Did CBS Anchor Katie Couric Get Pwned By Bloomberg?
Either way, I Want That 25 Cents, Mayor!

(Updates: below)
05/04/2010 -- Just on face value, it is difficult to figure out who was the biggest public fool leading up to the identity of the Times Square car bomber.

Consider Nominee Number One: Mayor Bloomberg of New York, late last evening, engaged in some idle and off-the-air conjecture with CBS News anchor, Katie Couric, telling her that the person who attempted to set off a car bomb in the middle of the Times Square area this past Saturday night, could well be a domestic terrorist, a loner, someone who was likely angry at the government, maybe even someone who opposed the health care bill!

Apparently the only thing Bloomberg did NOT quite tell Katie Couric was that the guy could just as well have been on his way back from a Tea Party rally when he decided to park his vehicle and detonate the propane, gasoline and firecracker car bomb right at the curb outside a Viacom building on 45th Street in New York City. But he certainly implied it!

Consider Nominee Number Two: That would be CBS ace anchor, Katie Couric, who breathlessly lapped up all of the Mayor’s idle chatter, and then quickly contributed to the CBS News reporting about this so-called "domestic loner" nonsense late yesterday evening.

The CBS story was filed at 8:50 pm. Of course, two and a half hours later, at 11:30 pm, the feds instead picked up a 30 year old Pakistani-born individual named Faisal Shahzad by literally plucking him off a flight at JFK, a man, by the way, with strong family and other ties in Pakistan, who was apparently attempting to flee the country and return there, via Dubai.

In the case of Couric, also consider the fact that the car bomb, the one that thankfully did NOT go off and kill or injure scores of Americans, had been intentionally parked right on the south side of 45th Street, next to the corner of Broadway. Indeed, it was parked at the curb, just outside of a Viacom building!

Viacom, of course, is the parent company of CBS News. One might think that CBS would have had a special interest in wanting to get that story right, no? Well, guess again! There are several false "money lines" from yesterday evening’s CBS story, the one entitled, "Mayor: Times Square Suspect Acted Alone." Here are a few of them:

Bloomberg later told CBS Evening News Anchor Katie Couric that the suspect behind the bombing attempt could be a domestic terrorist angry at the government who acted alone.

"If I had to guess 25 cents, this would be exactly that. Homegrown, or maybe a mentally deranged person, or somebody with a political agenda that doesn't like the health care bill or something. It could be anything," he said.

"There is no evidence here of a conspiracy, there is no evidence that it's tied into anything else. It looks like an amateurish job done by at least one person," he told Couric.

As of this morning, we all NOW know, the actual suspect in the case is one Faisal Shahzad, who was residing in an apartment in Bridgeport, Connecticut, who, as now reported by the AP, only this past year (in April 2009) became a U.S. citizen, per a story filed today by Tom Hays and Colleen Long. He was born in Pakistan, and still has strong family ties (including his wife) in the City of Karachi, Pakistan. In fact, he apparently had just last year returned from a five month trip to Pakistan, according to several reports.

As indicated above, late yesterday night, Shahzad was caught fleeing this country. Just caught, too . . . reportedly, he had actually already boarded a flight to Dubai at JFK when he was nabbed last evening. His eventual flight destination was apparently Pakistan.

Not exactly your garden variety Tea Party participant, as Mayor Bloomberg and Couric would have had us believing last night! Of course, we don’t know all the facts in the case yet, as the Washington Post failed to report any specifics on what international ties Shahzad had, and to what organizations, religious or otherwise.

Was he tied to any known Islamist terror groups, for example? Time Magazine is now reporting, based on Pakistani anonymous sources, that he may well have been and that he may have even attended terror training just last spring, right around the time his U.S. citizenship was coming through! Was he, accordingly, on anyone's radar? The fact that he got on the plane last night suggests that he was not on a "no fly list" though we know that may certainly not be dispositive! Abdul Farouk Abdulmutallab, the so-called "Christmas Bomber" was on the "no fly list."

But earlier this morning the Washington Post did report facts directly contradicting the CBS fantasy . . . i.e., lots of clues suggesting a possible terror plot:

Officials located Shahzad after a sweeping two-day investigation that yielded what senior Obama administration officials described as a flood of international and domestic clues suggesting a plot involving more than one person.

So, they apparently were not keeping Mike Bloomberg in the loop on any level! But that still would not account for Bloomberg having firmly come to the exact opposite conclusion –- i.e., that the guy was a loner, that there was absolutely no evidence of a conspiracy, and that -- who knows -- it might be related to opposition to the healthcare bill!

But Mike Allen at Politico is also reporting today that the top Obama officials had identified and were specifically hot on the trail of Mr. Shahzad by early afternoon (2:30 pm) yesterday, at least six hours prior to the CBS report, when Bloomberg implied to Couric that it might well be a loner opponent of the healthcare bill! Politico also suggested how the bomber had tried to cover his tracks.

The vehicle identification number had been removed from the bomb-laden 1993 Nissan Pathfinder left in Times Square. But investigators were able to lift it from a second location on the vehicle, and used that to track down a Connecticut man who said he had sold the Pathfinder for cash about three weeks ago.

The man had offered the vehicle on Craigslist, and FBI agents were able to recover the number from a disposable cellphone that had been used by the buyer.

The suspect didn't still have the phone. But using a lot of technology and access to database, agents located the suspect.

(Gee, that last sentence certainly could cover a multitude of possibilities, now couldn't it?)

Anyway, if pressed to pick the biggest fool here, I'd have to go with Couric. Why? Because there is at least a possibility Bloomberg was intentionally feeding her this bogus information so that it would signal Faisal Shahzad, and maybe any possible confederates, that the cops were still hot on a false trail. Possible.

That would clearly place Bloomberg in a category significantly different than "fool" . . . not a nice category, to be sure. But different.

If so, he should explain that, and immediately apologize to all opponents of the healthcare bill.

If not, he should explain that, and immediately apologize to all opponents of the healthcare bill.

And, while the investigators are at it, they should certainly all apologize to the poor white guy they targeted with the video clip, the one who fortuitously decided to remove his outer shirt on the street in New York because it was too hot!

There are probably still some Obamabot posse types still out there still reviewing that taped clip and trying to hunt that guy down!

The supporters of the Administration certainly cannot be happy with this latest turn of events -- yet another possible instance of undetected terrorism, one with possible foreign ties, unfolding right within our shores during the Obama Administration. And again --as back in December -- only quick action by local citizens may have avoided a disaster. Here was the WaPo description:

Administration officials said President Obama had been repeatedly briefed on the incident -- which authorities said could have led to significant casualties if the explosives had detonated properly -- since it began unfolding Saturday night. It bore some resemblance to the attempted bombing of an airliner in Detroit last Christmas, with citizen watchdogs earning much of the credit for averting the crisis and the White House scrambling to discover clues about a young male suspect with apparent ties that stretched beyond the United States.

And -- they might have added -- this time the Administration must really feel come heat because the terrorists have apparently headed back to downtown New York!

As for Mayor Bloomberg, the AP story specifically reports he is now right back out there busily protecting the reputation of all Muslims today.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg said the arrest should not be as used as an excuse for anti-Muslim actions. "We will not tolerate any bias or backlash against Pakistani or Muslim New Yorkers," he said.

Of course, as for Tea Party members or any other opponents of the healthcare bill . . . well, not so much!

So, if Mayor Bloomberg was not the biggest fool over this incident, he is certainly proving to be the biggest jerk about it!

Update: Newsbusters is onto the Bloomberg/Couric angle of the story as well, with both audio and video.

Update : II Newsbusters is also reporting that Contessa Brewer is publicly lamenting that the Times Square Car Bomber is someone who was originally from an Islamic country. Is she trying to become Nominee Number Three for fool of the day? That really has to be a separate category, because she actually made that stupid comment after the identification was made! She wasn't just publicly hoping it was a healthcare opponent!

General Petraeus -- The Man "In The Arena"

(Update, o8/08, below:)
Ever the educator, Col. Austin Bay, Army Reserve (Ret.), a PhD (English & Comp. Lit.) from Columbia, and a graduate of the U.S. Army War College, has just launched a half hour web-based telephone interview presentation with the newly-confirmed head of CENTCOM, General David Petraeus, PhD, who has, since January, 2007, commanded the Multi-National Forces in Iraq, and overseen the implementation of the surge.

The Arena Channel:

Entitled, "A Conversation With General Petraeus," the interview presentation can be found on Bay's relatively new and ambitious website, The Arena Academy, or the Arena Channel. The interview turned out to be a thorough and in-depth look at a variety of issues related to our ongoing mission in Iraq, set in the context of the war on terror. You will need to register for entry into the Arena Channel site, but that is a significant benefit, as you receive timely e-mail notices of breaking and up-coming postings.

Austin Bay views this new and ambitious project as,

"an example of the Internet’s real contribution to serious discussion – space for the expert to elaborate, for concepts to evolve, for significant facts to receive due emphasis, for the experts and the audience to explore."

It certainly does not disappoint. More on the Arena website, below.*

The Petraeus Interview:

The interview, I think, speaks for itself, and really should be heard in its entirety. The West Point and Princeton-educated General broadly addresses what has been happening in Iraq, what we can hope for in the future, and what additional needs remain to be addressed.

In describing the current period of strategic change in Iraq, Petraeus pointedly emphasizes that those changes have not been, nor are they now "light switch" moments. He says they are what he would rather describe as a whole series of "rheostat" moments throughout the provinces and local areas, gradually giving rise to an emerging and improved overall security situation. In other words, he emphasizes that progress in Iraq has consisted of incremental progress, the difficulty at times even resembling a "Sisyphean endeavor."

Petraeus discusses the important role of interagency coordination and cooperation (diplomatic and military) throughout the surge, and the remarkable string of successes both he and our coalition troops, and the Iraqi Defense Ministry, including their security forces, military and civilian, have achieved over the course of that effort. He also specifically notes the importance of the appointment of Lt. Gen. Lute as the "point man" on Iraq and Afghanistan, within the White House.

Petraeus identifies areas where there are additional needs, including continuing the emphasis on improving the "entire arena" of the role of the rule of law to further reduce AQI, and other groups resort to mafia-style gang violence.

He sets it in the overall context of the Iraqi security force growth, their increasing ability to operate independently of MNF command, and their improving professionalism. Responding to another Austin Bay question about historical context, he also addressed the overall makeup of the Iraqi military on the ground at the beginning of the operation, and talks a bit about the pros and cons of disbanding that military at the time. He also opines on the flexibility and benefits of the CERP, or Commander's Emergency Response Program, which allows a commander to quickly fund small, non-military humanitarian projects, to help maintain stability within a region.

Petraeus also speaks cautiously but candidly, for example, about where we are headed, even including expectations regarding current verbal commitments being made by Moqtada-al-Satr to "return" his Mahdi army into a "human resources" or social-services network, a commitment al-Satr has made and broken in the past.

Noting that the General is about to assume the position of CENTCOM Commander, which will put Afghanistan within his bailiwick, Austin Bay asked Petraeus if he "had any thoughts about the campaign in Afghanistan right now?" Petraeus cautiously demurred: "Austin, I do, but I think it would be premature to offer them candidly."

Recently, Petraeus did offer a hint about his possible views in a recent AP interview story run in the Boston Globe, and written by AP military writer, Robert Burns, to the effect that al-Qaeda may be shifting some of their emphasis from Iraq to Pakistan and possibly Afghanistan, having seen the string of substantial defeats in Iraq:

"We do think that there is some assessment ongoing as to the continued viability of al-Qaida's fight in Iraq," Gen. David Petraeus told The Associated Press in an interview at his office at the U.S. Embassy.

Whatever the result, Petraeus said no one should expect al-Qaida to give up entirely in Iraq.

"They're not going to abandon Iraq. They're not going to write it off. None of that," he said. "But what they certainly may do is start to provide some of those resources that would have come to Iraq to Pakistan, possibly Afghanistan."

He said there are signs that foreign fighters recruited by al-Qaida to do battle in Iraq are being diverted to the largely ungoverned areas in Pakistan from which the fighters can cross into Afghanistan. U.S. officials have pressed Pakistan for more than a year to halt the cross-border infiltration. It remains a major worry not only for the war in Afghanistan but also for Pakistan's stability.

However, he also said he was cautious about the reliability of the intelligence. But it could indicate that al-Qaeda is having to reassess their long-held desire to establish Iraq as a militant Islamic state.

That goal, of course, would have required driving the United States out by political means, through a forced withdrawal, a reactive position long favored by many Democrats in Congress, including Senator Barack Obama. But the notable success of the surge over the past year has, at least temporarily, forestalled that pressure.

Finally, asked by Austin Bay to address a topic of his own choosing, the General immediately took the opportunity to credit the extraordinary contribution of the young men and women of the American military who have served there, under extremely difficult conditions.

He said of our young soldiers that they had performed magnificently, especially in conducting counterinsurgency warfare, requiring them to perform "offensive, defensive and civilian support operations, sometimes all in the same hour," and adding at the end of the interview that they have been called "'the new greatest generation,' and I absolutely buy into that."

Update: Early today, 08/08, Powerline posted more on the importance of this interview, together with a link to a transcript and audio located at Pajamas Media, located here.

* More on the Arena Website:

Bay's web presentation format itself proves to be quite user-friendly, consisting (with this interview) of a five-frame page, with three on the left side, starting at the top with a controller frame from which you stop or start the presentation. That window contains four summary choices to chose from, -- Summary, Credits, Chapters, or Resources. I kept it on the Chapter frame, a general bulleted outline that tells you at a glance where you are in the interview and presentation.

The third window, located beneath that is a feedback survey frame with a few queries that are posted during the course of the presentation, i.e., asking whether you supported or opposed the surge, or, toward the end of the interview, whether you found the presentation useful. It gives you instant summary feedback on the percentages and number of respondents.

The fourth and largest frame, really the focal point of the presentation, is located on the top right corner of the screen. It complements the audio with simultaneous "running" summary slides, in this case with Petraeus' responses, the text of each generously laced with links to a separate and considerable body of additional background information, accessable in separate windows.

In other words, during the interview, and while Petraeus is responding to a question about our coordination with the growing Iraqi army's responses to AQI, you see in that the upper right-hand quintrant of your screen, a slide containing a bulleted summary of Petraeus's response.

So, when he refers, for example, to the special groups, you could, if you wish, click on the embedded link for special groups and read background information about them, while listening to hs answer -- or, you could pause the interview, read the separate window, and then return right to where you left off in the interview, as you wish.

In the introduction portion of the interview, you can also follow any of the many links to read General Petraeus' bio, or link to descriptions of West Point, or to information about units he has commanded, or other related material. So you could click on and open a separate window and read and view public domain information about Multi-National Security Transition Command Iraq, or MNSTCI, as he succinctly describes its development and role.

And the final frame at the bottom right is set up to be either an automatic "feedback" e-mail window, a notepad, or comment thread, allowing participants to forward the link to friends or share comments with Austin Bay.

This website is, therefore, an extraordinarily informative and interactive tool for anyone seeking solid information on our ongoing role in Iraq. Prior to viewing the interview, I clicked on and viewed the entire Academy presentation on the consequences of a premature withdrawal, "A Rapid U.S. Military Withdrawal from Iraq," updated to, "CONSEQUENCES IRAQ UPDATE: Strategic Overwatch." It is hard to imagine anyone writing informatively about Iraq today without at least perusing the ample material available at Austin Bay's new website.