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Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Did you see The Daily Show last night?

posted by on May 13 at 11:30 AM

It continues to amaze that substantive interviews with former members of the Bush Administration about the war in Iraq aren’t found on CNN (too busy with Clinton vs. Obama, or else the news that Barbara Walters apparently at some point in time slept with someone) or MSNBC (same) or Fox News (same), but on that fake news show. You already know this. But it’s amazing, right?

Last night, a focused, substantive, unyielding interview with Doug Feith, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy from 2001 until 2005.

RSS icon Comments

1

Now if only they can interview John McCain's mistress ... um, his wife ...

Well, it's a thought. It would be nice to have one of the elite asked real questions, instead of fake ones like they do on MSNBC or the Today Show.

Posted by Will in Seattle | May 13, 2008 11:41 AM
2

Boy-oh-boy, did I ever see The Daily Show last night, and all I could think of during the interview was, "At last!"

Someone with a logical, quick, highly informed mind is sharpening his intellectual knives on the fucking Bush administration.

With all due respect and deference to his lovely family, my love for Jon Stewart knows no bounds.

Posted by Bauhaus | May 13, 2008 11:48 AM
3

When I see/hear an interview like this with a piece of shit like Feith, I fervently wish I could believe that he will fry in Hell for all eternity for the things he did. Alas, my lack of faith in a divine being capable of the sort of infinite justice by way of punishment that this filth deserves assures me he will die comfortably at the end of a cushy, life instead. The tragedy of atheism.

Posted by Wish I Was Christian | May 13, 2008 12:03 PM
4

It is an astounding notion that we get more in-depth informative interviews on a comedy show than on "real" news programs. Jon Stewart is a national treasure. Tim Russert... not so much.

Posted by Reverse Polarity | May 13, 2008 12:22 PM
5

I watched that with astonishment -- this is a comedy show, and he's burning up all the Coopers and Blitzers and Williamses and whoever the hell the rest of them are. And he went at him pretty good.

Feith, whom Gen. Tommy Franks famously called "the stupidest fucking guy on the planet", is visibly shaken by his role as the chief dogsbody of the worst foreign policy debacle in American history. He appears to understand what happened, unlike fucking Wolfowitz, but he still doesn't seem to have grasped the truth about the lies he told. I'm not sure anyone could grasp that without putting his head in the oven. I think Feith has a tiny germ of shame within, unlike his bosses. His ass-covering is stupendous to see, though.

God, these cretins make McNamara & Co. look like moral giants, don't they?

Posted by Fnarf | May 13, 2008 12:37 PM
6

Yeah, I was fascinated and frustrated when I watched this bit. On the one hand I'm glad he's so vested in getting the truth of the matter out to the people but, honestly, where the hell was this stuff when we needed it?

Reminded me of Lewis Black talking about how we're only now having the conversations we should have had before the war.

Posted by Chris B | May 13, 2008 12:45 PM
7

You have a TV?? Scary that Stewart, Colbert and Maher are the only people who ask tough reasoned questions of political figures, I mean the are fucking comedians!!!

But that is the status of the MSM. I only watch it for entertainment purposes. You cann't take it seriously.

Posted by Cato the Younger Younger | May 13, 2008 12:46 PM
8

I freakin love Jon Stewart. I agree that it is incredibly sad that he is the one to bring these things up.

Posted by D | May 13, 2008 12:56 PM
9

I think style has a lot to do with it as well. I really admire the way Stewart can politely, respectfully, rip someone a new one, because that's part of how he keeps getting these uber-conservative folks on the show.

Posted by shub-negrorath | May 13, 2008 12:58 PM
10

Too bad he doesn't do anything remotely like this when he has John McCain on.

Posted by Anthony Hecht | May 13, 2008 12:59 PM
11

Actually Doug Feith was defending his new book on Olbermann in March.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23576026/

So, the "real" news station do get the first sometimes...

Posted by clarkj | May 13, 2008 1:07 PM
12

I love the part at the end where he says "Your book is very foot noted and makes for slooooow reading, but thanks for being on the show."

Posted by D | May 13, 2008 1:08 PM
13

That Feith guy is the stupidest fucker on the face of the planet.

Posted by Andrew | May 13, 2008 1:11 PM
14

This line, the "I think the public is misremembering what was said" will become the post-war spin by conservatives long after this war has ended. The notion that "everyone thought he had WMD" has been hyped over and over again already.

There were plenty of us that were not convinced that Saddam was a threat. There were many in the world community that were not convinced, but felt powerless to oppose the USA on this point.

Let us not fail history by allowing this new spin to go forward uncontested. This war was entirely unnecessary. The continued execution of this war is unnecessary. We've grown weary of the debate (me included) but let us not grow weary of the future spin that those with a guilty conscience will attempt to peddle for years going forward.

We, as a country, mishandled the greatest weapon on the face of the earth (our military). Even though I was vehemently opposed to this war from the beginning, I remain a part of this country, and will long have to answer for the actions of her.

The lies that began this war continue. Mr. Feith is just the latest incarnation of the same.

Posted by Timothy | May 13, 2008 1:18 PM
15

Yes, exactly, Anthony Hecht. It's like, let's pat Jon Stewart on the back, how heroic, he's asking questions tough questions of a RETIRED fucking guy who's already wreaked his havoc. Where are the hardball questions for the current candidates? The ones vying for the chance to make their own catastrophic mistakes?

Posted by Maggie | May 13, 2008 1:20 PM
16

I completely agree. Some of the only intelligent dialog on television is happening on comedic parody shows. Thank God for Charlie Rose at least.

Posted by Dougsf | May 13, 2008 1:40 PM
17

Oh, and if anyone's curious about this topic, Frontline did a fantastic 2 part series called Bush's War.

Posted by Dougsf | May 13, 2008 1:44 PM
18

Feith's excuse boils down to: you give us too much credit for skullduggery. we were way dumber than you thought.

fucking pitiful. tens of thousands of people are dead, our treasury is crippled with debt, & our hegemony is destroyed.

Posted by max solomon | May 13, 2008 1:46 PM
19

I first heard Doug Feith interviewed about his recent book by Tavis Smiley on PBS. Tavis was just as unconvinced by Mr. Feith's argument as John Stewart is.

Posted by Yvonne | May 13, 2008 1:55 PM
20

Watch the part 2 'uncut' on the Daily Show website.

It's twice as long which means Feith looks twice as stupid.

Posted by DS junkie | May 13, 2008 3:01 PM
21

Growing up during the Vietnam war and listening to Robert McNamara and his reasoning as just like listening to Feith.
One thing they knew, history will not be kind to people who waste lives for the any reason. They may try to rewrite history but the truth will out. By the way, I was drafted into the army. If there had been a draft this time, people would have been much more cautious about the direction of their so-called leaders. I want people who support McCain to go to Iraq. Yeah, enlist or make your kids enlist.

Posted by Vince | May 13, 2008 3:54 PM
22

I was disappointed because Jon Stewart didn't reach under his desk, pull out an axe handle, and brain Feith on the spot.

Feith has chipmunk cheeks. He stores extra lies in them.

Amen @14!

It's just sophistry to claim, Hey, you're all misremembering the recent past!

BULLSHIT! Never before have informed citizens, bloggers, journalists, historians, etc etc, been able to retrieve who said what, be it print media or video clips, at the click of a button. Bullhockey, we're all misremembering. Thank you, oh Mighty Scholar Feith, for going back and checking "the record."

As for what went on behind closed doors, that's going to take us a generation to unravel, bit by bit. Only us nerd patrol literate types are even going to read that news, too.

Posted by CP | May 13, 2008 8:59 PM

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