Mystery official briefs on Cheney's trip (Guess who it was!)

[rodeodance]

Yesterdays article did not tell who it was.


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070228/ap_on_go_pr_wh/senior_administration_official;_ylt=Aps1Cu7.WrS6gkyuNE8NibBh24cA

Mystery official briefs on Cheney's trip

By TERENCE HUNT, AP White House Correspondent 1 hour, 12 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - Who was the mystery official on Vice President
Dick Cheney's plane? There were plenty of clues about his identity if you read a transcript of his remarks.


The rules were simple. The official who briefed reporters on Cheney's plane could be identified only as a senior administration official. But the high-ranking official wasn't very careful about concealing his identity as Cheney wrapped up his round-the-world trip with surprise stops in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Pay attention to the pronouns — me and I — that the official uses in describing the vice president's mission.

"The reason the president wanted me to come, obviously, is because of the continuing threat that exists in this part of the world on both sides of the Afghan-Pakistan border," the senior administration official said Tuesday.

OK, it was apparent the briefer was Cheney himself and that he gave himself away. White House press secretary Tony Snow encouraged the vice president's office Wednesday to identify the briefer by name but he was turned down. "The vice president's office made its feelings known," he said with a grin that suggested a very senior official was behind the decision.

[Gman]

1. That is absolutely friggin' insane

Cheney's gone round the bend.

[On the Road]

2. That's Actually a Pretty Common Dodge

although it's generally used for off-the-record leaks to reporters. I have no idea what Cheney thought he was concealing.

[Gman]

5. I can see how it would be a useful dodge

but to use it with the reporters that have been covering his trip since the day he left? Seems to be kinda eccentric at the least and downright crazy paranoid insane at the very worst.

[On the Road]

11. IIRC, Nixon Used to Use This Phraseology

in order to disseminate something in the press but not associate himself with the leak. The reporter would agree to attribute it to a "senior administration official" at Nixon's request in order to maintain access to a news source.

I really don't have too much of a problem with that unless secret information is being publicized. Pretty much politics as usual.

What was odd in Cheney's statement was (1) he didn't conceal his identity very well by using the first person, and (2) there didn't seem to be anything in his statements calling for secrecy. Unless it was a misunderstanding by a reporter, it seems incompetent and unnecessarily cloak-and-dagger.

[ShockediSay]

15. Good thing they sent Cheney out of town so we could talk w/ Syria

& Iran

[rodeodance]

3. WH news release:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/02/20070227-8.html

[lyonn]

12. Straight from the White House:

"Q Could you elaborate on that just a little bit? What sorts -- do you think they see a lack of will on the part of the United States to stick with them as well?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Sure. One of the reasons I think Karzai was upbeat was because of the United States' economic and financial commitment. We've asked for significant sums for him this year in the budget, the commitment of an additional brigade of troops to beef up what's already there, that's all taken as a sign of our commitment, specifically to Afghanistan. They worry about that. They look over their shoulders, obviously, and if they see weakness on the part of the United States, or an unwillingness to carry through on our commitments, they automatically raise questions about how good our commitment to them is.

In Pakistan, a slightly different situation, obviously. We don't have U.S. forces on the ground in Pakistan. But Musharraf, of course, has been the target of assassination attempts. He's been closely allied with us going after al Qaeda. And, again, you've got people who, in effect, are betting the farm, so to speak, that they can count on the United States to be there, and to support them, and in many cases provide the leadership necessary to prevail in this global conflict with these extreme elements of Islam. And it would be difficult to sustain that conviction on their part if the United States were to suddenly decide that the problems in Iraq are too tough; we're going to pack it in and go home. So there are consequences in this part of the world for a course of action that some people are advocating in the U.S."


Cheney seems to be talking money not wars to Pakistan and Afghanistan. So how does that affect the Iraqi war? We can continue to give them money to be our best buddies. cheney is equating "our weakness" with our commitments (money).

Dems are saying that our presence there in the heart of the cities and towns will not make the Iraqis stop fighting each other. Or make their government officials work together. bush wants to continue doing the same thing over and over. Insane

[Straight Shooter]

4. Cheney is a thug. Check out this next quote.

"Let me just make one editorial comment here. I've seen some press reporting (that) says, 'Cheney went in to beat up on them, threaten them.' That's not the way I work," the official said.

Like hell that's not the way you work, Big Dick.

hat tip to rodeodance :thumbsup:

[Gman]

6. and a hat tip to the reporter that reported the quote

from the anonymous source.

[aquart]

8. The reporter could have covered that easily. Chose not to.

Wonder why?

[alfredo]

7. Osama

[tanyev]

9. Oh, he just loves his little cloak and dagger games.

Bet he wishes more than anything that there really was such a thing as an invisibility cloak. Lynne must be very glad that there isn't.

[Ian David]

10. Our Vice pResident has become an un-named source in an undisclosed location. n/t

[KansDem]

13. Uh-oh, Dick...see what happens when you out a covert CIA agent?

...you start outing yourself!

Stop me before I out again!!!

[bananas]

14. Is this from The Onion?

"Let me just make one editorial comment here," the official said. "I've seen some press reporting says, `Cheney went in to beat up on them, threaten them.' That's not the way I work. I don't know who writes that, or maybe somebody gets it from some source who doesn't know what I'm doing, or isn't involved in it. But the idea that I'd go in and threaten someone is an invalid misreading of the way I do business.