Who Will Guard the Guards?
First of all, let me express my thanks to the guest bloggers who filled my shoes while I was gone. They did a great job. I am back in the saddle and boy do we have alot t o talk about.
“Deepthroat”
The most famous of all anonymous sources. Was he a hero or was he a villain? It depends on who you ask. The leftist news sources love the opportunity to glamorize the downfall of a Republican President just as much the righty sources love to glamorize the Clinton impeachment years. Not surprisingly, a quick perusal of the cable news sources last night had MSNBC, CNBC, and CNN talking about Deepthroat and FoxNews talking about the Michael Jackson trial. Nightline led with a story on Deepthroat at 11:30.
The New York Times, this morning, ran the front page headline,
‘Deep Throat’ Unmasks Himself as Ex-No. 2 Official at F.B.I. while the Washington Post, the news media source at the center of all the controversy in the 70s, declares Post confirms Felt was “Deep Throat” while the conservative leaning Wall Street Journal led with High Court Reverses Andersen Conviction.
Not surprising, but not my topic either.
The question of whther Mark Felt was a hero or a villain, to me, has an obvious answer. No he was not a hero. Felt was entrusted by the American people with an extremely large amount of power and more importantly, trust. All elected officials are. Felt’s situation was more sensitive as he was the number two law enforcement official in the nation.
My observation says that when a publically elected officials, charged with enforcing the laws of the land, counterdict those same laws to enforce them, a slippery slope has been entered and it is hard to come back.
You might argue that Linda Tripp should have been treated the same way. But no, she was not a publically elected official. Sure she broke wiretap laws in Maryland, but she was not entrusted with vast governmental powers.
I heard one guy on the radio today bring up Rush Limbaugh’s name in the contect that if he, as a powerful person, can be given a different kind of justice regarding drug abuse because of his position, then surely Mark Felt can be seen as a hero because what he did was, in his own eyes, noble. After all, the well being of the many, outweigh the well being of the few.
The fact is, Mark Felt could have easily gone to the sleaze ball director of the FBI, J. Edgar Hoover, and brought his evidence and taken a higher ground. Knowing Hoover’s propensity for manipulation, he probably would have sided with the Nixon Administration, but Felt would have had a clear conscience and would not have had to sneak around in darkened parking garages. If, as I suspect, Hoover had not accepted the evidence on it’s value and made a stand with Felt against the Administration, Felt would have had the opportunity to resign and write memoirs, work for a lobbying firm or done any number of things to expose the problems in the Administration from an ethical standpoint.
No Mark Felt was not a hero. He abused public trust. He abused public confidence. He lied for all of these years afraid of the justice that surely would have befallen him in the court of public opinion. He was a coward. And now he has come clean. Why? In my opinion, not to set the record straight, but to write books, make movies and a fortune 30 years later.
As the Roman poet said thousands of years ago…”Sed quis custodiet ipsos custodes?”
“Who Will Guard the Guards?”
Update: In participating in Outside the Beltways Beltway Traffic Jam, I am sending this post – one of my best in recent weeks.
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Written by Aaron Brazell on June 1, 2005
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Wasn’t Hoover out months before Watergate? …
Actually, you are right. (ref). Felt was Hoover’s Protegé though and was brought up with the same level of deceit and manipulation.
Wasn’t Hoover out months before Watergate? …
Not so fast… Felt’s motives are largely unknown and all we’re hearing is opinion. I think his motives tell the tale of whether his going-to-the-press was as ignoble as you purport. I can think of another, whose ethical stand on the Viet Nam war caused him to go to the press with the top secret Pentagon Papers (Daniel Ellsberg). Had he not done so, who knows what Nixon would have done. Nixon’s secretive empire crashed and burned because the press did their job. And I propose that the jury is still out whether Felt is a hero or not. Either way, there’s no denying that his actions did America a favor.
Actually, you are right. (ref). Felt was Hoover’s Protegé though and was brought up with the same level of deceit and manipulation.
Saddle a little tight there huh playa? Welcome back. I would like the little flagie thingies.
Two words for you, Mr. Crawford.
GEO IP
Look it up, playa. ;)
Not so fast… Felt’s motives are largely unknown and all we’re hearing is opinion. I think his motives tell the tale of whether his going-to-the-press was as ignoble as you purport. I can think of another, whose ethical stand on the Viet Nam war caused him to go to the press with the top secret Pentagon Papers (Daniel Ellsberg). Had he not done so, who knows what Nixon would have done. Nixon’s secretive empire crashed and burned because the press did their job. And I propose that the jury is still out whether Felt is a hero or not. Either way, there’s no denying that his actions did America a favor.
Saddle a little tight there huh playa? Welcome back. I would like the little flagie thingies.
Two words for you, Mr. Crawford.
GEO IP
Look it up, playa. ;)
Tom…
While I think your sentiments are noble, I don’t know that skirting the law to enforce the law can in any way be justified. Felt could have gone public with this information, done the same amount of good, without the shadiness. The end does not justify the means in a democratic society. There are rules and laws.
Aaron
Tom…
While I think your sentiments are noble, I don’t know that skirting the law to enforce the law can in any way be justified. Felt could have gone public with this information, done the same amount of good, without the shadiness. The end does not justify the means in a democratic society. There are rules and laws.
Aaron