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Did the White House Sabotage the War on Terror by Leaking
the Name of an al Qaeda Double Agent?
Bush on Native American Issues: "Tribal Sovereignty
Means That. It's Sovereign"
Salman Rushdie on Terrorism, Intellectual freedom and the
Patriot Act
Time Reporter Refuses To Testify in Case of Outted CIA Operative
Did the White House Sabotage the War on Terror by
Leaking the Name of an al Qaeda Double Agent?
Pakistan and Britain are accusing the Bush administration
of undermining its fight against al Qaeda by revealing the
name of computer expert Mohammad Naeem Noor Khan while he
was still working as an undercover double agent. We speak
with Middle East expert and online blogger Juan Cole. [includes
rush
transcript]
New York senator Chuck Schumer is asking the White House
to explain how and why the name of an al-Qaeda informant arrested
in Pakistan last month was leaked to the press.
The name of computer expert Mohammad Naeem Noor Khan first
appeared in The New York Times last week. Pakistani intelligence
sources are accusing the Bush administration of undermining
its fight against al Qaeda by revealing Khan's name while
he was still working as an undercover double agent.
Unnamed U.S. officials leaked his name to the press in an
attempt of the Bush administration to defend last week's heightened
terror threat level. In a letter to National Security Adviser
Condoleezza Rice Schumer said that the disclosure of Khan's
capture may have complicated efforts to combat terror.
Meanwhile, The New York Times is reporting that a new portrait
of al Qaeda's inner workings is emerging from information
seized after Khan's arrest. The Times says intelligence analysts
find that a new generation of al Qaeda operatives appears
to be filling a vacuum created when leaders were killed or
captured. The information reveals a far more complex picture
of al Qaeda than President Bush has presented on his campaign
trail, where he has claimed that much of al Qaeda"s leadership
has been killed or captured.
- Juan Cole, Professor of Modern Middle East and South
Asian History at the History Department of the University
of Michigan. He runs an analytical website called "Informed
Comment" in which he provides a daily round-up
of news and events in Iraq and elsewhere in the Arab world.
Cole speaks fluent Arabic and Farsi and has lived all over
the Muslim world for extended periods of time.
Bush on Native American Issues: "Tribal Sovereignty
Means That. It's Sovereign"
When President Bush was questioned about tribal sovereignty
in the 21st century at a gathering of minority journalists
he responded: "Tribal sovereignty means that. It's sovereign.
You're a ... you're a ... you've been given sovereignty and
you're viewed as a sovereign entity." Jesse Jackson makes
light of Bush's remarks at the conference and we speak with
Mark Trahant, the reporter who asked Bush the question. [includes
rush
transcript]
The Unity conference wrapped up this weekend in Washington
DC. It was the largest conference of journalists in US history.
The event was organized by the four journalists of color organizations:
the National Association of Black Journalists, the National
Association of Hispanic Journalists, the Asian-American Journalists
Association and the Native American Journalists Association.
More than 7,500 journalists participated in the convention.
On Friday, President Bush was questioned about Native American
sovereignty and tribal issues.
(Tape)
- President Bush being questioned by journalist Mark Trahant
at the UNITY conference in Washington DC, August 6, 2004.
- Rev. Jesse Jackson makes light of President Bush's comments
on tribal sovereignty.
Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry addressed the
conference on Thursday a day earlier. After his appearance,
Kerry focused in on courting the votes of Latino and Native
American voters. In a swing through Arizona and New Mexico,
Kerry announced the formation of Native Americans for Kerry.
On Sunday in Gallup, New Mexico, Kerry spoke at the closing
powwow for the 83rd annual Intertribal Indian Ceremonial,
with more than 30 tribes participating. Kerry pledged to promote
tribal sovereignty and partner with tribes to improve access
to health care, provide more educational opportunities, and
strengthen economic development efforts. He announced he would
increase funding for the Indian Health Service and elevate
the Director of the IHS to a senior position in the administration,
saying he would appoint at least one Native American as a
Senior member of his administration who would have an office
in the White House. During his swing through New Mexico and
Arizona, Kerry picked up the endorsements of more than a dozen
Native American leaders.
- Mark Trahant, Editorial Page Editor for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.
He is a member of Idaho's Shoshone-Bannock Tribe and former
president of the Native American Journalists Association.
Salman Rushdie on Terrorism, Intellectual freedom
and the Patriot Act
Salman Rushdie, one of the most highly acclaimed writers
in the world, discusses the Bush administration, civil liberties
and war in a rare appearance in New York. Rushdie was forced
into hiding and lived underground for many years after Iran
issued a fatwa calling for his death following the publication
of his controversial novel The Satanic Verses. [includes rush
transcript]
Salman Rushdie is one of the most highly acclaimed writers
in the world today. His book Midnight's Children published
in 1981, won him the Booker Prize and brought him international
fame. But it was his fourth novel The Satanic Verses that
the Indian-British novelist is most known for. In the book,
Rushdie's transcription of the Quran is portrayed in an unconventional
light and one of the novel's main characters is modeled on
the Muslim Prophet Muhammad.
The Satanic Verses was quickly banned in India and South
Africa. In Iran, the late Ayatollah Khomeini issued a fatwa
calling on Muslims to execute Salman Rushdie and the publishers
of the book and a million-dollar reward was offered for Rushdie's
death. He was forced into hiding and lived underground for
many years. The fatwa was finally lifted in 1998.
In a rare appearance in the United States, Salman Rushdie
spoke at an event last week sponsored by the PEN American
Center, a fellowship of writers to advance literature, promote
a culture of reading, and to defend free expression.
Time Reporter Refuses To Testify in Case of Outted
CIA Operative
We speak with journalist David Corn of The Nation about
the case of Time magazine reporter Mathew Cooper. A federal
judge in Washington is him in contempt of court and has ordered
him jailed for refusing to name the government officials who
disclosed the identity of undercover CIA operative Valerie
Plame. [includes rush
transcript]
A federal judge in Washington is holding Time magazine reporter
Matthew Cooper in contempt of court and has ordered him jailed
for refusing to name the government officials who disclosed
the identity of undercover CIA operative Valerie Plame to
him. The magazine was also held in contempt and ordered to
pay a fine of $1,000 a day. Like Cooper, Tim Russert, of NBC's
"Meet the Press," received a subpoena in May. But
unlike Cooper, Russert agreed to cooperate. In a statement,
NBC said Mr. Russert was interviewed under oath by prosecutors
on Saturday. A Washington Post reporter, Glenn Kessler, was
interviewed by prosecutors in June. A second Post reporter,
Walter Pincus, said he received a subpoena yesterday. We are
joined now by a reporter who has been one of the leading journalists
on the story of Valerie Plame"s outting from the beginning.
- David Corn, Washington Editor of The Nation magazine.
He is also author of The Lies of George W. Bush: Mastering
the Politics of Deception.
For a copy of today’s program, call 1 (800) 881 2359.
Our website is www.democracynow.org.
Our email address is mail@democracynow.org.
Democracy Now! is produced by Mike Burke, Sharif Abdel Kouddous,
Ana Nogueira, Elizabeth Press, Jeremy Scahill and Parvez Sharma.
Mike Di Filippo is our engineer.
Thanks also to Uri Galed, Angela Alston, Orlando Richards,
Simba Russeau, Johnny Sender, Rich Kim, Joe Murgio, John Randolph,
Chris Zucker, Karen Ranucci, Denis Moynihan, Eric Rweyemamu,
Jenny Filipazzo and Isis Phillips.
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