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Go Home Martyr Complex

THE SPINE SEPTEMBER 13, 2006

Martyr Complex

BY TNR STAFF

Apropos my second posting on The Spine ("Patriot Games," September 11), Robert Novak has written a column, "Real Story Behind Armitage Story," published in this morning's Chicago Sun-Times, that expands in intricate and fascinating detail the circumstances of Colin Powell's now-former-deputy secretary of state, Richard Armitage, becoming a sieve for classified information.

It wasn't actually a big thing, this leaking that Valerie Plame was a (sort of) closeted CIA intelligence official. But her husband and the war critics, abetted by the self-inflamed anti-Bush press, made of her some kind of Joan of Arc. But she was not burned at the stake, although it is likely that she did have visions. When she and hubby Joe drove around Washington in their slick, open sports car, they seemed destined for stardom ... and, at least in some quarters, for sainthood. But this depended on those who outed her being someone like Scooter Libby. Alas, for the couple, no can any longer pretend it was Libby or, for that matter, anyone else in Richard Cheney's tent who committed the crime, such as it was.

Armitage has now chosen contrition. But Novak's article shows that Armitage is still--how shall I put this gingerly?--shading the truth. What no one has yet explained, however, is why Armitage and, through him, Powell, would make trouble for someone more or less on their side of the war debate. If Armitage is truly looking for forgiveness of sin, he should go the special prosecutor and insist that he has picked on the wrong man ... or he should go public and demand that Patrick Fitzgerald withdraw the preposterous charges against Libby. That would be some measure of justice. As for Plame and Wilson, maybe they can go into the lobbying business ... although it is hard to imagine that they'd have clients, even in the event that Democrats take power in Congress and beyond.

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8 comments

> Fitzgerald withdraw the preposterous charges against Libby. What's the difference between charges against Libby and charges against Martha Steward ?

- jacobt1

September 13, 2006 at 6:30pm

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Marty -- can you please get someone at the magazine to cover with some depth the staging and falsification of photos for anti-Israel purposes that is now rampant in Europe and the Middle East? Even now, there is a trial over the al-Durah footage in France beginning tomorrow, with no coverage at all; the Reuters scandal was barely looked into and Reuters emerged unscathed; Qana may very well have been staged and no one is running the story to ground. I am waiting n vain for a legitimate news source to investigate these things. How extensive is "Pallywood" and the network producing its material?

- jhschwartz

September 13, 2006 at 6:36pm

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Do you even know anything about the charges against Libby? One would hope so, given that you're financially aiding his legal defense! Libby isn't charged with some perfidious role in leaking Valerie Plame's identity or in violating the Covert Identies Protection Act. He's charged with lying to investigators and on the stand. If you'd read any of the materials on Armitage's "outing" as the source, you'd know that as soon as the brouhaha erupted after Novak described his source and the probe was launched, he approached Colin Powell and State Department counsel about being the leak and they contacted the Justice Department immediately, informing them that they had information material to the investigation. Not only /did/ he come forward, but he did so as soon as he realized he was the source! Can I have lots of money so I can inflict my horrid writing and ill-informed opinions on a good magazine by purchasing it, too? -James F. Elliott

- jfelliott

September 13, 2006 at 6:58pm

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Please, Mr. Peretz, regale us with tales of the courage and honor of the great Scooter, slayer of evil, defender of the realm and towel boy for Darth Cheney

- miceelf

September 13, 2006 at 8:05pm

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How do you know the charges against Libby are "preposterous"? They may turn out to be wrong, or not provable beyond a reasonable doubt, but how can you be so sure of your claim?

- sgerber

September 14, 2006 at 10:24am

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Free Lee Siegel!

- jgb1soc

September 14, 2006 at 11:02am

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..."the self-inflamed anti-Bush press". Can you imagine the level of delusion of a man who could possibly write the above phrase in the year 2006?

- ibcoleman

September 14, 2006 at 1:42pm

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Again, not a single cookie post. The posters thread didn't move me here either...

- MrCookie1

September 16, 2006 at 4:55pm

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