Posted by zeugma on May 5, 2006, at 16:52:16
In reply to I meant what I said, posted by zeugma on April 25, 2006, at 20:22:40
because Mr. Goss is gone.
President Bush had these comments:
<<AP, Washington
"He has led ably," Bush said, Goss at his side. "He has a five-year plan to increase the analysts and operatives."
Neither Bush nor Goss offered a reason for his departure.
"I believe the agency is on a very even keel, sailing well," Goss said. "I honestly believe that we have improved dramatically."
"As a result, this country will be more secure," Bush said. "We've got to win the war on terror, and the Central Intelligence Agency is a vital part of the war. So I thank you for your service."
>>Mr. Goss' legacy, of course, is one of leaks stopped up at the source. Thus:
>>Goss has pressed for aggressive probes about leaked information.
"The damage has been very severe to our capabilities to carry out our mission," he told Congress in February, adding that a federal grand jury should be impaneled to determine "who is leaking this information."
Just two weeks ago, Goss announced the firing of a top intelligence analyst in connection with a Pulitzer Prize-winning story about a network of CIA prisons in Eastern Europe. Such dismissals are highly unusual. >>
Some unkind souls in Washington have perversely delighted in his departure (character assasinations are so unbecoming these days- unlike the frequent actual assasinations that take place among Iraqi politicians, which are civil by comparison). I give you a sanitized version of what someone said of Mr. Goss' departure, which was motivated SOLELY by partisanship and nastiness (don't worry, I will edit it out so you can have a restful afternoon, and besides, we are assured by President Bush that Mr. Goss' replacement will hunt out leaks with enough zeal to put a whole bookcase of Pulitzer Prizes in the dock):
>>Rep. David Obey , D-Wis., said Goss' resignation was [ungenerous words]. "His management style has been [unkind verb, present tense progressive] the country's most important intelligence agency," Obey said. "I hope that whoever is selected to take his place will rebuild agency [positive word-but this noun following 'rebuild' takes on uncivil connotations] and [a word that has been more responsive for more blocks than any other on this board. It is a word that begins with C and has three syllables. As far as I am concerned, it is the nastiest word in the English language.]."
>>I would like to defend Mr. Goss from Rep. Obey's scandalous charges, but find that it can be done only by defaming Rep. Obey himself. And this is a sad dilemma, but a frequent one, and it illustrates a point.
Leaks are bad for agency morale. They make it difficult for agents to perform [an adverb I hate- it gets everyone blocked around here]. By now the CIA is in need of FEMA to rescue it from the rising flood of Pulitzer Prize-winning journalism, but a Senate probe has recommended that FEMA should be abandoned, itself. Which no doubt added to Mr. Goss' zeal in stopping leaks at all costs. He knew that loose lips sink ships, and all FEMA has left in its coffers is duct tape, and not entirely waterproof duct tape, at that (no-bid contracts do not always ensure optimal quality control).
I hope Mr. Goss' successor has some Krazy Glue in his or her pocket. He or she will need it.
-z
poster:zeugma
thread:637033
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/poli/20060417/msgs/640349.html