Despite White House Intimidation Campaign, More Military and Intelligence Officials Condemn Bush's War Propaganda

Interview with David MacMichael, former CIA estimates officer, conducted by Scott Harris

As the Justice Department and FBI began their investigation into allegations that Bush administration officials leaked the identity of a covert CIA operative to a conservative columnist, questions about the integrity of the probe were coming from senior criminal prosecutors and high level FBI officials. Calls for Attorney General John Ashcroft to recuse himself from the case due to his close political relationship with potential targets of the investigation -- and appoint an independent prosecutor, have been ignored.

Valerie Plame, the CIA agent whose identity was revealed in the scandal, is the wife of former U.S. Ambassador Joseph Wilson, who had publicly refuted President Bush's claim that Iraq was seeking uranium in the African nation of Niger for a nuclear weapons program. The White House had sent Wilson to Africa in 2002 to investigate the matter but ignored his findings. President Bush repeated the false charge in his January State of the Union speech using it as a key justification for war. Wilson has accused the White House of exposing his wife in an effort to punish him and intimidate others who might come forward to criticize the President's misrepresentations about Iraq and the rationale for war.

Nonetheless, more military and intelligence officials have publicly challenged the White House on its Iraq war policy. Greg Thielmann a former State Department expert on Iraqi weapons systems and aid to Secretary of State Colin Powell now says that key evidence presented by Powell at the U.N. misrepresented the truth and deceived the public. Former retired Air Force Colonel Sam Gardiner, who taught at the National War College, has published a report that documents dozens of deliberate distortions made by U.S. officials to sell the war. Between The Lines' Scott Harris spoke with former CIA estimates officer David MacMichael, who takes a critical look at the Justice Department's investigation into White House leaks and the larger issue of war time propaganda.

During the U.S.-sponsored wars in Central America in the 1980s, former CIA estimates officer David MacMichael publicly challenged the Reagan and Bush administration's belligerent policies there.

Related links:



*"CIA and Pentagon Split Over Uranium Intrigue," by Julian Borger, The Guardian, Oct. 17, 2003

*"The Man Who Knew," CBS News, Oct. 15, 200

*"Wilson Adds Ammo to Hit War Credibility Gap," U.S.News & World Report, Oct. 20, 2003

*"Analyst: White House Lied on Iraq," by Donna Jackel, The Democrat and Chronicle, Oct. 20, 2003

*"Holding Leaders Accountable for Untruths About War," by Ray McGovern, Miami Herald, Oct. 20, 2003

*"Ray McGovern: Critics Question Credibility of FBI Investigation into White House Leak Exposing CIA Operative," interview by Scott Harris, Between The Lines, Week Ending Oct. 17, 2003

*"Ian Williams: Bush's Pre-Emptive War Doctrine Condemned as Related Scandals Erupt in White House," interview by Scott Harris, Between The Lines, Week Ending Oct. 10, 2003

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