[Now that Yahoogroups is back to normal function I'm re-sending this email so folks who don't read their messages online can see it too.] From: "CraigGingold" <gingold@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> Date sent: Fri, 05 May 2006 02:09:35 -0700 Whoa -- this "free speech" stuff is starting to get out of hand. Why, if this sort of thing catches on, there's no telling where it could lead -- maybe even to something really far-fetched... like, democracy? In stark contrast to the network news blackout on Stephen Colbert's 20-minute long, take-no-prisoners mock-salute to George Bush last Saturday, all three evening news broadcasts gave prominent coverage to Ray McGovern's pointed interrogation of Donald Rumsfeld on his personal trail of lies and the three anti-war protesters who were hustled out of the auditorium after vociferous interruptions. (For my money, the high point was the unnamed man who told Rumsfeld that he's a war criminal and a serial killer.) Fortunately, there's a lovely right-wing media-watch website that has already posted full transcripts of all the fun & games. I'm leaving their intro paragraph to give a little flavor of where they're coming from, but then straight to the news transcripts. (if you just *have* to see the rest it's at http://newsbusters.org/node/5229 ) As for the big national papers, the NYT is still asleep at the switch and the Post ran an AP story -- only the LA Times ran a full-blown article by its own correspondent. Amazingly, the Voice of America (voanews.com) also thought it rated a full story! So here's the LA Times piece, followed by the network transcripts. Craig Gingold (near) Midpines CA +++++++++++++++++++++ LOS ANGELES TIMES Critics of the Iraq War Put Rumsfeld on the Defensive His speech in Atlanta is interrupted three times. In a Q&A, a former CIA analyst calls him a liar. By Peter Spiegel Times Staff Writer May 5, 2006 WASHINGTON -- When Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld goes on the road to deliver a speech, it's usually in front of a relatively respectful audience: U.S. troops stationed overseas, the Council on Foreign Relations and the Marine Corps-Law Enforcement Foundation dinner have been among his appearances this year. An audience in Atlanta on Thursday turned out to be a bit different. Rumsfeld was interrupted three times by antiwar protesters during his speech, and during a question-and-answer session afterward he was forced to defend himself against charges by a former high-ranking CIA analyst that he intentionally lied to push the U.S. into war in Iraq. Rumsfeld sought to make light of the flak during his address to the Southern Center for International Studies, a nonprofit educational group, telling the audience the protesters were just a few "close personal friends" of Peter White, the center's president. Ray McGovern, a 27-year CIA veteran who once gave then-President George H.W. Bush his morning intelligence briefings, engaged in what became an extended debate with Rumsfeld after asking why the Defense secretary had insisted before the Iraq invasion that there was "bulletproof evidence" linking Saddam Hussein to Al Qaeda. "Was that a lie, Mr. Rumsfeld, or was that manufactured somewhere else? Because all of my CIA colleagues disputed that and so did the 9/11 Commission," McGovern asked near the start of the 45-minute question-and-answer session. "Why did you lie to get us into a war that was not necessary?" At the start of the exchange, Rumsfeld remained his usual unflappable self, insisting, "I haven't lied; I did not lie then," before launching into a vigorous defense of the administration's prewar assertions on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. But Rumsfeld became uncharacteristically tongue-tied when McGovern pressed him on claims that he knew where unconventional Iraqi weapons were located. "You said you knew where they were," McGovern said. "I did not. I said I knew where suspected sites were," Rumsfeld retorted. McGovern then read from statements the Defense secretary had made that weapons were located near Tikrit, Iraq, and Baghdad, which led Rumsfeld to briefly stammer. The Defense secretary recovered after admonishing a security guard who was trying to push McGovern away from the microphone. "It is easy for you to make a charge," Rumsfeld said, recovering his composure and insisting U.S. troops believed they would encounter chemical or biological weapons. Rumsfeld went on to field a dozen other questions, including from a woman whose son was killed in Iraq and who asked about help for the children of slain service members. Rumsfeld asked her to submit her name to Southern Center officials. "And I'm so sorry about your son," Rumsfeld said. In an interview after the speech, McGovern, 66, who lives in the Washington area, said he obtained a ticket for Thursday's address through an acquaintance who had forwarded him an e-mail invitation. The invitation directed him to a website that asked for detailed information about his background. "I filled it all out and, lo and behold, there was a ticket in the mail," he said. White, the center's president, said he had sent invitations to a wide range of civic and business groups, noting the Pentagon had put no restrictions on who should be included. "This was not any polished group," White said. "That's how you get credibility." Rumsfeld has a long association with the Southern Center, which holds regular gatherings of former Defense secretaries and secretaries of State, programs that are later broadcast on PBS. White said Rumsfeld had been a regular participant. "I don't think it caused him any discomfort," White said of Thursday's disruptions. "He's unflappable." McGovern said his question was prompted by Rumsfeld's response to one of the three antiwar protesters who interrupted the Defense secretary's prepared address, accusing him of lying about prewar intelligence. "That charge is frequently leveled against the president for one reason or another, and it is so wrong, so unfair and so destructive of a free system where people need to trust each other and government," Rumsfeld said after the protester had been whisked out of the room. The two other protesters stood up at various points in the speech and accused Rumsfeld of being a war criminal. A fourth demonstrator stood silently in the middle of the room, his back to Rumsfeld, with a badge on his suit jacket reading "impeach." The man stood throughout the speech and walked out on his own just before the question-and-answer session began. Times staff writer Julian Barnes contributed to this report. @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ CBS and NBC Lead by Trumpeting Anti-War Activists Confronting Rumsfeld's "Lies" Posted by Brent Baker on May 5, 2006 - 00:50. Matching cable news networks' interest during the day, two of the three broadcast networks (CBS and NBC, as well as MSNBC's Countdown) led Thursday night with how, at an event in Atlanta, a handful of protesters confronted Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and accused him of "war crimes" and "lying" about Iraq. ABC also aired a story, but put the Moussaoui sentencing first. All three featured former CIA analyst Ray McGovern who demanded: "Why did you lie to get us into a war that was not necessary?" But all failed to note McGovern's long record of hostility to the Bush administration. As McGovern boasted when he first got to the mike (video not shown by ABC, CBS or NBC), he's a co-founder of Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity and if you Google "Ray McGovern of CIA" you get a plethora of returns from far-left sites (DemocracyNow.org, antiwar.com, truthout.org, alternet.org, TomPaine.com and CommonDreams.org). <snip> The May 4 broadcast network evening newscast coverage of the attack on Rumsfeld as he spoke, in an auditorium, to the Southern Center for International Studies -- as compiled by the MRC's Brad Wilmouth who corrected the closed-captioning against the video: ABC's World News Tonight. Elizabeth Vargas, in opening teaser: "Secretary on the defense: Protesters and an ex-CIA analyst confront Donald Rumsfeld over his statements on weapons of mass destruction." Ray McGovern, former CIA analyst, off-camera: "I'd just like an honest answer." Donald Rumsfeld: "I'm giving it to you." Vargas soon got to the first segment story: "Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld was repeatedly challenged about the war on terror, and on Iraq, during a visit to Atlanta today. Several protesters were removed for disrupting his speech at the Southern Center for International Studies. Then, in a question and answer session, a former CIA analyst, who identified himself as Ray McGovern, accused Rumsfeld of lying about the reasons for invading Iraq." Ray McGovern, former CIA analyst, off-camera: "Atlanta, September 27, 2002, Donald Rumsfeld said, and I quote, 'There is bullet-proof evidence of links between al-Qaeda and the government of President Saddam Hussein.' Was that a lie, Mr. Rumsfeld? Or was that manufactured somewhere else? Because all of my CIA colleagues disputed that. And so did the 9/11 Commission." Donald Rumsfeld clip #1: "Well, first of all, I haven't lied. I did not lie then. (Applause) Colin Powell didn't lie. He spent weeks and weeks with the Central Intelligence Agency people and prepared a presentation that I know he believed was accurate. And he presented that to the United Nations." Rumsfeld clip #2: "It appears that there were not weapons of mass destruction there." McGovern, off-camera: "You said you knew where they were." Rumsfeld: "I did not. I said I knew where suspect sites were, and we were just --" McGovern, off-camera: "You said, you said you knew where they were, near Tikrit, near Baghdad, and north, east, south and west of there. Those are your words." Rumsfeld: "My words, my words were that, no, no, no. Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Let him stay one second. Just a second." McGovern: "This is America, huh?" Voice: "Go ahead." Rumsfeld: "You're getting plenty of play, sir." McGovern: "I'd just like an honest answer." Rumsfeld: "I'm giving it to you." Vargas: "The Defense Secretary in some spirited debate today." CBS Evening News. Bob Schieffer, in opening teaser: "I'm Bob Schieffer. Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld goes to Bush country and ends up in a debate with a retired CIA man." Schieffer opened: "Good evening. Not since the Vietnam War has a Secretary of Defense been under the kind of criticism that Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has been getting lately. A group of retired generals has called on him to resign, and today he caught it from another front when he went to what has been Bush country -- Georgia -- and ran head on into hecklers that included a former CIA analyst. Here's David Martin." David Martin: "Run of the mill hecklers were hauled away while one man simply turned his back on the Defense Secretary in silent protest. But a retired CIA officer waited his turn to ask a question, and then went for Rumsfeld's throat." Ray McGovern, former CIA analyst, off-camera: "Why did you lie to get us into a war that was not necessary?" Martin: "He was asking about faulty prewar intelligence on Iraq. When guards started to take him away, Rumsfeld stepped in." Donald Rumsfeld: "No, no, no. Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Let him stay one second." McGovern, off-camera: "Your allegation that there was bullet-proof evidence of ties between al-Qaeda and Iraq. Was that a lie or were you misled?" Rumsfeld: "Zarqawi was in Baghdad during the prewar period. That is a fact." McGovern, off-camera: "Zarqawi, he was in the north of Iraq in a place where Saddam Hussein had no rule. That's where he was." Rumsfeld: "He was also in Baghdad." McGovern: "Come on, these people aren't idiots. They know the story." Martin: "Zarqawi is certainly in Iraq now, and today the U.S. military tried to take his fearsome image down a notch by releasing scenes edited out of a video he had posted on the Internet. His weapon apparently jams, and he needs help clearing it." Major General Rick Lynch, U.S. military spokesperson: "The warrior leader Zarqawi who doesn't understand how to operate his weapon system and has to rely on his subordinates to clear a weapon stoppage. It makes you wonder." Martin: "But the Zarqawi blooper reel was upstaged by the ex-CIA officer who also accused Rumsfeld of lying about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction." McGovern: "You said you knew where they were." Rumsfeld: "I did not. I said I knew where suspect sites were, and we were just --" McGovern: "You said, you said you knew where they were, near Tikrit, near Baghdad, and north, east, south and west of there. Those are your words." Rumsfeld: "Why do you think that the men and women in uniform every day when they came out of Kuwait and went into Iraq put on chemical weapon protective suits? Because they liked the style?" Martin: "This is not the first time a former CIA officer has accused the Bush administration of misusing intelligence. But, Bob, it's never been done in such an in-your-face way." NBC Nightly News. Brian Williams, in opening teaser: "War of words: Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has a tough time escaping his critics during a speech today in Atlanta." Williams led: "Good evening. Today the Secretary of Defense received a blunt and personal reminder of the split in this country over the war in Iraq. While U.S. service men and women serve and fight and die overseas, today's speech in Atlanta by the President's man at the Pentagon was peppered with interruptions and responses like the one you're about to see." Woman in audience, shouting and being removed: "You lied to the American people! ... You lied! You lied that Iraq's oil would pay for the war! You lied about everything the CIA told you was lies! But you lied! You lied! You're a liar!" Donald Rumsfeld: "That charge is frequently leveled against the President for one reason or another, and it is so wrong and so unfair and so destructive of a free system where people need to trust each other and government, and the idea that people in government are lying about something is fundamentally destructive of that trust and at bedrock untrue." Williams: "That is how the day went for Donald Rumsfeld who battled back from each interruption with help from the mostly supportive and respectful audience to try to get his own message across. We get more on the event and the protest tonight from NBC News Pentagon correspondent Jim Miklaszewski. Jim, good evening." Jim Miklaszewski, at the Pentagon: "Good evening, Brian. Today's protests join a growing chorus of criticism against the Secretary and follow the calls from at least six retired Generals for Rumsfeld's resignation. Under heavy political fire in Washington, Defense Secretary Rumsfeld ran into a firestorm of public protests today in Atlanta." Woman holding sign about "war crimes" that other wrestle away from her: "You personally ordered an illegal war in Iraq! You are planning a nuclear war in Iran!" Miklaszewski: "Only three minutes into his speech, Rumsfeld was interrupted at least three times by protesters shouting their opposition to the war in Iraq." Woman: You lied! You lied that Iraq's oil would pay for the war!" Miklaszewski: "The protests turned personal and ugly." Man in audience: "How can you sit here and listen to this war criminal? You are a serial killer! This man needs to be impeached like George Bush! How can you sit here and listen to this criminal? You're a war criminal, Rumsfeld!" Miklaszewski: "One silent protester turned his back on Rumsfeld showing a sticker calling for impeachment [sticker of an image of a peach with "Impeach" over it]. But the most contentious exchange came during questions from the audience." Ray McGovern, Retired CIA Analyst: "Why did you lie to get us into a war that was not necessary that has caused these kinds of casualties? Why?" Donald Rumsfeld: "Well, first of all, I haven't lied. I did not lie then." Miklaszewski: "But the questioner, a long-retired CIA analyst, persisted, challenging Rumsfeld's claims Saddam Hussein had prior links to al-Qaeda." McGovern: "Was that a lie or were you misled?" Rumsfeld: "Zarqawi was in Baghdad during the prewar period. That is a fact." Miklaszewski: "Now, Rumsfeld appeared to pretty much hold his own during today's protest, but given the political season and an increasingly unpopular war in Iraq, officials here predict this won't be the last, Brian." ======================================================== Yahoo! Groups Links ------- End of forwarded message ------- ------------------------ Yahoo! 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