All Violence All The Time

"But for political purposes, I think this development was even more entertaining.

"Safavian conceded to Justice prosecutor Peter Zeidenberg that he most likely didn't believe he had the qualifications to be chief of staff at the Government Services Administration, the position he held when he had the dealings with Jack Abramoff he is accused of covering up.

" ' Did you think you were qualified for the job ?' Zeidenberg asked.

" ' Probably not, actually ,' Safavian said.

"What a helpful admission. In fact, I can think of dozens of top administration officials who might have similar responses to the same question.

"For example, I'd love to hear the response to the 'Did you think you were qualified for the job?' question from former Small Business Administration head Hector Barreto, a former Republican fundraiser who had no experience or relevant qualifications. Or maybe his replacement, Steven Preston, who has the same problem."

He names more hacks.

The Wall Street Journal ,which writes editorials to influence public debate, doesn't want a certain special prosecutor making use of its prose. The 2003 missive in question said:

" 'One of the mysteries of the recent yellowcake uranium flap is why the White House has been so defensive about an intelligence judgment that we don't yet know is false, and that the British still insist is true. Our puzzlement is even greater now that we've learned what last October's national intelligence estimate really said .'

"Those words appeared in this column on July 17, 2003, under the headline 'Yellowcake Remix.' Three years later they show we were right about Joe Wilson and his false allegation that President Bush lied in that year's State of Union address about Iraq seeking nuclear materials in Africa.

"So imagine our surprise when Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald declared his intention last month to use that editorial as part of his perjury and obstruction case against former Vice Presidential aide Scooter Libby, who had also questioned Mr. Wilson's claims. It suggests that his case is a lot weaker than his media spin.

"Mr. Libby wasn't a source for our editorial, which quoted from the October 2002 National Intelligence Estimate concerning the Africa-uranium issue. But Mr. Fitzgerald alleges in a court filing that Mr. Libby played a role in our getting the information, which in turn shows that 'notwithstanding other pressing government business, [Libby] was heavily focused on shaping media coverage of the controversy concerning Iraqi efforts to obtain uranium from Niger.'

"The prosecutor comes close here to suggesting that senior government officials have no right to fight back against critics who make false allegations."

I think the Journal folks should be flattered.

Bill Weld may have played well as Massachusetts governor, but he didn't even make it to the Republican primary in New York, losing to a virtual unknown. Which has got to be good news for Eliot Spitzer.

A telling exchange at the Snow Show with gadfly radio guy Les Kinsolving:

" Kinsolving : The New York Times has just reported, 'This White House, like all White Houses, is obsessed with the press.' My question: Will you admit to this alleged obsession, or is this just one more New York Times exaggeration?

" Snow : It's more a love affair than an obsession, Lester."