By Larry Johnson
closeAuthor: Larry Johnson
Name: Larry Johnson
Email: larry_johnson@earthlink.net
Site: http://NoQuarterUSA.net
About: Larry C. Johnson is a former analyst at the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, who moved subsequently in 1989 to the U.S. Department of State, where he served four years as the deputy director for transportation security, antiterrorism assistance training, and special operations in the State Department's Office of Counterterrorism. He left government service in October 1993 and set up a consulting business. He currently is the co-owner and CEO of BERG Associates, LLC (Business Exposure Reduction Group) and is an expert in the fields of terrorism, aviation security, and crisis and risk management, and money laundering investigations. Johnson is the founder and main author of No Quarter, a weblog that addresses issues of terrorism and intelligence and politics. NoQuarterUSA was nominated as Best Political Blog of 2008.[1] He has worked as a private consultant on issues of international terrorism and security for the U.S. Government and private companies. Johnson has appeared as a consultant and commentator in many major newspapers and news programs.[2]
Contents [hide]
1 Background
2 Views
2.1 1996
2.2 1998
2.3 1999
2.4 2000
2.5 2001
2.6 2003
2.6.1 Plame affair
2.7 2008
3 Notes
4 References
5 External links
[edit]Background
Larry Johnson moved to Washington, D.C. in 1979 to begin work on a Ph.D. at the American University. Although he completed successfully all coursework and comprehensive exams, he did not write a dissertation. In 1978 and in 1983-85 he worked in Latin America on community development projects as a community organizer. Returning to the United States in 1985 he joined the Central Intelligence Agency, thanks in part to a letter of recommendation from Republican Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) that helped to "open doors" for him at the Agency.[3] Johnson entered on duty at the CIA in September 1985 and was a classmate of Valerie Plame. Every member of that class was undercover. After a year in the Career Trainee program, which included a stint with the Afghan Task Force, Johnson was assigned as an analyst in the Middle America Caribbean Division in the Latin American Affairs Office of the Directorate of Intelligence. He received two Exceptional Performance awards and was promoted ultimately to Senior Regional Analyst for Central America.
Johnson remained undercover in the CIA until October 1989, when he resigned from the CIA and started a new job in the Office of Counter Terrorism at the Department of State. Johnson played an instrumental role in launching the Terrorism Rewards program international advertising campaign (working with Diplomatic Security officers Brad Smith and Michael Parks). [4] Johnson also was involved in a variety of crisis management response operations, including the release of hostages from Lebanon and liaison with the Pan Am 103 families. He left government service in October 1993 and started his own business as a consultant.
After leaving government service, Johnson became a frequent guest on many major television news shows when a question of terrorism came up. He was first interviewed by CNN following the capture of Carlos the Jackal. Johnson subsequently appeared on CNN, ABC's Nightline, CBS, the BBC, MSNBC, the Jim Lehrer News Hour, NBC, and NPR. In December of 1999, for example, Johnson was hired by NBC to serve as its terrorist expert for the Y2000 and was in Time Square with Tom Brokaw and Katie Couric ("a lot of fun and the best way to see in the New Year"). Johnson also was hired in January 2002 as a Fox News Analyst and remained under contract until February 2003.
Since 1994 a significant focus of Johnson's consulting work has been with the U.S. military special operations forces in scripting and conducting military counter terrorism exercises. He traveled under orders from the U.S. military to Iraq in May 2006 to work on a short term project.
A registered Republican who supported President Bush in 2000, Johnson became a strong critic of the Bush administration in May 2003 for its conduct of the war in Iraq and, a few months later, for its role in the outing of CIA operative Valerie Plame.[5] He was also featured in the 2004 political documentary Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism. Since Robert Novak's controversial disclosure of Valerie Plame as a CIA operative in July 2003, Johnson has contributed to public discourse on intelligence matters, often sparking further controversy. He has been interviewed by both the mass media and the alternative media and published commentaries on a variety of issues, including the Plame affair, the controversy concerning Mary McCarthy, and the resignation of Porter Goss as Director of Central Intelligence.
[edit]Views
This article or section may contain an inappropriate mixture of prose and timeline.
Please help convert this timeline into prose or, if necessary, a list.
[edit]1996
In 1996, Johnson noted that terrorism worldwide was on the decline. "Terrorist incidents [both internationally and in the US] have fallen to levels not seen since the 1970s. Whether measured by the number of incidents, the number of fatalities, or the number of groups, raw statistics demonstrate that the level of terrorist violence has declined since the mid-1980s. In fact, the evidence suggests terrorism was more widespread and deadly 10 years ago."[6]
He also wrote an op-ed piece for the New York Times suggesting that the newer and more deadly terrorist threat to the U.S. was embodied by "networks of terrorists, mostly foreign, working within its borders." Exemplifying this threat was Ramzi Yousef, one of the masterminds behind the 1993 attack on the World Trade Center. In the article, Johnson suggests that enhanced cooperation between intelligence agencies, particularly the FBI and CIA, is mandatory to meet the growing threat of terror networks.[7]
[edit]1998
In 1998, Johnson argued that while overall terrorism was declining, the threat from bin Laden and al-Qaeda should be the focus of American counterterrorism policy:
The nature of the threat posed by Bin Ladin is highlighted by my final chart, number 7. Osama Bin Ladin and individuals associated with him have killed and wounded more Americans than any other group. This chart also illustrates that groups such as Hamas and the Tamil Tigers (LTTE) prior to 1998 have killed more foreigners in the anti-US terrorist attacks. If we take into account the bombings of the US Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, Osama's status as the most lethal terrorist is certain.[8]
In addition, he told USA Today that bin Laden had participated in "virtually every major attack of terrorism against the United States" in the 1990s. Johnson underlined the threat posed by bin Laden, saying that he was possessed by "hatred and craziness." If left unanswered, "he would continue to terrorize Americans around the world. He has no compunction about killing women and children. He's a complete egalitarian in his murderous attitude."[9]
[edit]1999
In an interview with PBS's Frontline for its 1999 program, Hunting bin Laden, Johnson discussed Osama bin Laden.[10] According to Johnson, Americans had "tended to make Osama bin Laden sort of a superman in Muslim garb." "Actually," he continues, "Osama bin Laden, in my view, represents more of a symptom of a problem, and the problem is this: the Saudi Arabian government, not just Osama bin Laden but many people in Saudi Arabia, have been sending money to radical Islamic groups for years." Johnson continued:
When you look at who's killed Americans in the last 10 years, the individuals he's supported and backed--I'm basing that upon the initial information that's been released in the indictments and conversations with others in the intelligence communities--Osama bin Laden has been the one killing Americans. No other terrorist group in the world has been out killing Americans except for Osama bin Laden.... Osama bin Laden remains out there as the one really targeting us. So, we recognize that he's the threat. He's serious about wanting to kill Americans, but as long as he's in Afghanistan, as long as he doesn't have access to a cell phone, as long as he can't just hop on a plane and travel wherever he wants without fear of being arrested, his ability to plan and conduct terrorist operations is extremely limited. We have to recognize [that] he would like to do a lot of damage. He would like to kill Americans, but wanting to is different from being able to, having the full capabilities in place.[11]
In the interview, Johnson doubted the ability of members of bin Laden's organization to plan and put their lives on the line:
There's not another Ali or Mustafa out there at this point and Osama bin Laden in my view has not been a very effective organizer or leader. He talks a great game and puts out terrific threats as far as stirring the passions in the United States and maybe firing up the imaginations of some young Muslims throughout the world. But when push comes to shove, can he get a group of people who are together who will say: we are going to plan an operation, we're going to put our lives on the line, we're going to go out and try and kill people and we don't care what the consequence is? It hasn't happened.[12]
Frontline asked:
[Is it] ... fair to say what you're saying is that the president of the United States, his national security advisor, his deputy national security advisor for counter-terrorism, are basically blowing smoke [about the danger posed by bin Laden] and his followers]?
Johnson responded:
They're grossly exaggerating the problem. They are hyping it. They shouldn't be talking about rising terrorism. Instead of saying "terrorism's rising," it's not. "Terrorism is spreading," it's not. "More people are dying from terrorism," not the case. But what they should be saying is, "There's one individual out there that really doesn't like us, and he's made it his mission in life to kill Americans, and we've gotta deal with him." But we need to have a voice of reason in that process instead of putting ourselves out crying wolf, because this is essentially what's taking place right now. They call it the administration that cries wolf.[12]
[edit]2000
Johnson co-authored an article in 2000 with Milt Bearden which focused on the threat posed by al-Qaeda specifically, rather than terrorism trends in general. Beardon and Johnson note that new information emerging about the bombings at Kenya and Tanzania in 1998 points to the threat posed by Imad Mugniyah and Osama Bin Laden will require "a coordinated policy that will employ a full range of covert, clandestine, diplomatic, and military operations," concluding:
The Clinton Administration has shot its bolt on the terrorist problem with small effect, and no last minute show of force will change the record. A new administration can start afresh with a more sharply defined set of terrorism goals – Mughniyeh and bin Laden and their protectors for starters – and bring the full, coordinated force of American diplomatic, military, and intelligence capabilities to bear on the problem.[13]
[edit]2001
After Johnson's testimony to the special forum at the U.S. Senate, Gary J. Schmitt, executive director and CEO of the Project for the New American Century, refers in the Daily Standard (blog) to an op-ed piece Johnson wrote two months prior to the 9/11 attacks, claiming that Johnson argued that the US had little to fear from terrorism.[14]
In an editorial entitled "The Declining Terrorist Threat," published in the New York Times on 10 July 2001, Johnson says:
Judging from news reports and the portrayal of villains in our popular entertainment, Americans are bedeviled by fantasies about terrorism. They seem to believe that terrorism is the greatest threat to the United States and that it is becoming more widespread and lethal. They are likely to think that the United States is the most popular target of terrorists. And they almost certainly have the impression that extremist Islamic groups cause most terrorism.... None of these beliefs are based in fact.... While terrorism is not vanquished, in a world where thousands of nuclear warheads are still aimed across the continents, terrorism is not the biggest security challenge confronting the United States, and it should not be portrayed that way.[15]
Ten days after the 9/11 attacks, after quoting the above passage, Timothy Noah concludes a post in his "Chatterbox" feature at Slate: "Johnson's analysis, we now see, was bold, persuasive, and 100 percent wrong."[16] Johnson defended himself against such attacks:
The rightwing is resurrecting an op-ed I wrote in July 2001. I stand by the full article. It is still relevant today. I am accused, incorrectly, of ignoring the threat of terrorism. In fact, I correctly noted that the real threat emanated from Bin Laden and Islamic extremism. President Bush, for his part, ignored the CIA warning in August 2001 that Al Qaeda was posed to strike inside the United States.[17]
After September 11, Johnson appeared several times on FOX News to address the question of military action against terrorism. On 14 November, he defended the FBI's proposal to interview 5,000 students in the U.S. suspected of having information relevant to the September 11 investigations:
I think they should talk to everyone that they feel they have a need to talk to. I mean, look, this is war. This is not a legal proceeding. This isn't the O.J. Simpson trial. The folks that attacked us -- they murdered Americans. And we've got to recognize that in wartime, we should do things differently.[18]
[edit]2003
In January 2003, Johnson wrote an analysis of the relationship between the upcoming U.S. invasion of Iraq and the threat of transnational terrorism. According to Johnson, Bremer's response was to tell him that "it didn't matter what Saddam did or didn't do, we were going to war."[19] The paper warned that an invasion would "do little to destroy the infrastructure of radical Islamic terrorism responsible for the 9-11 attacks." Noting that Saddam Hussein's regime has been a longtime supporter of regional terrorist organizations such as the PLO, Johnson examines contacts between Saddam Hussein and transnational terrorist organizations such as al-Qaeda:
There is no doubt that Iraq is a state sponsor of terrorism—i.e., a country that provides financial support, safe haven, training, or weapons and explosives to groups or individuals that carry out terrorist attacks. . . . According to Central Intelligence Agency data, there is no credible evidence implicating Iraq in any mass casualty terrorist attacks since 1991. . . .
Johnson notes that the period immediately leading up to 2003 saw a rise of activity surrounding terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, suggesting that "Iraq is willing to help a movement that it would otherwise oppose on ideological grounds. Nonetheless," Johnson concludes, "it is important to understand that Iraqi entreaties to Al Qaeda, are most likely intended as a tactic to bolster Iraq’s ability to fight off a U.S. invasion rather than a deep-seated theological and ideological commitment to the terrorist agenda of Bin Laden.[20]
In that analysis Johnson also warns that the U.S.-led invasion was likely to backfire:
In fact there is a serious risk that a U.S. led war against Iraq may crystallize the diffused anger in the Arab and Muslim world — a heretofore unattained goal of bin Laden and his followers — and persuade more Muslim youths to take up the terrorist banner against America and her citizens.... If we decide to invade Iraq we must be prepared for the contingency that our attack will inspire young Muslims to pursue jihad against the West in general and the United States in particular. Just as the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan rallied many Muslims, especially young adults to the cause of jihad, a U.S. attack may enable Islamic extremists to attract new followers.[20]
Johnson also gave interviews on the topic of what to do with captured al-Qaeda leaders; while he did not condone torture, he suggested that a "sleep deprivation and reward system" might be useful for getting information from Khalid Sheikh Mohammed:
I don't see a constitutional right to have eight hours of sleep. You shouldn't subject someone to freezing but they don't get to wear mink coats, either.[21]
In May 2003, Johnson joined members of Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity (VIPS) in condemning the manipulation of intelligence for political purposes:
It is a misuse and abuse of intelligence. The president was being misled. He was ill served by the folks who are supposed to protect him on this. Whether this was witting or unwitting, I don't know, but I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.[22]
[edit]Plame affair
After Robert Novak wrote a column identifying the wife of former ambassador Joseph C. Wilson as a CIA officer, the media invited Johnson to comment on the ensuing scandal because he had been a member of the same Career Trainee class with Valerie Plame Wilson. For example, in October 2003, he appeared on Democracy Now to discuss the Plame affair. He told interviewer Amy Goodman that Valerie Wilson's cover should have been respected whether she was an "analyst" or a "cleaning lady": "if she's undercover she's undercover, period. If the media allows themselves to get distracted with those kinds of curve balls, they ignore the issue."[23]
He told a Senate Democratic Policy Committee in October 2003, "My classmates and I have been betrayed. Together, we have kept the secrets of each other's identities a secret for 18 years. Each and every one of us have kept that secret, whether we were in the CIA, in other government service or in the private sector. But this issue is not just about a blown cover. It is about the destruction of the very essence, the core of human intelligence collection activities: plausible deniability, apparently, for partisan domestic political reasons."[24]
Johnson testified at a special joint hearing of Congressional and Senate Democrats on 22 July 2005 about the consequences arising from the Plame affair.[25]
[edit]2008
In 2008, Johnson emerged as a staunch supporter of Hillary Clinton and a strong critic of Barack Obama. Larry Johnson's blog, NoQuarterUSA, became a rally point for Clinton supporters wary of Barack Obama's qualifications to be president. Supporters of Barack Obama insist that a story that first appeared on Johnson's blog--a report that Republican operatives have a tape of Michelle Obama making racially insenstive comments about caucasians--has been "refuted" Barack Obama's Fight the Smears website.[26]. However, Johnson never claimed to have the tape and reported that the Republican operatives controlling it intended to release the tape sometime after the Democratic Convention in August 2008. On October 21, however, he asserted that the operative in possession of the tape had been instructed by the McCain campaign not to release it.[27]
[edit]Notes
^ http://2008.weblogawards.org/polls/best-political-coverage/
^ Larry C. Johnson, "About Me," No Quarter (personal blog).
^ "Former CIA Official Larry Johnson Delivers Democratic Radio Address," transcript posted on official Democratic National Committee's website for The Democratic Party, July 23, 2005], accessed November 21, 2006.
^ Interview with Larry Johnson, confirmed by his supervisor
^ "Ex-CIA official Blasts Bush on Leak of Operative's Name: Democrats' Radio Address Focuses on White House Aides' Role," CNN July 23, 2005, accessed November 21, 2006.
^ Gail Russell Chaddock, "Why Terrorists Pick On the French," Christian Science Monitor (5 December 1996) p. 1.
^ Larry Johnson, "Terrorists Among Us," New York Times (20 August 1996) p. A19.
^ Terrorism Today
^ Lee Michael Katz, "The Hunt for Bin Laden," USA Today (21 August 1998) p. 1A.
^ See Transcript of original interview with Larry C. Johnson, as broadcast on Frontline in 1999. Cf. "Interview: Larry C. Johnson," for Hunting bin Laden, transcript of interview broadcast on Frontline subsequently on 13 April 2001. See also dedicated PBS webpages for media links: Iraq and the War on Terror, Frontline PBS, online featured programs, accessed 19 November 2006.
^ frontline: hunting bin laden: interviews: larry c. johnson | PBS
^ a b [1].
^ As posted in [2].
^ Gary Schmitt, [ 07/25/2005 "Meet Larry Johnson: The CIA official Turned Democratic Spokesman Has a Pre-9/11 Mindset," Daily Standard (blog), July 25, 2005, accessed November 20, 2006.
^ *Larry C. Johnson, "The Declining Terrorist Threat," The New York Times 10 July 2001: A19.
^ Timothy Noah, "(Not Exactly a) Whopper of the Week: Larry C. Johnson," Chatterbox: Gossip, speculation, and scuttlebutt about politics (blog), hosted by Slate September 21, 2001, accessed November 20, 2006. Note the full context of this quotation:
It is, to be sure, a little bit cheap (and slightly at odds with the usual parameters of this feature) to criticize someone for making an erroneous prediction, particularly after a tragedy. Chatterbox is especially reluctant to tag Johnson because Johnson's op-ed was argued forcefully, backed up meticulously with factual data, and bravely at odds with conventional wisdom at the time of its publication. Add in that Johnson now makes his living as a consultant to corporations about terrorism, and therefore had everything to gain by exaggerating the dangers terrorism poses, and the guy practically looks like a hero. Chatterbox, who two decades ago was an editor for the New York Times op-ed page, would have published Johnson's piece had he still been an editor there this past July. In his capacity at Slate, Chatterbox might well have written up Johnson's prediction, and perhaps even endorsed it.
But boy, is he glad he didn't! Johnson's analysis, we now see, was bold, persuasive, and 100 percent wrong. Sadly, a mistake this embarrassing cannot be ignored. As a fellow skeptic, Chatterbox in all sincerity wishes Johnson better luck next time.
^ Larry C. Johnson, "Johnson vs. President Bush," re-posted and updated by SusanHu at DailyKos (blog) July 25, 2005.
^ FOX News Interview with John Garrett (14 November 2001) Transcript #111405cb.260.
^ [3].
^ a b Larry C. Johnson, "Setting the Record Straight on Iraqi Terrorism," posted in Booman Tribune: A Progressive Community (personal blog) 27 January 2003. accessed 19 November 2006.
^ Qtd. in Toby Harnden, "CIA 'pressure' on al-Qa'eda chief," The London Telegraph 5 March 2003: 16.
^ Qtd. in Nicolas D. Kristof, "Save Our Spooks," The New York Times 30 May 2003:A6.
^ Democracy Now (3 October 2003)[4]
^ U.S. Senate, Democratic Policy Committee Meeting on the CIA Operative Leak, (24 October 2003).
^ Letter to the Senate.[Needs full source citation; see "References" section.]
^ Tumulty, Karen (2008-06-12). "Will Obama's Anti-Rumor Plan Work?", Time Magazine. Retrieved on 20 June 2008.:"a story that apparently first made a big splash on the Internet in late May in a post by pro-Hillary Clinton blogger Larry Johnson"
^ Whitey Tape, API, Phil Berg, and Andy MartinSee Authors Posts (1090) on January 13, 2009 at 10:17 PM in Current Affairs
Vanity Fair is setting off a bomb this week that rivals metaphorically Israel’s attack on Gaza. The Gaza Bombshell, written by David Rose, tells the story of a secret U.S. program that is at the root of the fighting now underway:
After failing to anticipate Hamas’s victory over Fatah in the 2006 Palestinian election, the White House cooked up yet another scandalously covert and self-defeating Middle East debacle: part Iran-contra, part Bay of Pigs. With confidential documents, corroborated by outraged former and current U.S. officials, the author reveals how President Bush, Condoleezza Rice, and Deputy National-Security Adviser Elliott Abrams backed an armed force under Fatah strongman Muhammad Dahlan, touching off a bloody civil war in Gaza and leaving Hamas stronger than ever.
It is no mere coincidence that when it comes to running a secret weapons program that Elliott Abrams is in the middle of the activity. How so? Rose explains:
The administration went back to Congress, and a reduced, $59 million package for nonlethal aid was approved in April 2007. But as Dahlan knew, the Bush team had already spent the past months exploring alternative, covert means of getting him the funds and weapons he wanted. The reluctance of Congress meant that “you had to look for different pots, different sources of money,” says a Pentagon official.
A State Department official adds, “Those in charge of implementing the policy were saying, ‘Do whatever it takes. We have to be in a position for Fatah to defeat Hamas militarily, and only Muhammad Dahlan has the guile and the muscle to do this.’ The expectation was that this was where it would end up—with a military showdown.” There were, this official says, two “parallel programs”—the overt one, which the administration took to Congress, “and a covert one, not only to buy arms but to pay the salaries of security personnel.”
In essence, the program was simple. According to State Department officials, beginning in the latter part of 2006, Rice initiated several rounds of phone calls and personal meetings with leaders of four Arab nations—Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. She asked them to bolster Fatah by providing military training and by pledging funds to buy its forces lethal weapons. The money was to be paid directly into accounts controlled by President Abbas.
The scheme bore some resemblance to the Iran-contra scandal, in which members of Ronald Reagan’s administration sold arms to Iran, an enemy of the U.S. The money was used to fund the contra rebels in Nicaragua, in violation of a congressional ban. Some of the money for the contras, like that for Fatah, was furnished by Arab allies as a result of U.S. lobbying.
But there are also important differences—starting with the fact that Congress never passed a measure expressly prohibiting the supply of aid to Fatah and Dahlan. “It was close to the margins,” says a former intelligence official with experience in covert programs. “But it probably wasn’t illegal.”
Legal or not, arms shipments soon began to take place. In late December 2006, four Egyptian trucks passed through an Israeli-controlled crossing into Gaza, where their contents were handed over to Fatah. These included 2,000 Egyptian-made automatic rifles, 20,000 ammunition clips, and two million bullets. News of the shipment leaked, and Benjamin Ben-Eliezer, an Israeli Cabinet member, said on Israeli radio that the guns and ammunition would give Abbas “the ability to cope with those organizations which are trying to ruin everything”—namely, Hamas.
No wonder no one in the Middle East takes us seriously. We engage in amateur hour shenanigans and then lie to the American people. There is a bright side to this for those of you who love Obama–George Bush and company have set the bar so low that Barack Obama need only walk from the White House and board the helicopter without banging his head and he will immediately be more competent than W. We only are saddled with the bozo from Texas for six more days. Unfortunately, he has set in motion wars in the Middle East that will haunt us for years to come.
(small, medium and large sizes; for both dogs and cats)
+ 
Another Interesting Article Larry..
Sometimes when I think of BUSHCO Policy…along With the mysterious Condi the Condor..I think To Heo Cons set out to Do as much damage as they could on Purpose…
Or bush was so stupid he did what ever Dick, Condi, or that Rummy Guy and other Clowns around suggested Bush ought to do…
One thing is obvious about his Mind set…NO REGRETS..especially over IRAQ..Yes Sir Got ER Done..
Yep yep..teheehee..
WELL…Old Bush was a Good Skull and BONER GUY…Ya know…”I Swear f I get the Opporunity to Start a War and create another “Democracy” somewere in the World I Will..”
Well Let me count my Lucky Texas Star Dudes…Oh Bin Laughin gave me the Opportunity..Yep..and uncle Dicky and Donny The Rummy told me to go get him…
Yep and I did ever thing His DICK told him to Do..No Morning after regrets..
SLAM….BAM..THANK YOU..
Yep..I also arranged to get 30 000 poeple off Roofs After Ktrina…and I Uh..Uh..I I..
Made Sure SADDAM got Hung..Like a Texas Outlaw..and and..
Well..You get the Drift..
Condi..?? I still wonder whose side she was on…with All the damage she did..
Oh..and those Skull and Boners Guys..
I been thnking.Only Priates.. (Robbers and Thiefs)
and the NAZI SS Featured the Skull and Bones..as a Symbol of Mind Set..
SO..?? Whats with that George..??
Anyhow..Old George, Barney..and all the rest of the Dogs of War have Insured that they did thier Part to Keep the Cold War Alive and well…Everyone around the World Pissed off and Disliking the United States..and opened New Fronts everywhere..
Can’t wait to sit which board GEORGEwill be sitting
sitting on Next..and No..I didnt say whiuch Board he will Be Shitting Through..
He should be just about out of that by Now..
I shudder to think what he might do in the next six days, or what he might have done since the election, which we are not yet aware. I’m frightened. The Bush years are a desperate, bloody nightmare, perdition a la W…
Thanks for bringing this article to our attention. Hmm, precise analogy of the instant competence bestowed on Obama, as long as he doesn’t stumble and hit his head. How pathetic is that?
The sad thing is that Israel armed Hamas before that. Then the US goes and tries the exact same thing with Fatah.
Think OIL–and all will become infinitely more clear. Now plug in Iran, a formidable and intransigent block to OIL delivery.
Arab fury=chaos=escalating unrest in Middle East=
strike on Iran. And Israel, as usual, will be the villian in this sorry, engineered scenario if that comes to pass. Keep your fingers crossed. But don’t expect Obama to bring a new direction. His handlers have their own agenda.
Like Iran/Contra we were giving arms to Iran - while they were fighting a war with Iraq - and we were also helping Saddam.
Go figure.
Not to mention that those arms we gave to Iran, were shipped to them through ISRAEL.
And we are now told that the US keeps “weapons stockpiles” in Israel, too.
Well, well, well.
Obama need only walk from the White House and board the helicopter without banging his head and he will immediately be more competent than W.
ROFL … Larry you kill me.
Is David Rose updating this article “The Gaza Bombshell?”
Vanity Fair couldn’t write an article about the outgoing President’s manipulations of Middle East relations in their NEXT issue? With 6 days to go, what about exposing the illegal takeover of OUR country by BO in concert with the DNC, now?
Perhaps they prefer factual content.
This, from the article Larry quoted, by David Rose.
If covert ops are really this far out of control, this ineffective, in fact HARMING American interests (a long way from Afgahnistan, v the USSR) shouldn’t we take a closer look at why these disparate groups are allowed to function with no oversight, whatsoever?
The whole thing just seems to be run by a bunch of clueless American amateurs — no abilty whatsoever to understand the greater plan and no abilty to really RUN a war, and win.
Fight terrorism with terrorism: seems kind of stupid, and it shows.
They wanted to start a civil war. Israel would arm Hamas and the US would arm Fatah. Things didn’t go as planned when Hamas rounded up over 100 Israeli informers and had them shot. This is when Hamas was seen as a terrorist organization. But the US kept arming Fatah in the hopes that civil war would ensue anyhow, and also to make sure that Hamas did not win the election. But even if Hamas did win, Israel would now have the perfect excuse for not accepting peace in that Hamas has been declared a terrorist organization and that they want the destruction of Israel in their charter.
Well said, Mr. X.
They played one side against the other. Divide and conquer, just like the Nazis did.
Except that Americans weren’t ever supposed to know.
OOPS.
This is not the half of it, I fear.
Incoming======================!
Wonder what Sir Scud would say?
You Rock Teak…!!
The amazing thing about this story is how easily they went from one blunder to another. Is it the idelogy which brings on the blindness or ego? They had no idea Fatah could lose the election?
They said, if we do this, that is going to be the outcome. When that is not the outcome, instead of learning they can’t control the situation, they go to Plan B which is, if we do this. they will do that. If you don’t understand the culture or history, have tunnel vision and make invalid assumptions, the result is unpredictable.
This has happened with so many covert activities, one would think when they are in the planning stage as many outcomes as possible would be considered.
Thank you for this information and for your previous post, “Is the US Exacerbating Palestinian Suffering?” Knowledge is power and it’s past time for objective reporting.
“After failing to anticipate Hamas’s victory over Fatah in the 2006 Palestinian election, the White House”
This was a little hard to believe when first read, because, after all, aren’t all possible scenarios worked out…then I thought of the first three years of Iraq and realized it must have been a pattern with the Bush team. A colossal failure to anticipate, again and again.
Well..
Wasn’t that Condi the Condors Favorite Line..??
“WHO COULD HAVE ANTICIPATED”…??
Well Condi…You Unqualified Amateur…
LARRY JOHNSON and Several of His Friends and Associates Like Colonial LANG Anticipated…Ahead of every Move You and Your “TEAM” Made…
But Then Condi Dear..You Got away with It..because You were a MEDIA STAR…and besides a WAR would make good news…
And Larry and his friends..Just The PROFESSIONALS who Knew BETTER..
President elect Obama would do well to have all of Larrys Team in some Support Role..
Things are past the point of Sticking a Plunger in the Toilet for all this SHIT..
Does anyone here imagine that Iran might be involved anywhere in all this–or are the only bad guys the U.S. and Israel? Are there no larger geo-political and -strategic issues than bad U.S. and Israel?
One reason the U. S. is in the shape it’s in is because so many Americans simply can’t stand any critical analysis of our country. It’s just like the maturation process for humans, if you can’t look at yourself at critical times in your life and say, I was probably wrong to do that, or I was wrong to think that, then you never change and grow. That’s pretty much what’s happened to our country. I don’t think people should be constantly dissing the country, but if you can’t look at the warts, you’ll never fix the problems.
The U. S. has stagnated over the last 150 years because people like George W. Bush and his supporters just want to cover up all the wrong things the U. S. has done–and we have done wrong-headed things. In Europe, they’ve managed to come to terms with the wrongness of imperialism and colonialism, etc. but in the U. S., the Powers That Be are still trying to figure out how they can carry on like their Robber Baron forebears. So we just keep making the same mistakes. We’ll stand by Israel if they bomb the whole world because a lot of Israelis are now the U. S. Powers That Be (Rahm Emanuel comes to mind–wealthy Israeli banking family).
Larry, didn’t some analyst predict a couple of months ago that this was going to happen? That Israel was going to start a war before Bush’s term ended?
Yes.
It is public knowledge now, that Israel wanted to bomb/raid Iran a year ago, asking US permission to use Iraqi airspace to do so.
If it hadn’t been for Gates and Joint Chiefs of Staff refusing approval of that request—because our troops in Iraq could have suffered reprisals—–lil ole Georgie would have said yes, cowboy that he is.
And it is also public knowledge in Jerusalem papers that this Gaza invasion/slaughter was planned a year ago, meaning that the few Hamas rockets fired after Israel killed 6 Palestinians in November, was the EXCUSE they used to implement the plan they already had.
So there you are: Israel, before Bush was gone, wanted to bomb Iran, and invade Gaza.
Bush denied the right to bomb Iran, but he reassured Israel that he had approved COVERT operations inside Iran to achieve the same end.
Any guesses what our own covert operations have done inside Iran?
I’m guessing the former FBI guy that has been missing for over 2 years in Iran may know a little.
One Other thing that Sticks in My CRAW (FORD)..
George..I just gotta tell You ..You may be a New England Transplant to texas..But I dont care how much poop you get on your Cowboy Boots…You are still a world Class Bull Shitter..and that Texas ranger deal that Made you your first Fifty Million Dollars…still Stins to me..
I resent the fact that You and your PR Team..
(Perverted Reality) keep telling the American People that You Kept America safe from another Terrorist Attack after 9/11…
One was enough george..Got you and your NEO~CON
Friends what you wanted didn’t it…Life would have been so Boring for all you High Energy ambitious Guys with that..wouldn’t it..??
“igh Energy”..Must have been a Freudian Slip..
Wow…! Did YOU Really Do that George..all by yurself..??
Well…The way I read the PDB’s and the NEWS…9/11 happened on Your Watch because YOUR TEAM..(Thanks Condi) and the Guys in the basement..ingnored the Intel and You failed to put in Place the Policys and Directives (Hello…George Tenant) Goodby Mr.Clark..Can anyone tell me whats going on over at the Bureau..Oh..Just some Terrorists taking Flying lessons..stuff like that GEORGE…
God…what a Great eight years ..George..What a legacy..No matter how you spin it..YOU make Dick Nixon look Good..and Rnald Regan look like a Democrat..
Wow..and Thanks to your economic team and Scretary of the Treasury…Ha..(Thats an OxyMoron..) Kind of like you George..for finishing up Yur Eight year Gig by Ruining Our economy..Failure of Oversight on Wall Street..Creating Trillions of Dollars (non existant ) of Debt and burden on the American people…now about $28,000 for every man ..woman and child..
Oh Well…Must be a buying opportuinity in there somewhere. huh..
Thanks George for all those Lies and Alibis huh..
Maybe you could show a token of Bi partisanship and leave barney for the Obamas.
Thanks to you..Barack… has lots more to deal with than Finding a dog…Like Cleaning up all Your Dog Shit..off the White House Lawn and Airing out the White house…
Be sure to remind Obama to Pay attention to his PDB’s too…
Yep…
Is there anyone besides me that Wonders of 9/11 was not just another “Intelligence Failure..” (well…I guess thats true cause look who was in the White house)
But also another COVERT Operation that went Bad..??
Or people who were stupid enough to be thinking..” hey I got a great Great Idea..(Brain fart)..lets let the terrorist go ahead and hijack and see what happens…
The Bureaucrats are just Humans you know..
God, what Interesting material for a Spy Novel..Sadly…
.
Right? You just can’t make this stuff up.
Dossier that is titled “osama wants to stike inside the US” and BushCo thiks nothing of it.
Our allies telling us they got intel about it….and BushCo thinks nothing of it.
We give millions of dollars to Afghanistan a month before. Powell says we’re not giving it to the taliban, just the people who were in charge, and stopped the poppy growing. Taliban was in power back in May when they blew up those statues, and they are the ones who curtailed the poppy growing. How could they have put a ban on growing if they weren’t in power?
I think the people we had in power then were just reckless and greedy.
Yep..
But..Thanks to george Bush and the Border in His Great State of Texas..The people of the united States are allot more SECURE and SAFE now…
Heck of a Job George..You make Govenors and Presidents Proud every where…and to think there are actually people that think you and that Nice govenor blogovich (sp0belong in Jail..when all you did was your typical DUTY..
To the best of your typical Ability and desire to serve..
Shameful..Downright shameful…
Oh…and George..(no relation to washington
I assume..??)
On the great List of Items on your “MISSION ACCOMPLISHED LIST”…Why don’t you and your Friend in congres Brag about hoe You have made merica safeer from Drug gangs and drug cartels..and JUNK JOCKEYS..??
You are so Modest..
Well…Anybody…Larry..Olson Brothers..??
Was it another Covert operation gone bad..??Or did we waste all thse tax Dollars on Intelligence just to give it to STUPID Guys..??
Ones who can’t recognize CAT 5 Hurricaines..or Dump Trucks from missle launchers..or Terrorists from a bunch of Saudis playing with 747’s..on a rich uncles Dime..??