You know, there just isn’t a good answer for this, is there?
JONATHAN KARL, ABC NEWS: I know you’re asked this every time something terrible happens in Yemen, but now that we have essentially complete chaos in Yemen, does the White House still believe that Yemen is the model for a counter-terrorism strategy?
…No, actually, the AP demonstrated professional ethics. Twice.
The Associated Press reports today that it learned last week of a thwarted Al Qaeda-affiliated plot to bomb a U.S.-bound airplane, but did not report on it because of an agreement with the White House and the CIA. However, the AP did decide to report the story one day earlier than the White House had requested.
“The AP learned about the thwarted plot last week but agreed to White House and CIA requests not to publish it immediately because the sensitive intelligence operation was still under way,” the AP’s Matt Apuzzo and Adam Goldman report. “Once those concerns were allayed, the AP decided to disclose the plot Monday despite requests from the Obama administration to wait for an official announcement Tuesday.”
Continue reading The Associated Press demonstrates professional ethics in terror bomb case.
Slapdash, or scaredy-cat? Does it matter?
The lack of self-respect in the Obama administration astounds me, sometimes. From the (probably-now abortive) pushback on the call to shut down repatriating AQ terrorists to Yemen:
“I am aware of a lot of people pointing back at the way the transfers were handled under the Bush administration that apparently they have some concerns about that,” said the official, who had not seen the senators’ letter. “I didn’t hear many of those concerns at the time, but there were obviously hundreds and hundreds of detainees that were transferred under the old regime.”
The official hadn’t also seen Sen. Feinstein’s (D) own shared concern about said repatriation, which as Ed Morrissey notes is a serious problem for the drive to close Gitmo. But never mind that, right now: what gives with all the unforced errors? I mean, if this was an unintentional attempt to give offense, it’s pretty sloppy thinking; and if it was intentional, well, way to go with putting words in the administration’s mouth there, Sparky. A true progressive would have had the elementary courage to put his or her Bush Derangement Syndrome on the record.
Well, either way I can’t say that I’m surprised.
Moe Lane
Crossposted to RedState.
