Update: Tom Maguire catches the irony of Pincus commenting on leaks regarding Plame (who else would know better!).

End Update

Why are Democrats defending the leaks? Their plan was to create scandals against Bush to undercut public support – and that plan is sort of working. But the plan can backfire if the public believes they were set up by planted stories leaked by partisans (which we conservatives see has happening). When I look at the Washington Post this morning and read the statements from the Democrats, they makes no strategic political sense (Walter Pincus no less):

Key Democratic legislators yesterday joined Republicans in saying they do not condone the alleged leaking of classified information that led to last week’s firing of a veteran CIA officer. But they questioned whether a double standard exists that lets the White House give reporters secretly declassified information for political purposes.

The voters are NOT (amazing what happens when you leave out a few letters) that stupid. I know Democrats have an extremely poor image of the average voter and insult their intelligence just by every day. I know there are polls out there supposedly projecting an equivalence because of the biased news stories. But this is a really dangerous game to play.

When people find out the President is authorized to present intlelligence to the public, especially when explaining the reasons to go to war (what was JFK doing with the pictures of Cuban missile sites, what was Colin Powell doing at the UN?), the realization that they were mistaken is pretty abrupt. And then they want to understand why they were mistaken. And if they were mislead they get angry and never, ever consider that source credible again. So why play this game?

Pincus recounts the Rep Jane Harman gaffe from yesterday, which illustrates a stupendous ignorance of how our government works. I discussed this yesterday in a previous post. Kerry chimed in as well:

Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) echoed Harman, saying, “A CIA agent has an obligation to uphold the law, and clearly leaking is against the law. And nobody should leak.” But he added: “If you’re leaking to tell the truth, Americans are going to look at that, at least mitigate or think about what are the consequences that you . . . put on that person.”

Then, in perfect Kerry fashion, he flips sides and is glad someone leaked national secrets (hidden inside unfounded claims):

Kerry, on ABC’s “This Week,” said, “Classification in Washington is a tool that is used to hide the truth from the American people.” He added, “I’m glad she told the truth,” but if McCarthy did it, she will have to face the consequences of breaking the law.

So it is wrong, the people leaking should be punished, but there are some mitigating factors to consider in sentencing. Ah! It is clear now. The Democrats are trying to make the case for LENIENCY! The comparison to Bush is to somehow create sympathy for the poor criminal. Pincus, in running the defense team for today, cannot even admit McCarthy is an admitted criminal:

McCarthy, while working for CIA Inspector General John L. Helgerson, is alleged to have “knowingly and willfully shared classified intelligence, including operational information” to journalists including The Washington Post’s Dana Priest.

She is equally ‘alleged’ to have admitted to her crimes. But Pincus doesn’t have space for that detail here, near the front of his defense motion.

What is stunning is we all know the Washington Post was an enabling partner in crime in this act of exposing national security secrets. Who does the post think they are kidding? They are trying to minimize their culpability and gain some sympathy as well, even thought, when presented with the classified information they did not turn the person in. They had opportunities to do the right thing, but the Pulitzer (i.e., pure greed) was out there clouding their judgement. The bribe that would make risking the crime worthwhile.

Back to the Democrats though. So, why stick your neck out for McCarthy and come to her defense? It is all downside to align yourself with a lying gossip. Kerry gives when he begins to link this to the Plame Game – which is another unforced error. The Plame Game is currently tied around the Bush administration’s neck. But it also seems to be crumbling apart.

Why ‘jump into jail’, as someone I once knew and admired used to admonition people who talked to much once things were going their way. It seems obvious. The Democrats feel they need to defend this action, because they are associated with it. I see no need to run out and defend Randy ‘Duke’ Cunningham’s bribes and greed. None. So why run out and defend McCarthy’s crimes?

We know Rockefeller and the Democrat leadership have a plan to undercut Bush and the Reps, and that planned relied on creating scandals out of thin air. The one thing Plame, the NSA leaks and the Prison leaks all have in common is they exposed classified information – only to give the scandal some reality! The made up part is always the Bush scandal, the reality is always intelligence methods, sources and information useful to our enemies.

The Democrats are linking the CIA leak story to Plame all on their own. They are making the connection for us. They linked the NSA story in there as well. The Senate Dems rush to the media to defend McCarthy is very telling. They appear to be trying to argue for compassion and leniency, as if to say it’s not her fault, something else drove her to do it.

Maybe that ‘something else’ was pressure from Senate Democrats? Maybe the pawns in the Democrat’s propaganda war are tired of being the career-equivolant to the Jihadi’s suicide bomber. Unlike suicide bombers, these sacrificial lambs who destroy their careers for ‘the cause’ have an opportunity to reflect and rethink their decisions. While Rockefeller stays in the Senate, these foot soldiers lose everything they built up in their lives, career-wise.
The Democrats sound nervous to me. McCarthy is not yet under arrest, but my guess is the one thing staying the DoJ hand is some sort of agreement to reduce the punishment. And they have good reason to be. If the media ever awakens from their groupie-love of the Democrats they will see signs of ‘the plan’ everywhere. James Lewis points out one such indicator at The American Thinker today:

Mary McCarthy is the fourth Clinton NSC member to assault the Bush White House. … Mary McCarthy was one. So was Joe Wilson – and his wife Val Plame, who presumably cooked up the phony Niger uranium documents scam, which now has Scooter Libby facing jailtime….Then we had Richard Clarke, who ran interference for the Clintonistas during the 9/11 Commission hearings…Then we have Sandy Burglar himself.

James forgets Rand Beers, who ran the foreign policy portion of Kerry’s campaign and for whom Mary McCarthy worked. This is not just councidence folks. Beers, Wilson and Berger all worked on Kerry’s campaign. So again I ask, why is Kerry out there on the news shows tarring himself with this scandal? Maybe the media will start connecting some dots, more charges are coming.