Month: October 2005

Remember this Washington Post article from September 28, 2003?

Who the hell was the ‘senior official’ that was the source for that article?

And then there is this, from last night’s Hardball with Chris Matthews:

Howard Fineman also said:

Can rumor and innuendo get more compelling that that?

Imagine! People within the White House are telling Howard Fineman that they are out to get Karl Rove. Unless Rove is already as good as in jail it is almost impossible to imagine anyone openly defying him. Even to bad-mouth Rove off the record would ordinarily be too risky for members of the administration.

And I go back to that senior official from 2003 that jumped at the opportunity to slam Rove and Libby. How long have they been gunning for them. To me, that person may be as significant as Deep Throat, maybe more so, when all is said and done.

by Patrick Lang (Bio)

Ghazi Kanaan [PHOTO left] killed himself in his Damascus office today.

He was Minister of the Interior in Bashar Assad’s government there. In Syria, as in most countries, the Minister of the Interior is the Police Minister. He is not concerned with national parks.

This man was Syrian proconsul in Lebanon for a decade. He was effectively “governor” of an occupied and co-opted Lebanon which he ran through a combination of intimidation and “pay-offs.”

Col. Patrick W. Lang (Ret.), a highly decorated retired senior officer of U.S. Military Intelligence and U.S. Army Special Forces, served as “Defense Intelligence Officer for the Middle East, South Asia and Terrorism” for the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) and was later the first Director of the Defense Humint Service. Col. Lang was the first Professor of the Arabic Language at the United States Military Academy at West Point. For his service in the DIA, he was awarded the “Presidential Rank of Distinguished Executive.” He is a frequent commentator on television and radio, including PBS’s Newshour, and most recently on MSNBC’s Hardball and NPR’s “All Things Considered.”

His CV and blog are linked below the fold.

He was the ultimate authority there until he was “promoted” to the Interior Ministry in Damascus. When he was promoted in the Syrian police to “liwa'” (Major General) a few years ago the Lebanese nomenklatura (Muslim and Christian alike) lined up in their hundreds outside his office door to kow-tow and “gift” him with the odd Mercedes, jewelry, etc.

His power was manifest throughout the land. On various occasions he would simply inform the Lebanese parliament of desired legislation, and they would pass it. Street demonstrations in Beirut were child’s play for him. He could arrange them for the next day in however many thousands were desired (complete with photograph laden placards).

Now he is gone and little lamented. Why is he gone? Smart money has always been wagered that Rafik Hariri’s assassination was the result of a cabal among Lebanese and Syrian security officials who feared Hariri’s return to power by election, this time as a “reform” candidate with the full backing of the Bush Administration and, of course, of Chirac’s France. In previous iterations of Hariri as PM, Rafik was not a “reform” figure. The circumstances in which downtown Beirut was re-built under Hariri’s supervision by the company “Solidere” would not bear close inspection. A lot of money was made by Rafik and his associates in this and other business enterprises.

Kanaan made a “farewell” call to a Lebanese Radio station before he died today. In that interview he said that it was true that Rafik Hariri had been paying him off when both had ruled in Lebanon, but at the same time he said that he, Kanaan, had not been “responsible” for the bad things that had happened in Beirut over the years. I suppose that was a reference to the ultimate culpability of the late Hafez al-Assad.

Was Kanaan’s death a case of “assisted suicide?” … Continued BELOW:

I ran across several interesting items in the news today, each of which might not merit a diary in itself, but which together seemed to have a common theme that put me in a good mood for the day – so I thought I’d share them with you.

The common theme linking these stories that jumped out at me was the old line from the Watergate movie “All the President’s Men” – “Follow the Money.”  If you want to really get your finger on the ebb and flow of power in America, you have to follow the money; it’s just the way our country is set up.  And some of the ways the money is flowing look pretty good.  Here are a few examples after the fold:

People love to speculate. When the subject of the speculation relates to Dear Leader’s trials and tribulations, well, I’m hooked. The following stories come with a warning label: “For Amusement Only”. Our first story is perhaps the only one that is not gossip, but made me smile anyway.

* Polls says that majority of Americans want Bush impeached. Discontent in America is underreported, downplayed and covered up. People who identify themselves as Republicans are a minority in this country. Yet they are in charge and ruling with an iron fist. Something’s gotta give. full story here

The real dirt follows.
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