Armitage's disappointments - Reflections of a straight shooter?

[TacticalPeek]

The Road to Surfdom

January 19, 2005

IF someone important like Andrew Sullivan had said this, it would no doubt be all over the blogosphere, with people tripping over themselves to praise his honesty. Alas, it comes merely from retiring Deputy Secretary of State, Richard Armitage:


"I'm disappointed that Iraq hasn't turned out better. And that we weren't able to move forward more meaningfully in the Middle East peace process."

Then, after a minute's pause, he adds a third regret: "The biggest regret is that we didn't stop 9/11. And then in the wake of 9/11, instead of redoubling what is our traditional export of hope and optimism we exported our fear and our anger. And presented a very intense and angry face to the world. I regret that a lot."


Of course, if anybody from the left had said it, they would have been denounced as a traitor and a classic America-hater. Probably by Andrew Sullivan.

(Via somewhere between the mighty Merri and Darebin Creeks, under the shadow of Rucker's Hill, in Australia's cultural heartland.)

Comments (1) : TrackBack (0) : 09:28 PM : Return to Main Page



The Australian - January 20, 2005

[MisterP]

1. Mussolini's Mini-Me appears to be trying to shore up his image as

quick as quick can

[Pirate Smile]

2. Come on, Armitage, we are waiting for the book!

The truth will set you free. It is your only way back to redemption.

;-)

[The Backlash Cometh]

3. Exactly. They spent too many

years dismissing non-conservatives. They'll never admit that we were correct.

[soaky]

4. well hello neighbour! n/t

[leesa]

5. I'm sure. He thought stealing their oil and being King-of-the-Hill of the

planet was a "cakewalk" so to speak. Did these ignorant fools even graduate from the 6th grade???

[catzies]

6. Who replaces him?

Who's Albertwhore Gonzales' #2?




(apologies to all other Albertos as it is as fine a name as any)

[Stand and Fight]

7. What? Check your "facts" out first, please.

It would also help to read the article... Armitage was the Deputy Secretary of State under Colin Powell.
http://www.state.gov/s/d/
:eyes:

[catzies]

8. Right. And Powell's being replaced. Didn't think Armitage was staying on.

Sorry for mixing up my cabinet positions; was thinking about Ashcroft.

[Stand and Fight]

9. Yep, you're right.

Armitage is not staying on. He turned in his resignation right after Colin Powell did. Don't know who is slated to replace him -- most likely Rice's old side-kick. That way all the turds can keep their lies straight!

:silly:

Just re-read my post. Sorry if I come off as abrupt. I did not mean to be.

[leftchick]

16. This guy...

http://www.newkerala.com/news-daily/news/features.php?action=fullnews&id=57128

Bush nominates Zoellick as new Deputy Secretary of State:

: Washington, Jan 8 : United States President George W Bush has nominated Bob Zoellick, the current US Trade Representative, as the new Deputy Secretary of State to replace Richard Armitage.

Zoellick, upon Senate confirmation, would be the No 2 in the State Department after Condoleezza Rice, the present National Security Advisor, who is Bush's choice for the job of the top US diplomat after Colin Powell leaves office.

"Condi Rice and Bob Zoellick will form one of the really strong, capable foreign policy teams our country has ever had," Bush said.

Describing Zoellick as "a fine public servant", the President said "he did a fantastic job" as the Trade Minister.

Bush assured Americans that his administration was committed to free trade.

[NVMojo]

10. sigh ......

[Merlin]

11. Armitage has always been a mixed bag.

He's not all that bad himself. But he keeps bad company and winds up trying to kiss their asses.

[oneighty]

13. Armitage is indeed a mixed bag of BS.

In his book 'Against All Enemies' Richard Clark says "The Deputy Secretary of State had been a Navy SEAL and looked it." Referring to Armitage.

Armitage was not in the SEALS but he once brushed shoulders with a SEAL in Vietnam he claims.

'Against All Enemies' reads like a Chinese fire drill conducted in English.

180

[TacticalPeek]

12. Morning Kick.

:kick:

[0007]

14. Always worth a bounce when it comes to our civil liberties!

“One of a democratic government's continuing challenges is finding a way to protect . . . secrets without impinging the liberties that democracy exists to protect”

[Supersedeas]

15. can't call it Anti-American b/c of party affiliation, but MSM can BURY it

[lanlady]

17. Armitage = court jester

He addressed my son's high school graduation a couple of years ago, and I have to say he was funny & entertaining. I think he owes his success to serving as stand-up comedian to the diplomatic circuit and ultimate good ol' boy. I doubt he has a single moral principle or standard in his head.

[realFedUp]

18. Everything you didn't know about Armitage

http://www.fromthewilderness.com/free/politics/armitage_SS.html

Armitage, who was denied a 1989 appointment as Assistant Secretary of State because of links to Iran-Contra and other scandals, served as Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs in the Reagan years. U.S. Government stipulations in the Oliver North trial specifically named Armitage as one of the DoD officials responsible for illegal transfers of weapons to Iran and the Contras. But Armitage's dirty past goes much deeper.

A Vietnam veteran and graduate of Annapolis, Armitage's roots have been thoroughly intertwined with the likes of CIA veteran Ted Shackley, Richard Secord, Heine Aderholt, Elliot Abrams, Dewey Clarridge, Edwin Wilson and Tom Clines. All of these men have been directly linked to CIA covert operations, the drug trade, the abandonment of U.S. prisoners of War after Vietnam and/or Iran-Contra. Armitage has also been routinely discussed in FTW as a Bush-era covert functionary who has been linked to covert operations, drug smuggling and the expansion of organized crime operations in Russia, Central Asia and the Far East.

In 1986 a private dispute between POW activist Ross Perot and Armitage went public as photos of Armitage with a topless Vietnamese nightclub owner Nguyen O'Rourke brought allegations of gambling and prostitution close to Armitage's doorstep. The stories went public when TIME and "The Boston Globe" wrote lengthy stories on the feud in 1986 and 1987. That scandal arose as a result of 1984 investigations by President Reagan's Commission on Organized Crime in which the photo and documentation of gambling charges and prostitution led to direct Armitage's close association with O'Rourke. Then LAPD Assistant Chief Jesse Brewer, a former Commanding Officer of this writer, served on the Reagan Commission.

The 1992 best-seller "Kiss The Boys Goodbye" by former "60 MINUTES" producer Monika Jensen-Stevenson details Armitage's role as Reagan point man on Vietnam POW-MIA issues and describes why Armitage has earned the enmity of many POW activists. However, in a 1995 interview with "The Washington Post", Colin Powell referred to Armitage as his "white son." This, notwithstanding the fact that the 6 foot, balding, power-lifter, now 56, can still bench press 300 or more pounds and reportedly "enjoys killing."

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