Amazing report by Jeff Stein at CQ, suggesting once again that Walt and Mearsheimer barely scraped the surface, if only journalists would pick up the ball:
Rep. Jane Harman
, the California Democrat with a longtime involvement in intelligence
issues, was overheard on an NSA wiretap telling a suspected Israeli
agent that she would lobby the Justice Department to drop espionage
charges against two officials of the American Israeli Public Affairs
Committee, the most powerful pro-Israel organization in Washington.
Harman
was recorded saying she would “waddle into” the AIPAC case “if you
think it’ll make a difference,” according to two former senior national
security officials familiar with the NSA transcript.
In exchange for Harman’s help, the sources said, the suspected Israeli agent pledged to help lobby Nancy Pelosi
, D-Calif., then-House minority leader, to appoint Harman chair of the
Intelligence Committee after the 2006 elections, which the Democrats
were heavily favored to win.
to, according to an official who read the NSA transcript, Harman hung
up after saying, “This conversation doesn’t exist.”…
“It’s the deepest kind of corruption,” “It’s a story about the corruption of government — not legal corruption necessarily, but ethical corruption.”
Note the most critical statement in this excerpt: that the suspected Israeli agent would lobby Nancy Pelosi on Harman's behalf. Pelosi's a Dem from California, Harman's another. And an Israeli agent has more influence on Pelosi than Harman… Why? Who's talking to who here, and who's leveraging who? FYI: Pelosi snubbed Harman for the intelligence job. Note that Time Magazine had this story, without the wiretap or AIPAC angle, 2 years back, and had Harman blowing off a briefing on Capitol Hill for a talk at the Saban Center, sponsored by Haim Saban–and Harman quipping that she'll blow off anything for the giant donor. Finally a little journalism about the Israel lobby?
said a recently retired longtime national security official who was
closely involved in AIPAC investigation, “which was years in the making.
How delicious would it be to have the Patriot Act wind up netting not an al qaida operative but rather, a nest of AIPAC spies lurking in our midst?
Very!
Weiss: "Note the most critical statement in this excerpt: that the suspected Israeli agent would lobby Nancy Pelosi on Harman's behalf. Pelosi's a female Dem from California, Harman's another. And an Israeli agent has more influence on Pelosi than Harman… Why?"
This reminds me of the excuse that Larry Franklin gave for passing secret intelligence to AIPAC's Steve Rosen and Keith Weissman. He claimed he wanted their help in pressuring the US government to change policy in northern Iraq.
I always suspected who Rep. Harman was actually working for. It's nice to have proof.
This is an exceptionally disturbing development. Here's hoping that Harman has severe consequences for this activity — she is a traitor to America.
Well here's another story we can be pretty confident WON'T make it into the NYTimes.
"Note the most critical statement in this excerpt: that the suspected Israeli agent would lobby Nancy Pelosi on Harman's behalf."
It reminds me of AIPAC's Rosen and Weissman (and Naor Gilman) promising poor Larry Franklin that they'd "see what they could do" about getting him a job on the Security Council.
This is very painful if not surprising. I supported Jane when she ran in the Democratic primary for governor. She was the best candidate at that time, but lost to Grey Davis in a very confusing primary that included Cecchi. (he was self financed and used his many millions of dollars to knock out the front runner Harmon that only resulted in what should have been the third place finisher Davis ending up in first). In any case this is a very good example for how the lobby has corrupted not only what should be good democrats but our whole political process.
BTW, I remain a Democratic Party activist that hopes one of these days the big money folks are defeated.
Arndt said Eichmann's main character trait was obsession to climb the corporate ladder–hence she coined the term "the banality of evil."
Harman.. still nicely embedded in Homeland Security note!
Haim "I'm-a-one-issue-guy" Saban is involved here. According to Time three years ago–
"Harman 'had some major contributors call Pelosi to impress upon her the importance of keeping Jane in place. According to these members, this tactic, too, hasn't endeared Harman to Pelosi.' A congressional source tells TIME that the lobbbying for Harman has included a phone call several months ago from entertainment industry billionaire and major Democratic party contributor Haim Saban."
Later in the piece:
"The identity of the “suspected Israeli agent” could not be determined with certainty, and officials were extremely skittish about going beyond Harman’s involvement to discuss other aspects of the NSA eavesdropping operation against Israeli targets, which remain highly classified."
Israeli "targets". Plural. The Israeli government has been doing more than just having two guys at AIPAC collect information. This could blow up into a huge scandal if it comes out.
EXCERPT FROM THE "CONGRESSIONAL QUARTERLY" (CQ) ARTICLE:
"…According to two officials privy to the events, Gonzales said he “needed Jane” to help support the administration’s warrantless wiretapping program, which was about to be exposed by the New York Times.
Harman, he told Goss, had helped persuade the newspaper to hold the wiretap story before, on the eve of the 2004 elections…"
MY COMMENT: That's a good Democrat for you! Had the story been printed before the 2004 election, Kerry probably would have won.
Is this why Obama said Ix-Nay on stopping domestic wiretapping? We were catching the 'enemy within'?
Notice how the Lobby tried to blunt this last week with lurid headline teases (HuffPo in particular) that the 'NSA was caught spying on a US Congressman'. [When Congressional Quarterly's news today is that the NSA wiretap was approved by FISA.]
Anyone know if there is any relationship between Jane Harman and Fred Harman, the new board member of HuffPo?
This story show that Zionists do not distinguish party lines, in fact they are the War Party.
Wayne Madsen had the AIPAC angle on Nov, 15, 2006.
Here's another Madsen tidbit from late January, 2009 that might explain the Pelosi-hatred being frothed up by Republican pundits and dished out with early morning coffee by Joe Scarborough:
The link for the CQ story which Phil omitted:
link to cqpolitics.com
Wouldn't it be delicious if the Israeli "agent" was Naor Gilon, the Israeli attache who conspired with Weissman & Rosen to get the U.S. secret documents via Larry Franklin. Gilon mysteriously left town very quickly after the 2 accused spies were charged.
Gilon will become Avigdor Lieberman's #2 in the foreign ministry, yet another slap at the U.S. That shouldn't be a surprise. In the last Israeli government, one of the ministers was the former Mossad agent who "ran" Jonathan Pollard.
"One such transfer of "bags" of documents was witnessed occurring between Franklin and a important official of the OSP at the Rockville, Maryland Metro parking lot."
One problem. There were no documents and Rosen and Weissman are not accused of passing documents. You people really need to read the case. Which by the way is a loser.
Julian, exactly what I was about to say! This discussion has degenerated into a flurry of wild conspiracy theories (that has descended to the depths of the Wayne Madsen Web site).
The CQ article linked to by Phil contains absolutely no traceable facts, other than anonymous sources and unnamed suspected agents of Israel.
You're absolutely correct. Rosen and Weissman were not accused of espionage. They were accused under the Espionage Act of 1917 of receiving documents from Franklin who, in turn, was recruited by the FBI. I would say that this case borders on entrapment and, as you say, is a real loser.
Julian & JES
Hasbara agents
part of the 5th column
But Phil's Phools don't care about facts. They sense Jewish blood in the water and are now in a kill frenzy. A bunch of antisemitic losers.
Stein's entire story should be read. It's a model of excellent reporting, as it relies on numerous sources with first-hand knowledge of the NSA transcripts (and what sweet justice it would be if Harman's guilt were established by government eavesdropping). It should be noted that Harman has issued a general denial of wrongdoing (but does not appear to deny that she had the discussion Stein reports), and the sources in Stein's story are anonymous (though because they're disclosing classified information and exposing government wrongdoing, it's classic case of when anonymity is justifiable, and note Stein's efforts to provide as much information as possible about his sources and why they are anonymous).
JES:
"Rosen and Weissman were not accused of espionage. They were accused under the Espionage Act of 1917 of receiving documents from Franklin who, in turn, was recruited by the FBI."
They were accused of receiving classified information not documents. There were no documents given to Israel.
No policy information that had not already been written about countless times. No spy ring.
There is an interesting article in the left wing blog Secrecy News.
link to fas.org
Someone wrote:
"Rosen and Weissman were not accused of espionage. They were accused under the Espionage Act of 1917…."
Hilarious. The word "espionage" not only has a colloquial meaning—spying essentially—but indeed is overwhelmingly used and understood that way. And then moreover these AIPAC fellows are even further being prosecuted under the law whose technical name is indeed the "Espionage Act."
Makes you laugh at the level of speakers who torture words around like this and use such ridiculous (and undisclosed) definitions. Presumably they believe that there are important others out there who who will indeed be suitably confused or persuaded thereby, but my goodness; what does it say of the speakers to believe that?
@ Julian | April 20, 2009 at 06:43 AM
One problem. There were no documents and Rosen and Weissman are not accused of passing documents.
A treasure trove of classified documents of interest to Israel going back decades was found at Mr. Franklin's home. It is an error to assume that the charges laid out against Mssrs Franklin, Rosen, and Weissman comprise the entirety of their treasonous activity against the United States. The counts against them are the 'low-hanging fruit'. If they are convicted more charges can be brought based on new or un-presented evidence, or perhaps they could be shown mercy if they cooperate in rolling up even bigger fish. It has been stated many times that the Franklin episode is part of a much larger investigation of AIPAC.
@ JES | April 20, 2009 at 07:00 AM
They were accused under the Espionage Act of 1917 of receiving documents from Franklin who, in turn, was recruited by the FBI.
LOL!
Readers, Mr. Franklin wasn't 'recruited' by the FBI, he turned state's evidence. They presented him with evidence enough to convince him that they had him by the short and curlies, and he agreed to cooperate to help catch his co-conspirators. Don't take anyone's hooey at face value, and pay attention once the trial starts on 28 May.
USA v. Steven Rosen and Keith Weissman ("The AIPAC Case"): Selected Case Files
Let the AIPAC Spy Trial Begin – Why prosecuting Weissman and Rosen matters
Them or Us – AIPAC on Trial
Mr. Franklin wasn't 'recruited' by the FBI, he turned state's evidence. They presented him with evidence enough to convince him that they had him by the short and curlies, and he agreed to cooperate….
Colin, I'd say that that qualifies as having been "recruited"!
I would say that the last two of the references you cite are "reputible". ROFLMFAO!!
Julian, thanks for the clarification. You are correct. There were no documents that changed hands.
@ JES
"A treasure trove of classified documents of interest to Israel going back decades was found at Mr. Franklin's home."
Does the government allege anywhere that these documents were give to Weissman and Rosen? Were they given to Israel? Have you read the case against Rosen and Weissman?
You have a vivid imagination. If the government had a stronger case to get a conviction, they would have presented it.
What they have is a weak 1917 law that has never been used and the preeminent expert on classified documents J William Leonard testifying for the defense.
Israeli spies? In my America? Get out of town! I'm shocked!
I note that JES, Julian and Berel waited until some of the commenters here began touting conspiracy theories to chime in. This is called trying to throw the baby out with the bathwater.
Yes, some of the conspiracy talk in this comments section is a bit much. But make no mistake: the CQ story is serious and raises profound questions about the influence of th "pro-Israel" lobby within the U.S. Congress. As Josh Marsahll wrote at TPM this morning: "This story is so radioactive it's hard to know which of fifty different directions to go with it."
Even if there is a legal technicality that saves Harman from prosecution (and I suspect there probably is, since the "agent" she was talking to may well have been an American citizen) it doesn't undo the fact she turned to the "pro-Israel" lobby when she needed behind-the-scenes help to save her committee perch. This calculation is very telling.
Julian,
You have me confused with Colin Murray.
JES, thanks for the thanks. You are correct, I was correct. And these other people are antisemites and phools.
Two things "Contrarian":
First, I think that the conspiracy theories began with the original posting itself, so I don't think that there was anything in particular to wait for.
Second, if you trouble yourself to read the article in CQ, you'll see that Rep. Harman was not the one who initiated the phone call (apparently the NSA was tapping the "suspected agent's" line), and it is not clear at all that she was the one who initially brought up the possibility of intervening on behalf of Rosen and Weissman. In other words, I'm not sure how much of a "fact" it is that Rep. Harman "turned to the "pro-Israel" lobby when she needed behind-the-scenes help to save her committee perch."
Good point Contrarian.
This story is important. It's good that it's being reported. Focus on the facts and don't give the trolls any opportunities to change the subject.
Julian,
Thanks for the link to the FAS site. It occured to me: Weren't the anonymous sources "familiar" with the transcripts of the wiretaps who spoke with Stein not at least as guilty as Rosen and Weissman of passing classified information to someone who should not have seen it?
Ron Kampeas at JTA is pretty certain there's nothing to this story. And he's just written 1000 words to prove it.
(With stories like this, it's very important to be the first to spin them.)
JES,
It doesn't really matter who contacted whom. Why you're quibbling over this is beyond me. What is reported in the CQ article is that during the conversation Harman was pressed to use her weight to try to kill the AIPAC prosecution. She agreed andmade clear that she wanted the "agent" to whom she was speaking to weigh in on her behalf with Pelosi. This is fairly clear-cut. The only proper response from Harman would have been: "This conversation is over."
Again, outrage over this is not a phenomenon of this blog or its commenters. Go look around the web. This story is making waves today — precisely because it is so clear-cut. Josh Marshall has now done 4 posts on it in about 3 hours.
Did you read that people – Julian and JED say this is about 'antisemitism'. Do you have a source for that boys?
And Antiwar is an excellent source, JED. But then it tells the truth about the Israeli fascist regime so I can see why it doesn't pass your hasbara test.
What a couple of jokers, lol…
In a non-ZOG congress, Harman would be called on to resign (if not charged with crimes outright).
Ah…the old carnards….Jews as traitors to and minipulators of the countries they live in for tribal and Israeli interest.
Unfortunately, it is true. Also unfortunately, it isn't true of all Jews, but the acts of their 'leaders' tar Jews as a whole to most of the public who don't follow blogs like this to ferret out who is who in the jewish/zionist world.
The US needs to rid itself of Israeli centric Jews and AIPAC bought gentile traitors in our government if we are ever going to have a govenment that represents the American people instead of just Jewish/Israeli interest.
Needless to say we could apply that need to many other types and sources of corruption in congress.
Harman is an example of why I never objected to the wiretapping issues. If you have a decent Justice department the potential benefits to exposing corruption and what most citizens would view as outright treason far out weigh the individual privacy issues.
I don't even view our economic down fall as totally bad if it rouses and focuses the public ire on all the political corruption..from congress to WS to Israel and foreign lobbies…all those special interest that have turned our democratic representation into nothing but a international shopping bazzare for anyone with 30 pieces of silver.
I don't know where the jewish/Israeli thing will end for the jews or the US but I know it has now become such a corruption it will end one way or another in the long run.
Yes yes yes. I just posted a letter on this same article elsewhere a few moments ago. So nice to see AIPAC mucking up again.
We have been watching the people of America begin to open their eyes about the creatures among them and every incident like this gets a little more exposure although, as with the Charles Freeman case, the surge has to come from the blogosphere. Mainstream media will only print if they MUST and even then try to put their own spin and damage control into action.
But as these creatures of dark operations are exposed by the light of day as the thieves, liars and hypocrites they are, they lose a little more credibility and power.
And I still say, Power to the People. It is up to us to make sure stories do not go away until they have made a serious dent in the crime rings of thugs who are attempting to stifle us all.
RE: "The link for the CQ story which Phil omitted:"
MY COMMENT: The link is in Mr. Weiss' post. The words "Amazing report by Jeff Stein at CQ" in his post are of a slightly different color and they are underlined. If you click on any part of that series of words, it will forward you to the CQ article.
MEMO
TO: Phil the Assimilationist
FROM: John the Acolyte
Please, my Dear Lord, use a higher contrasting colour for your links. The dark blue is very tasteful, but it is not easily distinguished from the black text.
Sincerely,
Your Most Devoted Acolyte John
Contrarian,
You say that:
What is reported in the CQ article is that during the conversation Harman was pressed to use her weight to try to kill the AIPAC prosecution. She agreed andmade clear that she wanted the "agent" to whom she was speaking to weigh in on her behalf with Pelosi.
Where does it say that in the CQ article? You show me where that nexus is "pretty clear cut", and I'll buy you a dring.
Stevieb,
The name is JES. You show me where I used the term anti-Semitism or even alluded to it, and I'll eat my hat!
RE: "Phil the Assimilationist/John the Acolyte"
SEE – link to realisticdove.org
Go look around the web. This story is making waves today….
Well then, gawlee Contrarian. I guess it must be true! (Just like the Protocols of the Elders of Zion.)
Dave:
"Israeli "targets". Plural. The Israeli government has been doing more than just having two guys at AIPAC collect information. This could blow up into a huge scandal if it comes out."
The Aipac case is how old. When is the scandal going to break?
Dave:
"Israeli "targets". Plural. The Israeli government has been doing more than just having two guys at AIPAC collect information. This could blow up into a huge scandal if it comes out."
The Aipac case is how old. When is the scandal going to break?
Julian
Julian
Could you stop posting
Could you stop posting
your inanities
your inanities
twice?
twice?
Thank you
Thank you
Thank you
Thank you
Why?
Why?
The truth pisses off nazis like Rykart two (pun) many times?
Good luck. Allah ya teek al alfya. It is so important to let the Palestinians know that there are people outside living in the real world who care about them. That Israel is wrong and that occupation and cruelty are not Jewish values.