Comments on: Panetta's Concern Revealed: Secret C.I.A-Blackwater Assassination Program

By: The Reverend

The Reverend — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 00:02:33 +0000

Blackwater's founder, Eric Prince, is a radical evangelical Christian nut who saw it as his duty to Christ to go and kill Muslims in Iraq for fun and profit.

Just the guys The Dick and the Decider were looking for to give a whole bunch of tax dollars to. Oh, and the torture-for-profit guys too.

Here's the problem Porfessor. None of this really matters. It doesn't matter what the law says and you know it. The president of the U.S. is above the law and can do whatever it is he wants for national security reasons. There's plenty of precedent. Nixon demonstrated clearly, that the president is absolutely above the law. Bush, the Younger simply took that precedent,and moved it to it's logical resting place. America, much like ancient Rome, now has a Divine King. None of that is surprising.

What's surprising is that's what Americans, apparently, want.

By: N. E. Frye

N. E. Frye — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 18:19:49 +0000

On the question of "where approproate", I would say that where a mamber of congress would not qualify for a security clearance if he were an ordinary government employee, he doesn't get the info no matter what it is. But the other problem is that in addition to being found not to be a security risk, you must have a 'need to know' There is no way I can see to answer that question re congressmen, but I'd favor the tightest possible interpretation on the theory that the fewer who know the fewer possibilities for leaks. Politicians being the kind of critturs they are I'd say that darn near all of them have a personality flaw that makes them untrustworthy with any important secret.

As to whether assassinating AQ's is covered by the XO of Reagan, it doesn't matter. Reagan hasn't been the Pres. for some time and any of his successors could countermand (or ignore) the order.