Kristol attacked Fitzgerald's "politically motivated attempt to wound the Bush administration," but he defended Starr investigation
SUMMARY: William Kristol attacked special counsel Patrick Fitzgerald's investigation into the 2003 leaking of CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity as "absurd" and a "politically motivated attempt to wound the Bush administration." He also asserted that Fitzgerald is "out to discredit the administration." However in 1998, Kristol attacked as "Nixonian" critics of independent counsel Kenneth Starr, who sought and obtained authorization to expand the scope of his original mandate to investigate the Whitewater deal, which yielded no charges of wrongdoing by Clinton, into an investigation of the Monica Lewinsky controversy.
During the April 9 edition of Fox News Sunday, Weekly Standard editor William Kristol attacked special counsel Patrick Fitzgerald's investigation into the 2003 leaking of CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity as "absurd" and a "politically motivated attempt to wound the Bush administration." He also asserted that Fitzgerald's case "is crumbling," and criticized Fitzgerald for "refusing to close ... his investigation of [White House senior adviser] Karl Rove and other people," concluding that Fitzgerald is "out to discredit the administration." However in 1998, Kristol attacked as "Nixonian" critics of independent counsel Kenneth Starr, who, as Media Matters for America previously noted, sought and obtained authorization to expand the scope of his original mandate to investigate the Whitewater deal, which yielded no charges of wrongdoing by Clinton, into an investigation of the Monica Lewinsky controversy.
During the February 22, 1998, broadcast of ABC's This Week, Kristol maintained that there was a "White House strategy" intent on "going after Kenneth Starr and his team." Kristol added, "I believe the Clinton White House is in the process of launching an attack on Starr, his prosecutors, other journalists of a sort that really is Nixonian. It really is Nixonian." Later, during the April 5, 1998, broadcast of This Week, after a federal judge dismissed Paula Jones's sexual harassment civil suit against Clinton, Kristol maintained that Starr's investigation should continue, and that Starr "should give a report" to Congress. "It ain't over until Ken Starr sings," Kristol said, adding: "We'll see what happens when Ken Starr delivers a serious report, outlining what I think is pretty good evidence of a conspiracy to obstruct justice, to Congress."
Kristol's attack on Fitzgerald came during a Fox News Sunday roundtable discussion about the April 6 revelation that court documents from Fitzgerald's investigation indicate that I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney, testified that he was authorized by President Bush in July 2003 to disclose portions of a classified National Intelligence Estimate (NIE). According to Fitzgerald, Libby testified that this disclosure was intended to rebut former Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson IV, who had charged that the Bush administration distorted intelligence about Iraq's supposed nuclear weapons program in making the case for war. Libby has been indicted in the investigation for obstruction of justice, perjury, and false statements in connection with allegations that the Bush administration leaked the identity of Plame, who is Wilson's wife.
From the April 9 edition of Fox Broadcasting Co.'s Fox News Sunday:
KRISTOL: You know the leak story is absurd. But I now think the whole prosecution is absurd. And I have hesitated to say this because I have friends who respect Fitzgerald. But I now think it's a politically motivated attempt to wound the Bush administration.
[...]
KRISTOL: It strikes -- seems to me that Fitzgerald's case is crumbling. He's refusing to close, incidentally, his investigation of Karl Rove and other people. You can read his 39-page rebuttal to Libby. He focuses now on Cheney. He is now out to discredit the Bush administration. He has bought the argument that there was something improper about the Bush administration responding to Joe Wilson's charges. And that's the real meaning of what's happened in this last few days, which is very dangerous for the Bush administration. They now have a special prosecutor out to discredit -- not to convict Scooter Libby, but out to discredit the administration.
[...]
KRISTOL: And when you read Fitzgerald's response, the 39-page document he released Wednesday night, which is how we know about Libby's apparently truthful statement to the grand jury, it is clear that Fitzgerald is going after the White House in general. He does not simply want Scooter Libby on a technical and, I think, dubious perjury charge.
From the February 22, 1998, broadcast of ABC's This Week:
KRISTOL: There are not a whole lot of Democrats defending the president. But the other half of the White House strategy -- George [Stephanopoulos, ABC news analyst] mentioned half of it, which was stall and delay. The other half is search and destroy. They're going after Kenneth Starr and his team. Harry Thomasson, the Hollywood producer, who's an old friend of the president, has virtually moved into the White House in the last three weeks, is calling reporters in Washington, urging them to dig into Kenneth Starr's private life and sort of suggesting interesting things they might find. I have no knowledge they're going to find anything. I know Kenneth Starr slightly. I'd be pretty surprised.
SAM DONALDSON (co-host): You mean what movies he rented?
KRISTOL: No. I believe the Clinton White House is in the process of launching an attack on Starr, his prosecutors, other journalists of a sort that really is Nixonian. It really is Nixonian.
COKIE ROBERTS (co-host): Cowboy prosecutors, they're calling them.
From the April 5, 1998, broadcast of ABC's This Week:
KRISTOL: Well, I think it ain't over until Ken Starr sings, obviously. And -- and people are overestimating the importance of what happened this week. We'll see what happens when Ken Starr delivers a serious report, outlining what I think is pretty good evidence of a conspiracy to obstruct justice, to Congress. Congress may just decide the country's peace -- peace, prosperity -- no need to do anything.
[...]
KRISTOL: I don't have great hopes for Congress, just as George [Stephanopoulos] -- George doesn't have great hopes for the president. I don't have great hopes for the Republican Congress. They cannot avoid their duty. I think this new idea of indicting Monica Lewinsky is ultimately not going to happen. Starr should give a report to Congress. It's Congress' responsibility to have serious hearings about whether the president obstructed justice, suborned perjury, and the like, or not. I think at least they have to have hearings. I think that'll happen. I don't think they can dodge that bullet even if they wish to. And what that means incidentally is that the whole last half of this year is going to be dominated by the Clinton scandals. It is going to be the dominant issue of 1998. The Clinton administration doesn't want it to be. The Republican Congress doesn't want it to be. But neither is going have its wish.
"Kristol attacked Fitzgerald's "politically motivated attempt to wound the Bush administration," but he defended Starr investigation"
Hypocrite.
Plain and simple.
Fitzgerald's attempt to destroy I mean wound the Bush administration is not politically motivated it's legally motivated. Whatever happened to neocon adoration of cops and prosecutors? ROFLMAO
Feel Good Thought of the Week: Imagine Dick Cheney in a Police Lineup
More lies rom Kristol, what do you expect from FAUX?
Calling the prosecutor's activity an attempt to discredit the administration is insane - no one needs to try to discredit the Bush Administration - all one needs to do is tell the truth about their activity - that alone discredits the admin.
I would like to know how much money Ken Starr spent and how many staffers he had as compared to Patrick Fitzgerald. That would be interesting. What is Nixonian is Bush's level of secrecy and culture of "I am the law", one step up from Nixon's "I am above the law".
more than $40 Million of Tax Payer Money on his investigation.
like to see a similar Investigation of the Bush Administration. I predict that it would uncover more than a few BJ!
The amount spent was nearly $80 million.
When Clinton defends himself it's a vile, horrible Nixonian tactic whipped up by the slimy Democrats.
When Bush defends himself it's a perfectly acceptable strategy given the slimy Democratic tactic of "persecuting" the President of the United State during a time of war.
So in Kristol's opinion, EVERYTHING Democrats do is wrong if it conflicts with the Republican agenda to own and operate every aspect of our lives. If you consider that claim an extreme assertion, you're correct--or are you? How far away from EVERYTHING is the reality of this assertion? One percent, one half of one percent? If they aren't above sticking their noses in a President's personal life then what's the big deal about your life or my life?
There are no barriers the Republicans aren't willing to raze so long as it brings their agenda to fruition. Laws mean nothing to them unless it's Bill Clinton or you or anyone that disagrees with their policies. Totalitarianism wrapped up in a RWB flag.
This apologist, liar, and fanatic’s claim to fame was Chief of Staff for V.P. Dan Quayle!!
I can say that he can spell potato, but after that this guy has not got anything right that wasn't given him to parrot from the Administration. This limp member couldn't have an original thought, without his loyalties he is an ideologue of perpetual WAR for POWER!!
The man has chosen to pick-up the baton for Bob Novak, and can be seen as a little more composed than Novak, but just as fanatical. He had a hand in the whole plan to spread democracy through out the Middle-East; he is the big man in the press who is supposed to know!!
This guy is worse the Cheney, and Rummie, because he just dumps his baggage on them, but he was carrying the whole load in the run up to the WAR.
He is purely a monumental screw-up, and he is determined that anyone but himself and friends will ever have to face the music. That would be the American public’s job.
His problem is he’s tone deaf, so don't worry though, he'll hear the tune soon enough.
Happy Thoughts;
Dan Grady
All I can say is thank God for James Comey; he's the guy who temporarily replaced Ashcroft while he was sick.
He appointed Fitz and gave the WH the shivers when he refused to go along with the domestic surveillance program.
He knows where the bodies are buried; too bad he wont say anything right now.
"he's the guy who temporarily replaced Ashcroft while he was sick."
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Doesn't that imply that there was a time when Ashcroft wasn't sick? I don't know if I'm prepared to go that far.
"He has bought the argument that there was something improper about the Bush administration responding to Joe Wilson's charges."
The Bush administration never "responded" to what Wilson wrote - they destroyed his wife's cover by leaking her name to the vile Bob Novak.
See, the Bushies couldn't actually dispute what Wilson wrote, so they went after him personally.
Similarly, Kristol can't dispute what Fitzgerald has done or said, so he's going after him personally.
Similarly, the Republicans couldn't stop Clinton from doing a good job for the American people, so they got Ken Starr to go after him personally.
Similarly, they were worried they couldn't win against a genuine war hero like John Kerry, so they got the Swifties to go after him persoanlly.
Similarly, they knew they couldn't beat Gore in 2000 on issues, so they invented "Invented the Internet" and went after him personally.
Similarly, when John McCain threatened to take the nomination in 2000, they went after him personally with racist push polls.
Shinsecki. O'Niell. Daschel. Hillary Clinton. Reid. Pelosi. Edwards. Michael Moore. Dan Rather. Kennedy. Cindy Sheehan. Anthony Zinni. Paul Krugman.
All dare or dared to challenge King George. So they have or are now going after each personally.
See a pattern here, folks?
Watch your back...
I heard R Rhodes joking that the only people the bushies want in their administration are people who have committed some heinous act so they could have 'dirt' on them at any time = loyalty. Sadly, I think she's right.
Exactly. Without the politics of personal destruction based on rumors and innuendo, the Rightwing has NOTHING. They have no record of performance, no integrity, no scruples, no "Core Principles," and no policy that helps the average American. They have two beliefs, and they are linked: Make the rich richer, and make WAR (which makes the rich richer).
Smear is all they have, and they use it at every opportunity.
Specifically, this flip-flop by Kristol is very telling. The rightwing heirarchy was OK being nobel with Fitz, as long as it looked like he might clear Dubya. Now that it's certain Fitz is doing the job diligently, and DUBYA will be in the thick of the corruption uncovered by Fitz's investigation, he must be destroyed.
Good news for Dems and other people who actually love America: Kristol is WORRIED.
from a partisan political hack? If I were listening to Carville or Begalia, I would expect just the opposite, so info like this coming from this source is also exactly what I would expect. Has he ever portrayed himself as other than partisan?
the old they all do it argument.
but you can't ignore the fact that there are those on the other side that do the same thing. They are all wrong in what they do, burying the country in MBBE instead of addressing the real issues.
If I were listening to Carville or Begalia, I would expect just the opposite...
The truth?
or simply express his personal slanted opinion, just as Carville &/or Begalia (and a host of others) would do from the other side of the aisle.
exposing a CIA agent, releasing secret information -- that you "just decided to declassify", warantless wiretapping, Katrina respnse, a war you just "wanted" for some reason.
Intergalatic Purveyor called Kristol a "hypocrite". In truth he is much worse. He is someone who has lost all sense of sanity and decency.
..that more Americans had more than a 3 day attention span and weren't blinded by partisan views. Maybe then these people wouldn't be able to spout off with such nonsense and hypocrisy.
whether or not "Media Matters" does or not. Lying that causes people to believe, have faith is moral. Of course anything that is moral is not a lie. So there you have it. Nobody lied. Makes all the sense in the world to the liberal media that is yet to report any good news from Iraq. Just be thankful they're not conservative. Bringing up past positions like Kenneth Starr only confuses the process. Never forget. Faith moves mountains of lies,, from the lie colomn to the legal column and onto undeniable truth column. Truth, justice and the American way to lie.
but it wasn't good enough for consternatives, apparently... the recent release/rescue of hostages over there was wonderful news that you guys quickly swiftboated...
1. Is a two time Bush Administration apointee. 2. The President has expressed full faith in ability to get to the bottom of the leak investigation. 3. "And this investigation is a good thing" - George W. Bush September 30, 2003
I guess that's good enough reason to suddenly have it in for the President?
The War? War is about killing. We kill them. Or they kill us. It's not about new schools, electricity being restored or new roads being built. The people who sold us on this thing should have told us to be prepared to see lots of scenes of construction vehicles. They should have told us that they were going to send our children off to risk their lives so people halfway around the world could enjoy indoor plumbing!
And before they caused this country so much grief, they should have told us all that The President was just kidding on Oct. 11, 2000 when he said this:
"I am worried about over-committing our military around the world. I want to be judicious in its use. I don’t think nation-building missions are worthwhile."
Fitzy is apolitical... you see, sometimes when you do something wrong, you get in trouble for it... the only victim here is our democracy....
He said that the Republican Fitzgerald was attempting to wound Bush. Obviously that is a lie.