Regardless of party, it's time for members of Congress to start speaking out against this. Can we all agree now Rumsfeld's Pentagon is covering something up?
From the AP:
An officer who has claimed that a classified military unit identified four Sept. 11 hijackers before the 2001 attacks is facing Pentagon accusations of breaking numerous rules, allegations his lawyer suggests are aimed at undermining his credibility.
The alleged infractions by Army Lt. Col. Anthony Shaffer, 42, include obtaining a service medal under false pretenses, improperly flashing military identification while drunk and stealing pens, according to military paperwork shown by his attorney to The Associated Press.
More details below.
Voice of the Taciturn, a middle of the road conservative blogger with experience in the intelligence community, does a good job
rebuking each of the charges:
Contrary to popular belief, Generals pinning medals for valor on Rambo-like heroes immediately after displays of battlefield prowess don't happen in real life.
What usually happens - at the end of a normal tour of duty - is your supervisor or commander will say, "Lieutenant, you've done a crackerjack job. Draw up paperwork for an Army Commendation Medal and I'll sign it before you go."
You find the requisite forms, fill them out, describe your accomplishments in the appropriate language (flowery and strong, but not too strong so that it looks like you are bragging, but not so flowery that it sounds like BS and someone thinks of downgrading the award). You pass it all to the old man, he signs it, and at some point down the road you get your medal. Very glorious indeed.
Now before all the old-school vets get their OD green boxers wound up into knots, let me say that I know that a legitimate Bronze Star is nothing to sneeze at, but I also know that at the end of the major combat operation that I was unlucky enough to be a part of, medals were not awarded based on feats of great soldiering. A line was drawn at a given rank: Above this rank you got a BS (pun intended), below this rank you got an ARCOM. I started looking at Bronze Star wearers a little differently after that....
Here is the kicker: Between the first infractions some 20+ years ago and the present day, the government had at least four opportunities to suspend or revoke his clearance, or issue him a letter warning him that his behavior placed his clearance in jeopardy. Given the kind of work he did he probably came under more frequent scrutiny than the average clearance holder, based on the sensitivity of various programs he had access to. Let's be conservative and say ten times in 20 years.
NOW they want to stick it to him about missing pens? A few late Visa payments?
...And I have said it before but I'll say it again: Those who think that Shaffer is doing this so that he can ride to glory on the wings of ABLE PROVIDENCE. . . he can't work in this business without a clearance. He can wear a blue vest and greet you at the door of your favoriate big-box retailer, or an orange vest and help you cut sheets of plywood, but without those tickets he's finished in the intelligence business.