- You will by now have seen the statement by Director of
National Intelligence Dennis Blair reporting that I have withdrawn my previous
acceptance of his invitation to chair the National Intelligence Council.
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- I have concluded that the barrage of libelous distortions
of my record would not cease upon my entry into office. The effort to
smear me and to destroy my credibility would instead continue. I do not
believe the National Intelligence Council could function effectively while
its chair was under constant attack by unscrupulous people with a passionate
attachment to the views of a political faction in a foreign country. I
agreed to chair the NIC to strengthen it and protect it against politicization,
not to introduce it to efforts by a special interest group to assert control
over it through a protracted political campaign.
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- As those who know me are well aware, I have greatly enjoyed
life since retiring from government. Nothing was further from my mind
than a return to public service. When Admiral Blair asked me to chair
the NIC I responded that I understood he was "asking me to give my
freedom of speech, my leisure, the greater part of my income, subject myself
to the mental colonoscopy of a polygraph, and resume a daily commute to
a job with long working hours and a daily ration of political abuse."
I added that I wondered "whether there wasn't some sort of downside
to this offer." I was mindful that no one is indispensable; I am
not an exception. It took weeks of reflection for me to conclude that,
given the unprecedentedly challenging circumstances in which our country
now finds itself abroad and at home, I had no choice but accept the call
to return to public service. I thereupon resigned from all positions that
I had held and all activities in which I was engaged. I now look forward
to returning to private life, freed of all previous obligations.
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- I am not so immodest as to believe that this controversy
was about me rather than issues of public policy. These issues had little
to do with the NIC and were not at the heart of what I hoped to contribute
to the quality of analysis available to President Obama and his administration.
Still, I am saddened by what the controversy and the manner in which the
public vitriol of those who devoted themselves to sustaining it have revealed
about the state of our civil society. It is apparent that we Americans
cannot any longer conduct a serious public discussion or exercise independent
judgment about matters of great importance to our country as well as to
our allies and friends.
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- The libels on me and their easily traceable email trails
show conclusively that there is a powerful lobby determined to prevent
any view other than its own from being aired, still less to factor in American
understanding of trends and events in the Middle East. The tactics of
the Israel Lobby plumb the depths of dishonor and indecency and include
character assassination, selective misquotation, the willful distortion
of the record, the fabrication of falsehoods, and an utter disregard for
the truth. The aim of this Lobby is control of the policy process through
the exercise of a veto over the appointment of people who dispute the wisdom
of its views, the substitution of political correctness for analysis, and
the exclusion of any and all options for decision by Americans and our
government other than those that it favors.
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- There is a special irony in having been accused of improper
regard for the opinions of foreign governments and societies by a group
so clearly intent on enforcing adherence to the policies of a foreign government
in this case, the government of Israel. I believe that the inability
of the American public to discuss, or the government to consider, any option
for US policies in the Middle East opposed by the ruling faction in Israeli
politics has allowed that faction to adopt and sustain policies that ultimately
threaten the existence of the state of Israel. It is not permitted for
anyone in the United States to say so. This is not just a tragedy for
Israelis and their neighbors in the Middle East; it is doing widening damage
to the national security of the United States.
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- The outrageous agitation that followed the leak of my
pending appointment will be seen by many to raise serious questions about
whether the Obama administration will be able to make its own decisions
about the Middle East and related issues. I regret that my willingness
to serve the new administration has ended by casting doubt on its ability
to consider, let alone decide what policies might best serve the interests
of the United States rather than those of a Lobby intent on enforcing the
will and interests of a foreign government.
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- In the court of public opinion, unlike a court of law,
one is guilty until proven innocent. The speeches from which quotations
have been lifted from their context are available for anyone interested
in the truth to read. The injustice of the accusations made against me
has been obvious to those with open minds. Those who have sought to impugn
my character are uninterested in any rebuttal that I or anyone else might
make.
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- Still, for the record: I have never sought to be paid
or accepted payment from any foreign government, including Saudi Arabia
or China, for any service, nor have I ever spoken on behalf of a foreign
government, its interests, or its policies. I have never lobbied any branch
of our government for any cause, foreign or domestic. I am my own man,
no one else's, and with my return to private life, I will once again
to my pleasure serve no master other than myself. I will continue
to speak out as I choose on issues of concern to me and other Americans.
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- I retain my respect and confidence in President Obama
and DNI Blair. Our country now faces terrible challenges abroad as well
as at home. Like all patriotic Americans, I continue to pray that our
president can successfully lead us in surmounting them.
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