The CIA Goes Nuclear

by Mary

Billmon has a fascinating post that follows onto Brad DeLong's question: Why has the CIA decided to go nuclear on the Wilsongate story?

I think that they moved now for a couple of reasons: 1) the CIA has been very unhappy with the way the Bush administration has been throwing its weight around on the world stage, threatening to "discipline" all kinds of bad actors and 2) Bush proved last week with his speech to the UN that he was still unchastized and didn't believe there was any reason to work with the rest of the world. I think that the adults in the CIA decided that the only way they stop the crazies from bringing about World War 3 was to cut them off at the knees before they could do anything else stupid. And they went nuclear because the Bush regime has been so successful in taking over the government and rallying their troops. Hints don't work and Bush still controls the military. As Krugman said, this is the time they are most dangerous.

So what are the tea leaves I'm reading that lead me to this theory?

• I know I've been watching the clock wondering if the Bushies will start another war (or even drop a nuclear bomb) between now and the election. Can we trust them to act in the country's interest? I don't think so. I'm yet to see any sign that there is anything capable of shaking them out of their fantasy world. It seems to me that there are people in the government that fear this as much as I do.
• John Bolton. The man that Bush put in charge of international disarmament treaties is probably the world's biggest reason that the world is rapidly trying to arm itself. Unlike Bush who mostly like really doesn't believe that God tells him to do things, John Bolton is a true believer and absolutely believes he is carrying out God's work. The CIA is definitely wary of John Bolton as witnessed by their preemptive move against his testifying before the Senate Intelligence Committee at the end of July about the danger from Syria. And Bush still relies on Bolton and Cheney for his direction.
• When Bush returned from his month-long vacation, he came back to a chastened Defense Department. The speculation was that the neocons had been out-maneuvered by Powell and the State Department. However, his speech before the UN seemed to harken back to the same intransigence displayed on the road to war over Iraq.
• The CIA knows that the military is stretched beyond its means and they do not want to see the US destroyed by a White House that only knows bullying, lies and force to get their way.
• It is also possible is that Colin Powell and the sane part of the State Department have also revolted, although very much behind the scenes. And we know that the senior leadership of the military is also angered by the way the Bushies have damaged the military for years, so it is possible that they too are silent partners in the war on the Bush regime.

I find it pretty ironic that the main reason we might be seeing the end days of the Bush regime is because they were not just terribly scary, but frankly also so incompetent. Thank God for small favors.