Greg Mitchell (Editor & Publisher): Whoops, 'Plamegate' Back on Page One

[Jack Rabbit]

From Editor & Publisher
Dated Thursday July 21

Whoops, 'Plamegate' Back on Page One
Pundits predicted the White House gambit of moving forward a Supreme Court pick would knock Karl Rove's involvement in the CIA leak case off page one for days. That became "day," thanks to the Washington Post this morning.
By Greg Mitchell

It was almost as if The Washington Post was saying, "So there."

When the White House rushed its decision on a new Supreme Court justice forward to get top aide Karl Rove's involvement in the Valerie Plame affair off the front pages, most pundits dutifully hailed it as a brilliant tactical move that would surely bury the "other" story for days if not weeks.

Hello John Roberts, goodbye Karl Rove.

Actually, the Supreme scheme started falling apart within hours, thanks to a fair amount of attention on the poorly planned (for the White House) testimony on the Hill about a federal shield law. One of the recipients of Rove's CIA leak, Matt Cooper, got some face time on TV for that.

Read more.

It was predictable that the leak scandal would not stay off the front page very long, but it is at least mildly surprising that it's back so soon.

[pelagius]

1. Good news!

I think the restraint shown by prominent Democratic leaders re: the Roberts nomination was a great tactical move. Rather than fill the airwaves with inflamed rhetoric that could be spun by the right wing echo chamber, the fire died for lack of fuel.

That doesn't mean we need to roll over on Roberts at all, but accurately seeing this announcement as the ploy it was and getting back on topic (Traitorgate) enabled us to control the story, rather than the White House.

[Puzzler]

4. I agree...

... plenty of time in the next few weeks to turn up the heat on Roberts.

-P

[PurityOfEssence]

2. Okay, so I was wrong; Karl's a "two-trick pony". Still, he's over.

I've posted how he is an attack dog who goes after his opponents' strengths and has no scruples about smearing as wildly as possible. His other tactic is to create a hubbub about something else to draw the eye elsewhere. This one didn't work.

Awe-filled as many people are by his flagrant abuses of decency and his will to dominate, he's going to have one of the greatest comeuppances in American history. Weaklings are impressed by his sheer gall, but he deeply disgusts people, and his downfall is dreamed of by many.

With any luck, Ninny-boy Bush will stick by him to the last and the taint of moral ugliness will not be escaped. He's a thug. He'll escape some scrutiny in the near future because more and more attention will be focused on Cheney, who's an even worse thug.

Much as these two are powerful, they've fucked so many people who still have some hand to play that the knives will come from many directions. Cheney, when "searching" for a V.P. candidate for Junior in '00 had every hopeful tell him about the skeletons in their closets. He then pronounced that only he was clean enough to be worthy. EVERY LAST ONE OF THOSE REPUBLICANS HATES HIM, and seeing an opportunity, will fuck him.

The problem is that the extreme evil of the administration's policies make it hard for anyone to break ranks. Once a whiff of inevitability is sensed, though, it'll be a stampede.

With control of the media and fear everywhere, they may still be able to contain this.

We shall see.

[Skittles]

5. yup Purity

I get DISGUSTED when I hear people refer to the "genius" of Rove - his expertise is the ability to do things that would make decent folk SICK.

[MadisonProgressive]

3. Hardy harr harr!!!

[WhiteTara]

6. msm with guts? Great news

so take that chimpy!
:popcorn: