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| Iraq-Jordan |
| The latest in the CIA leak campaign against Bush |
| 2004-12-07 |
| A classified cable sent by the Central Intelligence Agency's station chief in Baghdad has warned that the situation in Iraq is deteriorating and may not rebound any time soon, according to government officials. The cable, sent late last month as the officer ended a yearlong tour, presented a bleak assessment on matters of politics, economics and security, the officials said. They said its basic conclusions had been echoed in briefings presented by a senior C.I.A. official who recently visited Iraq. The officials described the two assessments as having been "mixed," saying that they did describe Iraq as having made important progress, particularly in terms of its political process, and credited Iraqis with being resilient. But over all, the officials described the station chief's cable in particular as an unvarnished assessment of the difficulties ahead in Iraq. They said it warned that the security situation was likely to get worse, including more violence and sectarian clashes, unless there were marked improvements soon on the part of the Iraqi government, in terms of its ability to assert authority and to build the economy. Together, the appraisals, which follow several other such warnings from officials in Washington and in the field, were much more pessimistic than the public picture being offered by the Bush administration before the elections scheduled for Iraq next month, the officials said. The cable was sent to C.I.A. headquarters after American forces completed what military commanders have described as a significant victory, with the retaking of Falluja, a principal base of the Iraqi insurgency, in mid-November. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #24 The station chief’s cable has been widely disseminated outside the C.I.A the top American military commander in Iraq, Gen. George W. Casey Jr., also reviewed the cable and initially offered no objections There are embedded reporters throughout Iraq. So why are common sense observations creating such a flap as being a "leak" of secretive information? Actually the CIA cable seemed to be more critical of the Iraqis than anything else and it doesn't take a spook to figure out the main problem that threatens Iraq's future stability: unless there were marked improvements soon on the part of the Iraqi government, in terms of its ability to assert authority and to build the economy. It's not like this was Geraldo drawing US military strategy in the sand on internationally televised television. |
| Posted by: Glomosing Crong 2004-12-07 9:53:57 PM |
| #23 I saw the ham-fisted stupidity of the CIA operation in Saigon "close up and personal". It seems the CIA station chief in Baghdad is following the same scenario. We used to hate passing on information to the Saigon office, because we knew it would be all over Saigon before sundown. That place leaked like a seive, there were more bugs (electronic types) than people, and security was lax or non-existent. There was a turf war going on between CIA and the embassy, which didn't help things (same thing may be going on in Baghdad). I have little respect for the cloak-and-dagger boys at CIA. On the other hand, I know quite a few of the imagery people personally, and they rate every bit of respect I can give them. Some of their technical people are also first-rate. |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2004-12-07 9:19:05 PM |
| #22 Another dimension to this memo: the CIA paramilitaries have been described as being ineffectual and there have been suggestions that all paramilitary operations come under DOD control. Those suggestions mesh with the renewed emphasis and skill at Special Ops in DOD, including the new chief of staff of the Army (a special ops guy). If the Baghdad CIA guy runs 300 people, they're probably not analysts, you know? So is he pushing for more people of his own? Undercutting the rep of the DOD guys for excellent work? Or just avoiding any blame whatsoever for whatever goes wrong? |
| Posted by: too true 2004-12-07 6:13:22 PM |
| #21 Lex, I agree with you, but I doubt that it will occur. I am a strong Bush supporter, but I am AGAINST the intelligence bill that tried to take satellite oversight away from the miltary. I am NOT CONVINCED that today's compromise is in America's best interests. (So, I believe that the President is wrong on that one). I know of No bureaucrat outside of the military in D.C. that is really trustworthy. On the other hand, some of the armchair general military dinosaurs are the worst of all. So.... we will see. |
| Posted by: leaddog2 2004-12-07 5:59:27 PM |
| #20 An Interesting thought from Mrs. Davis and Trailing Wife. If this is a Goss ploy, then I suppose I have read TOO MANY spy novels also! Oh well, perhaps there are SOME Loyal Americans in the C.I.A. who will turn these people in. They can't ALL be enemy moles. (I hope)! |
| Posted by: leaddog2 2004-12-07 5:48:40 PM |
| #19 2b, it's not just a few bad apples. CIA case officers and station chiefs do not "leak" to the media-- it's simply not done. That these senior officials are using the NYT as a mouthpiece for supposedly classified analyses, and publishing tell-all books with their supervisors' permission, and slamming the White House in many other ways, is intolerable. This is beyond tweaking org charts. It's now a national security issue. The only way to halt this treasonous behavior is to shut it down. |
| Posted by: lex 2004-12-07 5:15:16 PM |
| #18 During my time in the Marines I occaisionally handled classified documents. I was careful as hell, and scared of the consequences (to me and others) if I mis-handled one. NOW, of course, I know that I should have been leaking them to kick-start a book deal! What a dumbass Jarhead I was!! |
| Posted by: Justrand 2004-12-07 2:05:37 PM |
| #17 The fact that we haven't had a single attack in the US since 9/11 makes me respect them. I think they both just need a good house cleaning and better ability to hire and fire. I don't think it's anything that good management and improved, enforceable standards can't fix. As for these self-righteous Sheurer types - nobody's irreplacable. Time to make that fact painfully clear. |
| Posted by: 2b 2004-12-07 1:48:39 PM |
| #16 With the bats in Langely, anything is posible. Goss might have leaked it to nail the station chief on whom he didn't really have the goods. I'm with Lex. |
| Posted by: Mrs. Davis 2004-12-07 1:40:53 PM |
| #15 I wonder if this is one of those traceable memos, the kind where they know who leaked by subtleties of wording or details of information? Could this be part of Goss's housecleaning effort? Or have I read too many novels ;-) |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2004-12-07 1:36:55 PM |
| #14 William Peterson or Marg Helgenberger should take over the FBI Forensics Lab - the one part it seems is worth saving... -Jerry Bruckheimer |
| Posted by: .com 2004-12-07 1:10:05 PM |
| #13 Lex is correct. I grew up during a time when the CIA and FBI deserved, or at least so I thought, great respect because they were the premier intelligence agencies on planet Earth. No more. Since 9/11 I learned some hard truths. I no longer have ANY confidence in the abilities of the CIA or FBI to protect my countrymen or family. Scrap 'em and start over. |
| Posted by: Mark Z. 2004-12-07 1:05:27 PM |
| #12 When "classified cables" are provided to the NYT by CIA station chiefs, it's clear that the CIA is a rogue agency that needs to be purged immediately as a first step toward shutting it down and starting over. Again, you can't "reform" the CIA. The rot's too deep. It needs replacing, not reform. |
| Posted by: lex 2004-12-07 12:40:59 PM |
| #11 How do I get on the distribution list for the CIA's top secret message traffic? Is it like an email list? If I signed up for it would I get a lot of spam? |
| Posted by: Matt 2004-12-07 12:28:19 PM |
| #10 Looney Left: Iraq is taking too long. Can't you like microwave it or something? The attention span and grit of the mayfly. |
| Posted by: .com 2004-12-07 12:08:12 PM |
| #9 The text of assessment/cable stated that things will get worse,unless they improve. That's the kind of brilliant analysis we have come to expect from the CIA. |
| Posted by: Stephen 2004-12-07 12:00:25 PM |
| #8 Scrappleface: "Classified CIA Cable Warns of Danger of Leaks." |
| Posted by: Frank G 2004-12-07 10:54:34 AM |
| #7 This is a perfect time to do a thorough investigation and then FULLY prosecute ANY & ALL associated with this leak. This is perfect for several reasons: (1) the material itself won't be compromised by further release of it (2) it WAS classified and is therefore VERY prosecutable and (3) the President doesn't have to |
| Posted by: Justrand 2004-12-07 10:48:45 AM |
| #6 Of course this analysis is by the same CIA that concluded the Soviet Union was economically strong and that Saddam had all sorts of WMD. Guess the cable means - we're winning. |
| Posted by: Don 2004-12-07 10:29:38 AM |
| #5 Sounds like we need more purges at the CIA. |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2004-12-07 10:23:26 AM |
| #4 How does something like this get leaked? It must be highly classified. |
| Posted by: FredJHarris 2004-12-07 10:17:33 AM |
| #3 Do they need volunteers for this Grand Jury? I can think of several Rantburgers that should be on it. |
| Posted by: Mrs. Davis 2004-12-07 10:09:12 AM |
| #2 hmmmm - maybe we need a Grand Jury investigation (like the Wilson/Plame debacle) to find out who leaked this classified |
| Posted by: Frank G 2004-12-07 10:03:34 AM |
| #1 Well that's it, then. Let's pack up, ship out, and cower under our beds like proper dhimmis. |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2004-12-07 9:50:31 AM |