Dan Froomkin writes an entirely invaluable column for the Washington Post called White House Briefing which you should try to read daily (Monday through Friday anyway.) Often this is little more than snarky gossip from the journo-industrial complex, but he's doing some real journalism the last few days.
Did you know there was such a thing as the "Commission on the Intelligence Capabilities of the United States Regarding Weapons of Mass Destruction," or that the panel was created by an executive order of President Bush in February? I didn't think you did. I didn't either.
Why they're so concerned, considering the way they've stacked the membership of this body, I'm not sure. But their dedication to openness and transparency can be guessed from this note to nosy lawyers with the National Resource Defense Council and the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, groups who for some reason want to be involved in this matter:
"Because of the inherently sensitive nature of the materials it will be reviewing during the course of its work, the Commission's offices will be contained within a Sensitive Compartmentalized Information Facility ("SCIF")...providing public access to those offices would raise security concerns, and accordingly [we are] exploring various locations for its reading room."
Per the Federal register notice of May 13: "Members of the public who wish to submit a written statement to the Commission are invited to do so by facsimile at (202) 456 -- 7921. Comments also may be sent to the Commission by e-mail at comments@wmd.gov"
"The commission will have a Web site, at wmd.gov, up and running in the near future, [commission and former WH spokesflack Larry] McQuillan says.
I just wonder if there will be anything on it." [end Froomkin remarks]
Brethren and sistren, I know it's getting to be Commission Overload time. Earlier this week we were cursing the networks for putting on the 9-11 Commission testimony because that is now Old News, when we wanted the Senate Icky Pictures Committee testimony instead. Neither of those panels is done with their work, so we're now going to have THREE of the damn things to keep track of.
I not only think we can do it, we may be the ONLY ones who can do it. If, for instance one Mr. Chalabi suffers a tragic accident before he can testify here for instance, we at least will know why.
According to Froom, there was posted "a notice in the Federal Register of [the commission's] intention to hold a closed meeting May 26-27". So we know who, and we know when. We may have to raise some hell to find out any more, or get it out in the open air and healing sunlight.
