Gangster Government
A Leaky President Runs Afoul Of 'Little Rico'
Buzzflash
by Greg Palast
Sunday, April 9, 2006
It's a crime. No kidding. But the media has it all wrong. As usual.
'Scooter' Libby finally outed 'Mr. Big,' the perpetrator of the heinous disclosure of the name of secret agent Valerie
Plame. It was the President of United States himself -- in conspiracy with his Vice-President. Now the pundits are
arguing over whether our war-a-holic President had the legal right to leak this national security information. But,
that's a fake debate meant to distract you.
OK, let's accept the White House alibi that releasing Plame's identity was no crime. But if that's true, they've
committed a BIGGER crime: Bush and Cheney knowingly withheld vital information from a grand jury investigation, a
multimillion dollar inquiry the perps themselves authorized. That's akin to calling in a false fire alarm or calling the
cops for a burglary that never happened -- but far, far worse. Let's not forget that in the hunt for the perpetrator of
this non-crime, reporter Judith Miller went to jail.
Think about that. While Miller sat in a prison cell, Bush and Cheney were laughing their sick heads off, knowing the
grand jury testimony, the special prosecutor's subpoenas and the FBI's terrorizing newsrooms were nothing but fake props
in Bush's elaborate charade, Cheney's Big Con.
On February 10, 2004, our not-so-dumb-as-he-sounds President stated, "Listen, I know of nobody -- I don't know of
anybody in my administration who leaked classified information. If somebody did leak classified information, I'd like to
know it, and we'll take the appropriate action. And this investigation is a good thing. ...And if people have got solid
information, please come forward with it."
Notice Bush's cleverly crafted words. He says he can't name anyone who leaked this "classified" info -- knowing full
well he'd de-classified it. Far from letting Bush off the hook, it worsens the crime. For years, I worked as a
government investigator and, let me tell you, Bush and Cheney withholding material information from the grand jury is a
felony. Several felonies, actually: abuse of legal process, fraud, racketeering and, that old standby, obstruction of
justice.
If you or I had manipulated the legal system this way, we'd be breaking rocks on a chain gang. We wouldn't even get a
trial -- most judges would consider this a "fraud upon the court" and send us to the slammer in minutes using the
bench's power to administer instant punishment for contempt of the judicial system.
Why'd they do it? The White House junta did the deed for the most evil of motives: to hoodwink the public during the
2004 election campaign, to pretend that evil anti-Bush elements were undermining the Republic, when it was the Bush
element itself at the center of the conspiracy. (Notably, elections trickery also motivated Richard Nixon's "plumbers"
to break into the Watergate, then the Democratic Party campaign headquarters.)
Let me draft the indictment for you as I would have were I still a government gumshoe:
"Perpetrator Lewis Libby (alias, 'Scooter') contacted Miller; while John Doe 1 contacted perpetrators' shill at the
Washington Post, Bob Woodward, in furtherance of a scheme directed by George Bush (alias 'The POTUS') and Dick Cheney
(alias, 'The Veep') to release intelligence information fraudulently proffered as 'classified,' and thereinafter,
knowingly withheld material evidence from a grand jury empanelled to investigate said disclosure. Furthermore,
perpetrator 'The POTUS' made material statements designed to deceive investigators and knowingly misrepresent his state
of knowledge of the facts."
Statements aimed at misleading grand jury investigators are hard-time offenses. It doesn't matter that Bush's too-clever
little quip was made to the press and not under oath. I've cited press releases and comments in the New York Times in
court as evidence of fraud. By not swearing to his disingenuous statement, Bush gets off the perjury hook, but he
committed a crime nonetheless, "deliberate concealment."
Here's how the law works (and hopefully, it will). The Bush gang's use of the telephone in this con game constituted
wire fraud. Furthermore, while presidents may leak ("declassify") intelligence information, they may not obstruct
justice; that is, send a grand jury on a wild goose chase. Under the 'RICO' statute (named after the Edward G. Robinson
movie mobster, 'Little Rico'), the combination of these crimes makes the Bush executive branch a "racketeering
enterprise."
So, book'm, Dan-o. Time to read The POTUS and The Veep their rights.
After setting their bail (following the impeachments and removals, of course), a judge will have a more intriguing
matter to address. The RICO law requires the Feds to seize all "ill-gotten gains" of a racketeering enterprise, even
before trial. Usually we're talking fast cars and diamond bling. But in this case, the conspirators' purloined booty
includes a stolen election and a fraudulently obtained authorization for war. I see no reason why a judge could not
impound the 82d Airborne as "fruits of the fraud " -- lock, stock and gun barrels -- and bring the boys home.
And if justice is to be done we will will also have to run yellow tape across the gates at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue --
"CRIME SCENE - DO NOT ENTER" -- and return the White House to its rightful owners, the American people, the victims of
this gangster government.
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Former racketeering investigator Greg Palast is author of "ARMED MADHOUSE: Dispatches from the Front Lines of the Class
War," to be released in June. Subscribe to the new podcast of our columns at www.GregPalast.com