Did Scooter Libby write a letter to New York Times reporter Judith Miller in prison containing a coded hint that she should back up his story in court? So asks New York Times reporter Neil Lewis, referring to a curious passage in a missive Libby mailed to Miller in September 2005, ostensibly releasing her from her pledge not to reveal him as her source for the identity of CIA operative Valery Plame Wilson, but possibly suggesting something else entirely. “Out West, where you vacation, the aspens will already be turning. They turn in clusters because their roots connect them,” Libby wrote.
Asks Lewis: “Was that phrase a simple attempt at a literary turn? Or was it a veiled plea for Ms. Miller to ‘turn’ with him and back up Mr. Libby’s account that he had not disclosed Ms. Wilson’s identity to her?”
The trial of Scooter Libby on perjury and obstruction-of-justice charges, now entering its second week, may not clear up the mystery of the clustered Aspens, if it is a mystery at all. And it may not clear up the new mystery, raised yesterday by Libby’s crack defense team, of whether their client was being sacrificed by White House operatives to protect Karl Rove. But the investigation of Libby and the Plame leak has gone a considerable distance toward resolving another conundrum that has bedeviled our legal system for decades: namely, whether newsmen are above the law. When the Supreme Court refused to hear Judith Miller’s appeal of her imprisonment on contempt charges, it stood by its own precedent set in 1972 in Branzburg v. Hayes that journalists, like all other citizens, are obliged to testify before grand juries regarding potentially criminal activities, including the criminal activities of their confidential sources. The “public . . . has a right to every man’s evidence,” ruled the Court.
A coalition of First Amendment activists and journalism associations is now lobbying Congress to overturn the Supreme Court’s decision by passing legislation that would create a “reporter’s privilege.” With the Democrats in power in Congress, the prospects for success are now better than they have been for a generation. But at a moment when the country is facing mortal threats from Islamic fanatics and the press has been publishing counterterrorism secrets with reckless abandon, we need a reporter’s privilege as badly as the New York Times needs another Jayson Blair. As I argue in the February issue of COMMENTARY, such a law would manage to damage our national security and do violence to the First Amendment in a single swoop.
To help defray the considerable costs of defending Scooter Libby, send a check payable to:
Libby Legal Defense Trust
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Good analysis. As tempting as a total rout would be to pursue, Israel needs to fight on terms that favor it: quick and clean, with little time for the “international community” to mobilize against it. That way, it keeps its powder dry for another day–a day which will surely come–while incrementally improving its situation. It just can’t change the entire situation with one little war. If there was a practical way to achieve a total rout, I would be all in favor, but I just don’t see how at this stage. Thus, your advice is the best under the very difficult circumstances.
Quick victory?
1. The rockets fired into Israel by Hamas cannot be stopped unless a) Israel decides to bomb the multitude of civilian enclaves from which those missiles are being fired (with the concommitant massive civilian deaths) or b) Israel decides to get bogged down in a ground invasion (meaning more civilian deaths); or both.
Note: Civilian deaths (Israeli, but especially Palestinian) is what Hamas desires.
Note: Hamas desires a long, drawn-out, violent, quagmire-like Israeli campaign, and it started this round of hostilities because Iran believes that the noose carefully placed around Israel is in place (so much for those asking why Hamas started this “unnecessary,” “inexplicable” campaign, why Hamas “inexplicably” declared the hudna finished—what, after all, is a hudna?)
2. With the rise of Palestinian deaths and/or the increased involvement of Israel ground troops in Gaza (quagmire?), Hezbullah may well decide, if it believes that Israel is sufficiently enmired and weakened, to unleash her rockets and missiles from Lebanon. Or it will at the very least threaten to do so. It already has.
Note: Keeping in mind that Hamas rockets will continue to rain down on Israeli civilians until they are unable to continue firing them.
3. If Israel, fighting a two-front war, is viewed as sufficiently weakened, Syria and/or Iran will join in to try to finish Israel off.
4. The emboldened and enraged Arab street, sensing that the long-sought-for wish of Israel’s obliteration is about to occur, thanks to Hezbullah, Hamas, Syria and Iran, will erupt, endangering the regimes of Egypt and Jordan (and who knows which others) and causing those regimes to fight for their lives.
Quick victory?
The endgame may well have begun.
Better Hamas keeps Gaza than Fatah gets Jerusalem.
couldn’t disagree more. anything done at this time will be viewed as a victory for Hamas. it has just launched grad missiles at Beersheva and more will come. Amassing troops as a hollow threat will play into the hands of the propogandists who say that Israel is afraid to do what is necessary to achieve a new level of security for the south. in short, as a matter of long term strategy Israel cannot let this opportunity go to eliminate the strategic threat from its southern border. this means at the very least a retaking of the philadelphi corridor so that further smuggling can be prevented. otherwise hamas will be rearmed as quickly as was Hezbullah, schalit must be released and rocket arsenals destroyed.
all we ever seem to hear (even from some conservatives it seems) is that there can be no military victory. it was said of operation defensive shield in the west bank, of the surge in Iraq etc. and no doubt could have been said about conquering our enemies in WWII. Yes conditions are different,but here we do have a de facto state actor that has declared war on Israel. if this goes as another half assed job as in Lebanon i fear greatly for Israel’s survival. A year of preparation and all they can think of is a few days of “shock and Awe? this was the lesson from 2006? Sheesh!!
I know it is conventional wisdom that Israel must do its business in a business day, but that actually favors the caterwaulling of the International Community. Israel needs to stay in Gaza a long time to desensitize the world community to the shocking horror of Israel defending itself and fighting its mortal enemies.
Israel remained in Lebanon for almost 20 years making Israel safer. While there were occasional attempts at mischief by the international community, most notably Reagan’s disastrous use of Marines as peacekeepers in Beirut and his very disastrous evacuation of the PLO to Tunisia, the roar of the international community over Israel’s actions was reduced to a dull ache over time.
When Israel shows that it will not be cowed by the enlightened crocodile tears of the UN and its consituency then it will be able to finish the job. If it still acts as if it is on a leash from the US and the rest of the world, Israel will never be able to defend itself.
Olmert, Livni and Barak would hand Gaza over to Fatah as a prelude to resuscitating the peace process. J-S and EJ will be added to buy Pal support for Fatah. Your choice.
Eric lists 3 possible tangibles Israel might get if they declare victory now. The second one, winning an extension of the truce well into the future, seems like no victory at all. Hamas would once again restock its arsenal and, after awhile, the attacks Hamas “can’t” control could very well resume.
Only the first and third things- Hamas giving up its arsenal(but how would this be confirmed?) and the release of Shalit would be real victories.
Another truce, another hudna? Eric, that would hardly be a victory.
But, how able is Israel, even as it pummels Gaza, to force Hamas accept a new cease fire, or for Arab pressure to force Ismail Haniyeh in that direction?
Suppose Hamas simply digs in, accepts all the blows Israel delivers from the air and then throws all its strength into meeting an IDF ground invasion?
I think Israel should try helicopter raids against targets of opportunity, deep inside Gaza. Wherever it sees a clump of Hamas men, swoop down, kill or capture them, and immediately pull out again. Scores of such raids. Forget about the tanks. And at the height of all this, when Israel seems fully focused on Gaza, an attack on Iran’s nuclear infrastructure.
…anybody want to hazard a guess as to how many names abbas’ plo has given to shin bet & the idf for targeting purposes…?
….between the egyptians and the arafatistas – who have excellent reasons to both fear and hate hamas – i would wager that israel already has some ‘understandings’ as to ‘diplomatic’ next steps after these strikes…
…on a more curious note, why would hamas do everything it could to provoke israel into a conflagration literally a month before obama’s presidency…? wouldn’t israel feel that it would have more of a free hand during the last weeks of a lame duck bush administration than in the first fortnight of an obama administration…? indeed, global politics would indicate that israel might have felt compelled to honor a direct obama request for an immediate cease fire at the beginning of his administration as a sign of good faith and trust …
instead of timing provocations in a manner that might work to its advantage with the new administration (obama as mid-east peacemaker!), hamas has set up a dynamic that – frankly – renders US intercession virtually irrelevant….that just strikes me as odd…
does hamas – and iran – know something about this timing that makes perfect sense? or is obama’s ascendence truly irrelevant to the games islamofascists play….?
mds123, you’ve raised some interesting questions. I tend to think that islamofascists, as shrewd as they can be, have unbounded contempt for Western leaders and count on establishing facts on the ground which the West will begrudgingly live with. Just look at how the promises not to deal with Hamas on the part of Europe have begun to crumble in the last few years.
Hamas probably thinks it can ignite violence when it wants to, then play the victim when Israel counterattacks. And if Iran remains unchallenged by the West, while at the same time money comes in from the West Bank/Europe to pay government officials, they’ll continue to focus on their two great passions- forcing Sharia law on Gaza’s residents and inciting against Israel.
If Israel has a 48 hour cease fire it will be seen as a victory not only for Hamas but the Western media and political movements who always make Israel out to be the bad guy!
Why start a job you cannot finish, 2006 all over again. Where has the Israel we all knew and feared gone to? Is this another case of no political will to win, if this is correct then Israel is in a slow decline into oblivion; bullied again into submission not by Hamas but by fickle wimpy Western nations who have no stomach for a fight.
Maybe that’s why we are seeing a decline in the Western nations and Islam gaining a strong foothold in these countries, assisted by Political Correctness.
Hamas knows what it is doing. They are playing for stakes that have not been in general consideration by many.
Economics. Gaza is already bankrupt & can’t get much worse. Still money is getting into Gaza -note the shopping sprees in Egypt via the hole in the wall. By now they have a low maintenance lifestyle under duress down pat.
They have taken note of america’s economic situation- will the Dems prioritise funding to isreal over their own civilians?
What is Israel’s economic situation? I would say it is going south quite quickly.
Maybe Hamas WANTS Israel to occupy Gaza ! This way Israel would have to shoulder many many expenses – as an occupying force as declared by Geneva Convention-PLUS finance the operation for months if not years. Result +Bankruptcy. (not to mention a diversion of labour education & social cohesion citizens. necessary for Israel’s future stakes.
Furthermore the population future. Israeli birth rates are a fraction of the Palestinians & in a semi state of war -Israel would not be very attractive to the wished for Jewish immigrants.
Russia as a source will dry up -especially the St petersburg tourist/immigration scouts wont be returning after most were killed in bus crashes by mad Israeli drivers.
As to the death toll -Hamas can wear it. It will only take about 6 weeks for them to be replenished above the Israeli birth ratios.
Elements of Hamas would gain greatly from an Israeli ground push. A Quandry for all!
The writer is underestimating Hamas and all the other pro Palestinian terrorist or semi terrorist organizations when he says they have no clear strategy. It may be hard to discern because by definition an organization like Hamas is essentially opportunist in its reaction to events, but they has a long term strategy alright. That strategy is aimed at turning Israel into the bad guys. And with quite a bit of help from the Israelis themselves it has essentially worked. Outside of the US there in no longer majority support for Israel in any other country in the world. This is totally the reverse of the situation from 25 years ago in Western Europe. Bret Stephens the neocon journalist writing in the WSJ yesterday tacitly admitted as much when he used the metaphor of the Hedgehog and the Fox. He correctly says that Zionism used to be the Hedgehog that knew one BIG thing while the Arabs were the fox. Roles have now been reversed and while the Israelis may know many things they are likely to be defeated by the single idea their opponents have taken ownership of namely “the occupation of Arab lands by the Israelis.” Looking at the event of the past 25 years who with their hand on their heart cannot recognize the strategic balance has moved against Israel despite their magnificent armed forces. Israel needs a long term peace settlement. This latest move is not going to assist that process. Neither for that matter is a continuation of the US position of the past eight years of blindly supporting them whatever the situation.
Isn’t the obvious lesson to draw from Stephens’ piece that the Israelis must become hedgehogs again? If Hamas is now the hedgehog, a long term peace settlement is beyond reach anyway–even a short term settelement is a fantasy. The Israelis must come to an understanding of the relation between Judaism, freedom and democracy in a world where all of the above are threatened, and enough of them must be committed to defending those gifts of God and cultural acquisitions of men and women so as to exhibit the determination to defeat their evil enemies no matter what. Once enough Israelis have so committed themselves, they will discover all the weapons they need to fight Islamic supremacism and all the Global Intifada cultists, both militarily and on the propaganda front. For that matter, the situation is no different for Americans.
Videos of IDF striking Hamas
Here are some videos of the IDF bombing Hamas military targets. Reportedly, some of these videos have been removed from youtube.