THE ‘DOMESTICATED’ PRESS

“Exhibit A” of a “domesticated” press. That’s what former CIA analyst href="http://faculty.schreiner.edu/tomwells/ray_mcgovern_bio.htm" target='new"'> color=#003399>Ray McGovern calls this morning’s Washington Post class=inline
href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/14/AR2005061401383.ht
ml" target='new"'>editorial, which describes the
main revelation of the href="http://www.artsjournal.com/herman/archives20050501.shtml#99827"
target='new"'>Downing Street memo as “vague
but intriguing.” In other words, it doesn’t believe that “intelligence and facts were being fixed
around the policy” to invade Iraq. McGovern, who ripped into the press for knuckling under to
the Bush regime, says there’s “nothing vague” about the memo and, far from intriguing, “it’s
depressing.”

McGovern points out further that 1) the head of Iraq’s WMD programs — Saddam Hussein’s
son-in-law target='new"'>Hussein Kamel, who defected
from Iraq, then returned and was executed — told the U.S. regime that the WMD had been
destroyed in 1991 and that 2) Cheney Boy himself claimed he was a fully reliable source of
information who proved that Iraq had WMD. But 3) somehow Cheney Boy et al chose not to
believe this reliable source’s info that the WMD had been destroyed, which, as we all know, has
been proven correct. Ain’t that cherry pickin’ peculiar.

align=left border=0>Also, did I href="http://www.artsjournal.com/herman/archives20050601.shtml#100858"
target='new"speak too
soon yesterday when I said I wouldn’t hold my breath waiting
for an investigation of the Bush regime’s headlong invasion of Iraq? The short answer: Yes.

John Conyers Jr., left, the ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, will hold a
hearing Thusday in the Capitol on the Downing Street memo and the regime’s “effort to cook the
books on pre-war intelligence.” The bigger question is whether Georgie Boy violated the
constitution in his rush to war.

The long answer: It’s not an official committee hearing, because the Republican majority
would not allow it. Conyers, who also accuses the U.S. press of a deafening silence, was going to
hold the hearing at the Democratic National Committee. But he told Democracy Now! this
morning that he finally wangled a room in the Capitol.

Amy Goodman interviewed both Conyers and McGovern on Democracy Now! class=inline href="http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=05/06/15/1345223"
target='new"It’s very strong
stuff. As soon as DN puts up the video and/or a transcript of
the interview, we’ll post the link. In the meantime, read McGovern on the href="http://antiwar.com/mcgovern" target='new"'>SECRET UK
EYES ONLY briefing document that preceded the Downing Street memo
and on the target='new"'>“proof” (his term) that Georgie
Boy “fixed the facts.”

The video is now up with a partial transcript. Click: href="http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=05/06/15/1345223"
target='new"It’s very strong
stuff.