November 23, 2004, Rummy Denies Helping to Kill Bill Reducing Own Power
There are the known knowns, and the known untruths, such as SecDef Rumsfeld's statement that he supports the recently killed-by-Congress legislative overhaul of the nation's intelligence apparatus. One of the killed proviswions, the darling of the 9-11 Commission, would have consolidated many intelligence functions under a national intelligence coordinator (a job left vacant over the last four years while NSC Advisor "Dr." Condolleezza Rice took a paid leave of absence from her position that usually performs this function).
To be honest with you, I was never a big fan of the intelligence "reform". Having a national drug czar has done little if anything to advance the "War on Drugs TM". Of course, to be fair, that's because the War on Drugs TM is a stupid idea, that wastes billions of dollars and probably millions of lives in a futile effort to alter human nature, in a stupid, self-defeating puritan way that only Americans would even dream of doing. So, having an intelligence czar could marginalize critical intelligence. The fact is, it wasn't the lack of an intelligence coordinator that was the cause of failure prior to 9-11: it was a failure of existing government officials, most prominently the aforementioned "Dr." Rice, the President himself, and of course, SecDef Rumsfeld, former FBI Director and full-time Clinton hater Louis "World B." Freeh (Mueller stepped in just a few days before 9-11) and former CIA Director Tenet, among many others. Having an intelligence czar then would have involved the President installing yet another incompetent yes-man, who would have doubtless missed all the pre-9-11 signals.
The fact is, the institutions didn't fail. The President failed. And the American people have decided that, like the President himself, they're o.k. with failure. As long as he talks tough and allows us the fantasy of safety, well, we'll reward him and his (incompetent) people with a job extension.
So... I didn't see the failure of the intelligence bill/window dressing as all that big a deal. What's interesting, of course, is that both Rumsfeld and the White House were calling Congressmen left and right trying to kill this particular reform, which they publicly tell us they want, even though we all know that they do not (they LIKE the current arrangements, as an intelligence czar might potentially actually show some independence...) And yet, they insist (despite their hands in the cookie jar) on saying that "OH NO, OF COURSE WE SUPPORTED THE BILL... ITS THAT DAMNED CONGRESS."
A Congress that owes its job to Karl Rove and knows it. Sure: the mean old Congress took upon itself to balk at what the President wants. Right.
Get used to it: we'll be seeing this sort of song and dance a lot over the next four years.