So, dear ol' Bob Gates was accused of politicizing Cold War-era intelligence!

[journalist3072]

While reading an article on Robert Gates, Bush's nominee to replace Donald Rumsfeld at the Defense Department, this particular section stuck out for me like a sore thumb. Gates was accused of politicizing Cold War-era intelligence on Iran, Nicaragua, Afghanistan and the Soviet Union.

From an Associated Press article:

Gates' resume as a government policymaker is not untarnished. Critics dredged up his 1991 confirmation hearings to be CIA director as evidence he is the wrong man for the job. Then, he was criticized for missing clues about the impending fall of the Soviet Union and for politicizing Cold War intelligence. Those two complaints _ misreading intelligence and using it selectively _ have also dogged the Bush administration in its Iraq policy.

-snip-

Melvin Goodman, a former CIA division chief for Soviet affairs, testified that Gates politicized the intelligence on Iran, Nicaragua, Afghanistan and the Soviet Union. "Gates' role in this activity was to corrupt the process and the ethics of intelligence on all of these issues," Goodman said.

Politicizing intelligence? Hmmmm.....no wonder Bush was inclined to appoint him.

The Democrats MUST ask the tough questions about and to Gates. For example, exactly how did he handle the Cold War-era intelligence he received? And what does that say about how he might handle any information BushCo. receives about Iran or North Korea?

http://www.federalnewsradio.com/index.php?nid=78&pid=&sid=969245&page=1

[williesgirl]

1. Agree w/you. Don't think he should be confirmed.

[spindrifter]

2. The other issue for Gates is whether he can

distinguish the roles of the intelligence agencies from the defense department.

[journalist3072]

4. Exactly! Randi Rhodes mentioned that today as well! eom

[kenny blankenship]

3. Oh yeah, the Rooskies were 12 ft tall &GROWING, right up to the second they collapsed

and had to send their Red Army home because they hadn't been paid in months, and the spare parts were all out of stock, and there was no more gas for the tanks.

Watch out for this guy Gates. For sheer lie-power, Rummy had nothing on him.

[ReadTomPaine]

5. Gates has so many skeletons in his yard the feet stick out of the ground.

That shouldn't come as a surprise however - the very reason he's been named to the job is his familiarity with making large piles of corpses and finding places to hide them.