Judith Miller's Weird Chalabi Comment

[Hissyspit]

From Daily Kos:
(sorry if a dupe)

Okrent takes Miller To Task!?!
by Armando
Sat Feb 5th, 2005 at 22:09:16 PST

Via atrios, Okrent takes Judith Miller to the woodshed:

LAST Sunday, Times reporter Judith Miller appeared on MSNBC's "Hardball With Chris Matthews" to discuss the Iraqi elections. In the course of the conversation Miller said sources had told her the Bush administration "has been reaching out" to the Iraqi political figure Ahmad Chalabi "to offer him expressions of cooperation." She continued, "According to one report, he was even offered a chance to be an interior minister in the new government." This led Matthews to interrupt Miller, exclaim "Wait a minute!" and press her to elaborate.
. . . o anyone who has tried to follow the jagged contours of Ahmed Chalabi's connections to the Bush administration, Miller's statement was a shocker. This piece of news hadn't appeared in The Times that morning; it didn't appear in The Times the next morning; as I write this column, on Friday, it still hasn't appeared. A lengthy analysis of the election aftermath by reporter Dexter Filkins, published Tuesday, didn't even hint of any current contact between Chalabi and the Bush administration.

. . . Judging by their absence from the paper, one must conclude that either Miller's Chalabi revelations were wrong or unsubstantiated or that The Times is suppressing an important piece of news. If the first, the paper has suffered a blow to its credibility: Matthews introduced Miller as "an investigative reporter for The New York Times." The ID on the screen said "Judith Miller, 'The New York Times'." At five separate points in the show Matthews invoked her connection to The Times, as any host would.

If there's an act of suppression going on, the price is of course incalculable. But I don't remotely think that is the case. I've been able to determine with a very high degree of confidence that editors in the two departments most likely to have an interest in Miller's Chalabi assertions were unaware of them. (Miller was away from New York this week, and did not respond to messages I left on her office phone, her cellphone, and on e-mail. Executive editor Bill Keller declined to discuss the matter. "I'm sorry to be unhelpful on this one, but Judy faces a serious danger of being sent to jail for protecting a confidential source," Keller told me in an e-mail message. "I think this is not the time to be drawn into unrelated public discussions of Judy.")

What the hell is Keller talking about by the way? What a crappy dodge of an embarrassing question.


Media :: Link & Discuss (107 comments)

[A-Schwarzenegger]

1. It must be true

because Miller was the first one to report
the finding of WMDs in Iraq.

[Elidor]

2. Keller's talking about the Plame case

But he's so full of shit. This has nothing to do with Plame.

I got ten bucks says the bitch is lying.

[aquart]

3. But why lie?

She's a BushCo shill. Why this lie?

[A-Schwarzenegger]

4. It's what they want. And who doesnt?

Who would NOT want to see Chalabi move up the ladder of power
and become King of Iraq? Is there anybody who has done more
to manufacture reasons for the war? Is there anybody who he and
his cousins and co-pirates didn't make up more crap intelligence
about WMDs? Is there anybody else who is wanted in Syria for
passing bad checks for a few million or whatever? Is there anybody
who would be more interesting as King? He is the equivalent of
some real-life riverboat con-man from Huck Finn, with blood on his
hands up to his armpits. King Chalabi!

[Elidor]

9. I think she's compulsive

She's one of those people who feel self-important when they let on like they know more than they really do.

[Supersedeas]

5. but why draw the connection bt Plame and Chalabi, makes no sense

as a defense--whatsoever!!!

[CWebster]

6. Lame, pathetic attempt by Miller to salvage her shredded credibility. nt

[DemDogs]

7. It's worse than suppression

Do we think we are still picking the cabinet after the elections? Apparently so. Particularly when it doesn't look like Allawi will be picking the cabinet, this is incredible.

[Just Me]

8. Why don't we charge, try & convict the damned predator,...

,...rather than hang the victim?

What the hell?

SO WHAT!?!?!?!?

Miller was led to believe she was so lucky as to have an "inside" to what was happening.

Do we CONVICT her,...or those who USED her?

The lady doesn't come off as being particularly "EVIL" compared to the neoCONspirators who have USED her and this country and its people!!!!

I'll be damned if I'll be distracted from the real EVIL-HEARTED SONS OF A BITCHES who have damned us all!!!

Get centered, people!!!