in early April by Army General David Petraeus, the top US commander in Iraq, and US Ambassador Ryan Crocker, according to a letter sent last week by Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell to Senator John Warner, Republican of Virginia.
Since the Iraq invasion in 2003, the intelligence community has been more cautious than the military and the White House in assessing political, economic, and security gains in Iraq. And the war’s progress has been a prominent issue in the presidential campaign.
In his letter to Warner, McConnell said that separate estimates are also being prepared on the “terrorist threat to the homeland” - focusing on Al Qaeda and Pakistan - and on “the tactical and longer-term security and political outlook for Afghanistan.” Both are scheduled for publication by early fall.
Warner requested all three estimates in January, describing them as key to upcoming policy discussions in Congress.
Intelligence officials said that the National Intelligence Board - made up of the heads of the 16 intelligence agencies plus McConnell - will decide whether to release the Iraq judgments once the estimate is completed. But they made clear that they lean toward a return to the traditional practice of keeping such documents secret.
In internal guidance he issued in October, McConnell said that his policy was that they “should not be declassified.” One month later, however, the intelligence board decided to publicly release key judgments from an NIE on Iran’s nuclear weapons program, saying that it had weighed “the importance of the information to open discussions about our national security against the necessity to protect classified information.”
© 2008 The Washington Post
when the truth is not in their favor, they say its ‘not available to the public’. When they want to use the report for their own gains they release it. Well i think it is time they make up their minds and say that all future NIEs will be publicly available. I am so sick of Government that uses “state secrets” privelege on a whim. Bushs Admin has used it more during his presidency than all the past Admins combined. Something is very wrong with that picture!
You can’t have a democracy of, by and for the people if the people are kept ignorant of what the government is doing. That is absurd.
We hang on to illusions of democracy like Gloria Swanson hung on to illusions of youth and beauty in Sunset Blvd.
But our democracy is dead and withered like the old woman in Psycho.
http://wagelaborer.blogspot.com/2008/02/psycho-mother-american-style.html
Hide the coffins. Hide the torture.
Hide the statistics. Hide the truth.
Hide the war. Hide the motives.
All this hiding is not democracy.
yup very typical in a controlled and corporat occupied country, who makes money hand over fist war profiteering and terro=r mongering,,,extortion is the key word, sunlight is the the main exposure and killer of falsehoods, and germs, just like the press should be, watch dogs not lapdogs, same with socalled classified info, in a world where we are trying to promote domocracy, freedom of the press and information would be nice, when someone tries to pull the wool over your eyes under any guise, there is bullshit going on, just look at Cheney’s task Farce on energy, and the game of controlling OIL (OINK) prices, UP because of the WAR??? bullshit, there is more oil (po=roven Reservse) now than ever,,,Venesuala, bolivia, Canada,, MOntana Wyoming, Michigan, Falkland Islands, Mexico, just to name a few, IT is Time to Nationalize AmeriKan OIL, have it publically run along with Housing, and MEDICINE, rip off artist,are ruling the country, TIME for Change and Exposure
what mcconnell is saying……”the truth hurts”
I think the administration is perfectly happy to have us quarreling over whether the NIE should be released, or given that it is released, quarreling over whether the Iraqi government is making progress or whether Iraqi security forces are ready to replace US forces or whether the surge is working or whether the terrorists are getting armed by Iran or whether violence is going up or down on somebody’s line graph or whether George Bush deceived us or Rumsfeld was incompetent. Behind all this bogus debate sits the big, sole reason for our presence in the Middle East, which is to faciitate US interests getting theirs claws on oil that doesn’t belong to them. We have to keep looking through the smokescreen of ancillary issues and pointing this out. All of the effort to get at this or that piece of hidden information has the single goal of revealing that fundamental crime. And conversely, any lesser issue they can get us to look at, what Mulkasey thinks about waterboarding, etc., succeeds in concealing that primary objective that sits in the middle of the room like Jobba the Hut.
Well if the truth hurts, just alter the NIE report in a few key areas, as was Done in 2002 by George Tenent, so that Bush could convince Congress to vote yes on prop 114. What’s the problem?
“Since the Iraq invasion in 2003, the intelligence community has been more cautious than the military and the White House in assessing political, economic, and security gains in Iraq.”
I didn’t realize there had been any “gains” to assess.
If everyone knows that the Bush Admin is full of shit, then why should people believe anything that comes out in print? By now, people ought to know that they cannot take anything the Administration says seriously. It is all lies and deceipt. Ignore the Administration. It is as useful as teets on a bull. Let them modify the NIE Report because we still cannot take anything in it for truth. To my mind, we (progressives) have ostracized the Administration.
Yes, 2cents, there have been great gains. The US has gained access to Iraqi oil. There are military bases being built which will replace the bases in Saudi Arabia.
The people of Iraq have been killed, driven into exile, or ethnically cleansed.
Mission accomplished!
Chalmers Johnson gets it absolutely right:
They should change the name of the CIA to WIA, for Worthless Intelligence Agency, and then flush it down the toilet.
The CIA predicted Saddam would not invade Kuwait!
Harharharhar!!!
The CIA predicted WMD’s would be found all over Iraq!
Harharharhar!!!
We were winning in Vietnam!
Harharharhar!!!
The Surge is working!
Harharharhar!!!
What we really need is a President who reads the newspapers, and ignores the unending stream of bullshit from the WIA!
All this talk of democracy, and how the publication or cover up of the NIE is an affront to the very core values of a democratic society, makes me chuckle. I’m assuming that Americans think they live in a democracy because they get to vote for the Pres once every four years, where that vote is between two corporate controlled parties that are virtually indistinguishable. The entire election process is a carefully stage-managed process conducted by corporate controlled media giving the brain-washed plebeians the illusion of choice.
The US is an increasingly militaristic state, with a rapidly diminishing human rights record. They will continue to attack foreign countries for resources, strategic military value, and access to slave labour. It is a curse on humanity, to all life, indeed to the planet.
When will the people of the US wake up?
WAG THE DOG, baby. Smiling media prostitutes telling us of “no credible report that terrorists are working night and day to hurt us again.” “The Pentagon announced it,” so it’s true. What the fuck is ever going to be enough to discredit our terrorist-tyrants and bring on impeachment?
Why does`nt Bush just say, It is only a G___D___piece of paper like the Constitution. That worked well for him as he can do anything he likes with no interference or guilt.
“We have to fight them over there, or else we’ll be fighting them here.”
Dick Cheney, 2006
“If Vietnam falls, tomorow will be fighting in Hawaii, the next day in California.”
Lyndon Johnson, 1967
Stateless, let’s rephase the question. What stops Americans from making progress towards what they want in America? Is it lazyness? Is it the fact that they are uneducated? Is it that they are self-alienated or is it FEAR!
The Crisis of Democracy looms large when your posse aint up to no good.
The problem is that the whole world suffers their consequences, especially us. That shit aint cool.
I’d love to know what Cheney’s Energy meetings were all about.
The only way to get the truth out of them is a kinder, much gentler form of waterboarding; an enema!
Moyers said,
“the greater the secrecy the deeper the corruption.”
that says a lot
Since Nagasaki and Hiroshima American government has had an addition to secrecy and propaganda.
Sick bastards are attracted to that lifestyle and how will it end Mr. Kissinger?
National Intelligence is an Oxymoron!
Here a war - there a war - everywhere a war, war.
Our government has no ‘win win’ strategy
this ’sin sin’ is about plunder of America.
Boom times on Wall Street, eh? The GOP strategy shows.
Lets make a list of things the administration doesn’t want publicly discussed. (Or has the neocon pundits spin them away.) These things are either not getting better or getting a whole lot worse, or the admin wants to do something stupid.
Iraq NIE
Iran NIE, bombing Iran
Trade deficit
Federal Budget Deficit
Inflation
Health Insurance/ Medical Costs
US Crude Oil Reserves and Peak Oil
New Orleans Recovery
Middle Class Manufacturing Jobs
Possibly most critical of all: Global Warming
Many of these things aren’t going away Dubya. Hopefully you are. Hillary, or Obama, is going to preside over the biggest mess since the great depression. Thanks.
Push,push, until you get stopped. Nobody has tried to stop them. Whose fault is it? The democrats. It is the opposition who should do the stopping, not the government itself. Unless, of course, you believe in fairness, which is not the way of most governments. Bush is not the one to blame, it’s Pelosi. If a murderer is allowed to get away you would blame the cops, not the murderer.
Read any number of articles at juancole.com or The Myth of the Surge at Truthout.com. The facts are known and the facts are frightening. Bush has been pouring money and arms into Iraq to try to keep the lid on until 1/09. Then all hell will break out and it will be blamed on the Dems.
The American majority do not give a damn what the report may or may not say. Were trying to figure out how to live life with an economy thats in the shitter. Of those who have been keeping score, our efforts to bring accountability to this cabal have been hamstringed by a complicit congress. This ‘conservative’ neo-nazi, right wing, zionistic way of doing business around the globe has been a runaway train for over 50 yrs w/o any checks and balances. Our Govt is a fraud…………
A Study. Followed by a Report.
Let me help here. no need to wait. here’s the Iraq report:
It was all lies from the beginning. But real people,innocent Iraqis, are getting killed every day. For no reason. There is no war on terror. There are 100,000 dead Iraqis. 2 million have had to leave their homes and are now refugees. Most of their homes were blown up by “our troops”.
summary: Death and destruction and misery.
DONE….DONE…….This country and it’s greed is too much!
When we have a record number of millionaires in this year, as people are losing their jobs and homes is just plain criminal. My understanding of democracy is not this. Just what makes the rest of us ‘losers’? How does a hard working person whose job has gone and left the county at the expense of the taxpayers and the benefit of the traitors make sense? Maybe a time for another revolution!!!!
My thoughts are when we start aggression (directly) toward Venezuela and Iran, folks might start to wake up to what our country has become. Very very afraid of the repercussions our children will have to suffer from all of this insanity. At what point have we had enough to stand up???????? Oil this generation, water the next…… a big fat F U to the aggressors who just want to line their pockets to the crisis dujour!! I have truely had enough.
See you on march 19 !!!!!!5 years in and just getin worse.
I’ve read all your comments above, and agree with most. Thing is now, I’m beginning to think that we’ve now got McCain AND Clinton running in the same muck, and it’s just beginning to show on Clinton’s part. She said Obama’s staff member told the Canandians that talk of “doing something about NAFTA” is just political talk, and maybe that’s right! But what she didn’t reveal was that her staff member told the Canadians the same thing! Ha! I sure don’t want another “say one thing but do another to cover our ass” kind of President! I’m thinking that maybe the little Irish reporter did us a favor when she revealed that the Obama rep called Clinton a ‘monster’! This election better go on a while longer - I need to learn more about all the candidates! Such as just finding out that McCain was asked to join with Kerry as V.P. in 2004 - Ha! I’ll bet McCain doesn’t like having that brought up!
“Intelligence officials said that the National Intelligence Board - made up of the heads of the 16 intelligence agencies plus McConnell - will decide whether to release the Iraq judgments once the estimate is completed.”
ACCORDING TO THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION: There are “THREE co-equal branches of government” and one of them doesn’t happen to be the National Intelligence Agency!
Like President Bush has done for the past seven+ years, the National Security Agency is now telling Congress to go fly a kite.
Congress to NIA: How high would you like us to fly it?
People have already tuned out Iraq. McCain is the Republican nominee (100 year war, bomb, bomb, bomb Iran), and Hillary of all people is still in the running (her supporters say they will vote for McCain if Hillary is not the nominee, which tells you where she really stands on the war-occupation).
It’s like a bad Opera! I just can’t wait for the fat lady to sing so I can leave. Oops, already left, 25 years now, but watching it from afar is no less painful. Good luck in whats to come, unfortunately, the consequences will be felt globally, so you will have company in your misery.
Folks, the Constitution states that we are a “republic”.
We are so big on spreading democracy and being called a democracy ….we forget were supposed to be a republic.
What’s the difference?
These two forms of government: Democracy and Republic, are not only dissimilar but antithetical, reflecting the sharp contrast between (a) The Majority Unlimited, in a Democracy, lacking any legal safeguard of the rights of The Individual and The Minority, and (b) The Majority Limited, in a Republic under a written Constitution safeguarding the rights of The Individual and The Minority.
In both the Direct type and the Representative type of Democracy, The Majority’s power is absolute and unlimited; its decisions are unappealable under the legal system established to give effect to this form of government. This opens the door to unlimited Tyranny-by-Majority. This was what The Framers of the United States Constitution meant in 1787, in debates in the Federal (framing) Convention, when they condemned the “excesses of democracy” and abuses under any Democracy of the unalienable rights of The Individual by The Majority.
The Framing Convention’s records prove that by decrying the “excesses of democracy” The Framers were, of course, not opposing a popular type of government for the United States; their whole aim and effort was to create a sound system of this type. To contend to the contrary is to falsify history. Such a falsification not only maligns the high purpose and good character of The Framers but belittles the spirit of the truly Free Man in America–the people at large of that period–who happily accepted and lived with gratification under the Constitution as their own fundamental law and under the Republic which it created, especially because they felt confident for the first time of the security of their liberties thereby protected against abuse by all possible violators, including The Majority momentarily in control of government. The truth is that The Framers, by their protests against the “excesses of democracy,” were merely making clear their sound reasons for preferring a Republic as the proper form of government. They well knew, in light of history, that nothing but a Republic can provide the best safeguards–in truth in the long run the only effective safeguards (if enforced in practice)–for the people’s liberties which are inescapably victimized by Democracy’s form and system of unlimited Government-over-Man featuring The Majority Omnipotent.
Unchained- This is why the Bill of Rights was soon added to the Constitution. Ah, if they had only bothered to limit corporations in that great document. The original 13 states already had laws limiting corporations and requiring that they dissolve after no more than 40 years. But I digress. The oldest party in the world is the Democratic Republican Party led by Thomas Jefferson who had been mentored by Benjamin Franklin. We can argue over whether this is a republic or a democracy after a couple of centuries in which Americans’ rights changed phenomenally. Slaves were freed. Indentured servititude was outlawed. Women could finally vote and own property. They could even go to college, become doctors and lawyers. Most children aren’t forced into labor when they should be learning and growing. Those who labored for others gained rights which are now under attack. America has been a work in progress under our Constitution and its amendments with pendulum swings back from time to time. I see the ideal as a democracy under law to protect individual and minority rights. As the election systems are, in much of the nation, so violated, skewed and computer hackable I think we must first recover an honest vote count. Then we’ll worry about what kind of government we want.
I guess this ‘TRUTH’ won’t set us free
We are all just pawns in the corporate and government chess game of which will either be world domination or destruction.We would all be wise to revolt before it is to late. God bless us all except those whores in Washington
I couldnt agree with so much of the problem. When we get into the solution, and united in the matter that we are tired of lies and being sold out of the constitutional rights we are supposed to have…look out we might call it operation no more clowns.
Danial Ellsberg was on CSPAN the other day explaining that the only reason we saw the NIE report on Iran’s nuke program was because there were some decent members of the panel who were ready to resign if they didn’t make it public. They knew it could possibly avert the war that Bush & Cheney were headed for. Ellsberg cautioned that there are still people in the Administration who are thinking of military options with Iran. This is looking less likely in just the past couple of days with President Ahmadinejad’s visit to Baghdad and Bush almost giving it his blessing with the comment about how Iraq and Iran were neighbors. Don’t exhale just yet, the Rodent & Cheney will be dangerous for the next nine months.
Don’t any of you people understand that bush is going to save us from the communists?
~Old Salt 3~ That was a rumor that has been disproved, that anyone in Hillary’s staff also contacted the Canadians and said the same things Obama’s staff members said about NAFTA. It was not true, it initiated from the Obama campaign staff but that falsehood is being spread, like many others. One thing that is true, is Hillary refuses to disclose her financial reports. She should do that and Obama should hammer her on that issue.
If the public ever needed anything, it needs periodic assessments of intelligence on Iraq and the Middle East. How else can we make intelligent decisions? U.S. involvement is a matter of intense controversy, and some - - like McCain - - are prepared to stay there for a century if they deem it necessary. This is something we cannot supinely leave to the White House and Congress.
For Urthsong….
The Bill of Rights was simply a teaser you might understand, deemed unecessary by its author, James Madison. At Jefferson’s insistance he penned it in about five minutes time. It was inserted simply to assist in the ratification process ,assuring the States that there would be no monarchy or all powerful federal entity usurping their power.
As to this petty little tyranny of the Executive branch; Those same founders ebvisioned a system wherein the three branches of our government would work to maintain a democratic republic answerable , ultimately, to the wishes of the states and th epeople. By abrogating their responsibilities to be an opposition party for the last seven plus years, or even as far back as the Reagan years, the Democartic Party has allowed the installation of radicalised Judges who side with their neoconservative counterparts in the Executive Branch.
Add this to an active GOP legislature minority which thwarts the easily surrendered attempts by the Democratic majority to do anything at all, when they even bother to try, and you have yoday’s government…how do you like it so far?
ejmurphy414 March 8th, 2008 8:31 am
“U.S. involvement is a matter of intense controversy, and some - - like McCain - - are prepared to stay there for a century if they deem it necessary. This is something we cannot supinely leave to the White House and Congress.”
We’re broke, in debt up to our eyeballs, and it’s highly unlikely the Chinese will continue to lend us the money to stay in Iraq for a century no matter how much McCain or anyone else would like for us to.
Lobo Gris
Did any of you notice at the State of the Union address when Bush claimed the surge is working, Hillary stood up and applauded enthusiastically? (Obama remained seated.) Which side of the aisle is she on?
They are getting better and better at controlling the news. Even on the internet, stuff you used to see is gone. What happened to it? I’m afraid they have learned how to conrol the news even on the internet.
We are offered different stories ever now and then so we can vent some of our anger, but never think that they can’t control most of what you hear or see.
ejmurphy414 sez: “… the public … needs periodic assessments of intelligence on Iraq and the Middle East. How else can we make intelligent decisions?”
Ahem. “We” are not the deciders.
I thought cherry-picking season was later in the year? Good gracious, I’d better go check the zucchini! What a crazy harvest we’ve sown.
“You can’t handle the Truth…”
[Nor, would you want it on your conscience]
This, too, shall pass.
You probably already know that Alberta, Canada is famous for it’s huge oil sands deposits.
Just about every company pumping oil in this region has skyrocketed in value over the past few years. Companies like Suncor, Western Oil Sands, and Canadian Oil Sands Trust have all shot up more than 1,000%. Even Big Oil companies like Exxon and Shell have doubled in value. The place is a goldmine.
Unfortunately for investors, the big money has already been made in Alberta. The story is old… yesterday’s news.
But we recently uncovered a secret about Canada’s oil sands that could make you many times your money over the next few years…
You see, what most people don’t know is that there’s an oil sands region literally right next door to Alberta, which to date is completely untapped. What’s more, the Canadian government recently sold the majority of this land to a tiny penny company.
In short, the same that happened in Alberta is about to happen all over again in another region of Canada. And one tiny penny stock is leading the way.
It’s a pretty exciting situation. Things are moving very quickly.
If you missed out the first time, this could be your second chance to capitalize on Canada’s booming oil sands industry.
Profoundly un-democratic.
But this is exactly what one would expect in an Empire —- which is at the heart of all our problems (abroad and at home).
As Hannah Arendt warned decades ago, “Empire abroad (always) entails tyranny at home.”
We’ve had wars of ‘empire abroad’ for quite some time — now we are about the experience the increasing pain of the ‘tyranny at home’ part.
The global corporatist Empire behind this facade of ‘Vichy American’ faux-government is going to start ratcheting up the pain in economic oppression and ‘police-state’ tyranny.
Don’t take it personally. They aren’t going to do it because ‘they hate us’ —- they just need to do it because the corporatist Empire is collapsing, like the Ponzi scheme of “economics of empire” that it is.
What If — Sen. Obama is elected?
What if Sen. Clinton is elected?
What if Pres. Bush is Impeached?
What if V.P. Cheney is Impeached?
What if Wolfowitz, Rumsfeld, et.a;. were tried for crimes
against humanity?
What if laws were put in place to control corporate greed?
What if poverty in America was recognized and enacted on?
What if Education were properly funded?
What if Health Care became a proirity for legislation?
What if the trillions spent for ARMS and WAR was used for
any of the above?
What if I’m dreaming?
Go back to sleep Frank, you are dreaming.
Hey Frank. What a lovely dream.
Everything is “States Secret” with this pitiful White House. Like nobody can see through this. Pathetic.
More of Bush’s ‘Smoke and Mirror’s’ policies! That’s all we have had for 7 years now. One really gets tired of hearing the White House’s official version of how the war is going, the economy and any other vital issues. It would be nice to hear the reality of it once. No wonder most American’s have become to dumbed down they can’t make a rational decision regarding President. What’s left has become cynical and don’t believe a word that comes out of these folks mouths. They are pathological liars! The Republican’s are like a cancer that is eating away at the moral’s of this country. Come hell or high water they need to be gotten out of office!
The last NIE that was released, the one that contradicted the Bush admins statements claiming Iran was close to having nuclear weapons, was released against the wishes of the Bush administration because a large number of intelligence analysts threatened to resign if the report was not made public.(According to Daniel Ellsberg, as mentioned above.) One hopes that from now on they will have as much integrity when Bush is lying about threats from other countries. If the new NIE on Iraq contradicts the admins claims that the surge is working, one hopes that same intelligence staff will hold their ground again.