who else thinks McClellan's NON-mea culpa is plea to prosecutors? who else is confused...

[nashville_brook]

...since as far as we know, there's no prosecution. No investigation, even. Does he worry the next administration will prosecute the crimes of the Bush administration?

If so, he's way more optimistic about the functioning of government than most here. Perhaps that's the psychology of wrongdoing; of knowing where the bodies are buried.


All the pre-release chatter on his book is about how he wasn't responsible... he was lied to... oh, and it wasn't Bush who WAS responsible... it was the handlers, the VP, the tooth fairy. This all just sounds like someone who knows he's been caught, trying to spin his crimes before it's too late.

[Mountainman]

1. I was thinking yesterday that perhaps they are waiting until Bush and Cheney are out of office to go

after them. I pictured Bush years from today as being the most hated man in the world and Cheney a close second.

[alfredo]

2. If the US doesn't, the world community will.

[nashville_brook]

9. now THAT makes sense.

[alfredo]

It's a matter of courtesy. It gives the home country a chance to redeem

themselves in the eyes of the world.

[nashville_brook]

8. last night, as we were watching this story on Olbie...

the "prosecution hypothesis" emerged out of whole cloth. the first few tid-bits were interesting. the next few were confusing. by the end of the report, it was clear that the PURPOSE of the book was to state that *he held no responsibility* and that neither did Bush. It's a wild, spasmatic attempt to point fingers.

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

3. Was McClellan questioned in the Plame matter?

Was he ever called before the Grand Jury? I wonder if he gave testimony under oath? I don't recall.

[tridim]

4. He can't comment on the ongoing investigation. Remember?

I think that's about the only line he used during his entire stint as press secretary.

[nashville_brook]

22. i wonder what it was like for him "back stage" -- like, did he pressure the admin to

step up to the plate?

also wonder was he fired? or did he leave of his own accord?

[nashville_brook]

6. IIRC Ari Fleisher was -- about the trip on the plane to Africa with Colin Powell, etc.

supposedly the scheme was hatched on the plane.

[asjr]

5. You're too late Scotty. Maybe you

feel slightly better coming out with the truth now, but where were you when you knew it was all lies? I hope your book sells. Are you looking for work?

[nashville_brook]

7. that's just it -- i can't imagine SM having a conscience. this can't be about conscience.

he's acting out of fear and self preservation. there's nothing in his history that would support the hypothesis that he's acting out of "good faith."

[asjr]

11. He really messed up when

he absolved GW of mendacity. No one will believe that.

[nashville_brook]

15. that's an obvious attempt to quell the beast.

[pnwmom]

10. No, it's just a way to sell some books. n/t

[nashville_brook]

13. that doesn't quite wash for me, b/c he could have used any other hook rather than "don't blame me."

there's plenty of other stories to tell. there's plenty of other narratives that publishers would bite on. he's swimming against the current here.

[Doctor_J]

12. Vince Bugliosi and some other prosecutors across the country

are going to attempt to prosecute * for the murder of 4100 US soldiers and marines and a million Iraqis. Maybe Snotty will be called as a witness.

[nashville_brook]

14. maybe he's already been called upon for discovery.

[Skidmore]

16. It sounds like he's providing cover for * because he invokes bubble-boy

as a way to cover for his old boss. Tosses all of the blame on Scooter, Cheney, and Rove...and the press. He AND * are not to blame. Next year we will have President Obama, who will have no incentive to cover up the dirt of the past 20 years. Methinks this book is a way to hide the big tush. Bet Scotty get a cushy job down the line with a Bush family company at some point to reward him for making it look like a mea culpa and providing some credence to the generally held belief that Stupid is REALLY Stupid.

[global1]

17. I Can Envision How This Plot Unfolded.....

Bush calls Cheney and Rove into the Oval Office and says:

Bush: Hey Turd Blossom - How are we going to get out of this mess?

Rove: I've got an idea - lets get Scotty to resign his job and then just before you're going to leave office we'll have him write a book. In it he will say that you got bad advice and consul from your people and that it's the fault of the complicit 'left wing' press. This gives you an excuse and then on your last day in office you pardon all of us. That way you are exonerated. You give us a free get out of jail card. Scotty makes a bunch of money and we make him famous. And all the blame will be placed on the press. Our dumb supporters will go along with us - they always do. Those liberals will dump on Scotty for not saying anything sooner and give us more cover and we can go on to plot again for Jebby's run in 2012.

Bush: Shooter - what do you think?

Cheney: grunt, grunt

Bush: OK - shooter likes it. But what do we say about Scotty when this book comes out? Huh - Turd Blossom.

Rove: We'll just say he's a disgruntled employee - that always works.

Bush: Cool - I like it. Is that ok Shooter?

Cheney: grunt, grunt

[nashville_brook]

18. i agree -- it's really jarring though -- how do you distance yourself from the Bush *administration*

and still cover for Bush? is Bush not responsible for his administration? Is the argument being made that there are ROGUE elements? Does Bush not have the power or ability to tamp that down?

None of these scenarios wash. McClellan's book is a bizarre, flailing attempt at something... but what?

[Skidmore]

19. What makes it rich though is that whenever one of those die-hard

* fanatics start going on about how he will go down in history as the nation's greatest president, one can always point out that he had no clue as to what was going on in his administration and point to this book as a source. Come to think of it, I haven't heard anyone trying to sell that idea for a while.

I still believe he's trying to provide cover for * and maybe settle a personal grievance with Rove and Libby at the same time.

[nashville_brook]

20. yeah, there's a *reason* behind the claims in his book. there's a power struggle.

more than anything, this book reveals that Bush is actually a weakling (i've always thought that the pretzel episode -- the black eye -- was from Cheney punching him).

[Skidmore]

21. Now that's an image for you.

My husband always says "An evil like that will never die" everytime he sees Cheney. Then he nods knowingly. One of these days I'm going to ask him how he knows that.