One More Helping of Fried Rice

Richard Clarke was interviewed on both Nightline and the regular ABC news broadcast. This isn't surprising: Koppel admitted he's a paid consultant. You can link to the Jennings interview above.

One other thing that's bothered me about Rice's testimony was her insistance on a so-called separation between the FBI and CIA--I managed to stomach more of her testimony yesterday during the second C-Span replay. The sort of weird grin she gave when she managed to conjure up the whole canard about "structural" issues in this regard spoke volumes: she was pulling this out of her ass, and it was evident.

Here's something Clarke said regarding this:

We had meetings that I chaired two and three times a week where FBI and the CIA shared information. My deputy had a daily meeting where that took place. The problem was that there was information buried in FBI and the CIA that wasn't shaken out.

The sort of contorted parsing of Rice demonstrates a profound level of contempt for the American public. Does she think Tenet and Freeh would have engaged in some sort of bizarro form of "Password" when discussing significant information about possible terrorist plots in the United States? Or was she simply ignorant?

"Mr. CIA Director, I've got a secret. Now, you know I can't share any information with you, because of those ticky-tack laws and everything, but...here's a hint. His name rhymes with, uh, Hosanna."

"Hmmn...Hosanna, Hosanna--um, Emmanuel? Emmanuel Goldstein?"

"I said RHYMES with Hosanna. Let's see...last name...two words...when you throw something away, you put it in the rubbish..."

"Can? Canada is attacking us?"

"NO, Goddamnit. Um...rhymes with SIN!"

"Sin. er...gin...din? Gunga Din?"

"No, it's bin, goddamnit--now you've done it! I've broken the law! YOU BETTER NOT TELL ASHCROFT!"

"Been what?"

"Not been, BIN! Shit, do I have to spell it out? Hey--that might not be a crime...ok b-i-n, first word of last name, second word, l-a..."

"Oh, this is all just so confusing...tell Condi we're working on it..."