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The Situation Room
After Less Than Two Years on Job CIA Director Porter Goss Resigns; Scooter Libby Appears in Court in CIA Leak Hearing; Congressman Patrick Kennedy to Rehab
Aired May 05, 2006 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: And to our viewers, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM, where new pictures and information are arriving all the time.
Standing by, CNN reporters across the United States and around the world to bring you tonight's top stories.
Happening now, it's 7:00 p.m. here in Washington where there's breaking news. Bombshells shaking the nation's capital. The director of the CIA suddenly calls it quits without any explanation. What's behind that mysterious move?
And Lewis "Scooter" Libby, the indicted former aide to Vice President Dick Cheney, has a courtroom face-off with prosecutors in the CIA leak case. Could presidential adviser Karl Rove be next?
And Congressman Patrick Kennedy announces he's seeking treatment for substance abuse a day after crashing his car on Capitol Hill.
I'm Wolf Blitzer. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
Tonight, many here in Washington are reeling from a day of jam- packed news surprises, political setbacks. The CIA director, Porter Goss, unexpectedly resigned with a spy-like sense of mystery. This hour, we'll tell you what we've learned about why he's calling it quits.
In the CIA leak case, there are no details tonight about the defense strategy of former Cheney chief of staff Lewis "Scooter" Libby. Look for Bush adviser Karl Rove to take the witness stand.
Another new poll shows a record low approval rating for President Bush, driven down by discontent within his own party. And the Republican-led Congress gets an even worse rating. Tonight, the numbers and the election year anxiety.
Right now, though, Congressman Patrick Kennedy is heading back into rehab after acknowledging an addiction to prescription painkillers. And the Capitol Police are making an admission of their own, that their investigation of Kennedy's car crash early yesterday was improper.
Once again, all those stories coming up here in THE SITUATION ROOM. But up first, the CIA director's resignation. After less than two years on the job, Porter Goss is leaving a spy agency still struggling to find its footing after the 9/11 attacks and other intelligence failures.
Our White House correspondent, Elaine Quijano, is joining us now with the inside story of what happened -- Elaine.
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good evening to you, Wolf.
President Bush nor Porter Goss gave a reason during that Oval Office announcement about what was behind this decision to resign, but sources say it was differing views over policy that ultimately led to Goss's resignation.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
QUIJANO (voice over): President Bush's hand-picked choice to run the CIA quit after just 20 months on the job. In making the announcement, the president named no replacement.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Porter's tenure at the CIA was one of transition, where he's helped this agency become integrated into the intelligence community. And that was a tough job. And he's led ably.
PORTER GOSS, CIA DIRECTOR: I would like to report back to you that I believe the agency is on a very even keel, sailing well.
QUIJANO: But by many accounts, turbulence marked Goss' time in charge of the spy agency. While neither Goss nor the president offered an explanation for the sudden resignation, intelligence sources close to the discussions about the CIA's future say Goss' departure was anything but a surprise. The reason, sharp differences between Goss and the man he reported to, John Negroponte, the director of National Intelligence, a job created after Goss was appointed CIA director.
An intelligence source says Negroponte wanted changes, moving functions from the CIA to Negroponte's umbrella agency, the DNI. But Goss pushed back hard, arguing those changes would weaken the CIA. In the end, Negroponte took his case the White House for resolution, where top Bush aides sided with him.
A senior administration official says Negroponte did raise with Goss the idea that he leave and says the decision was ultimately based on a mutual understanding between Negroponte, Goss and President Bush. John McLaughlin, the man who temporarily held the job before Goss, says the resignation is not a sign the CIA is in disarray. But...
JOHN MCLAUGHLIN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: The danger here is that we could go back into an era where we had revolving door directors. With Porter Goss' departure, we'll have something like three directors in four years. And that's seldom a good thing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUIJANO: In a statement released after the announcement, Porter Goss said he will stay on over the next few weeks to help with the transition. White House officials are saying that a successor could be named as early as Monday -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Elaine Quijano, thanks very much for that.
And tonight there are new developments in the CIA leak case. The former Cheney chief of staff, Lewis "Scooter" Libby, faced off with prosecutors in court today, and his lawyers tipped their hand about witnesses and strategy.
Here's our chief national correspondent, John King.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The hearing included an early glimpse at Scooter Libby's strategy in fighting perjury and obstruction of justice charges, including the disclosure the defense plans to call White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove as a witness. Lead Libby attorney Ted Wells also made clear he will challenge the credibility of a key government witness and of the former diplomat at the center of the CIA leak investigation.
Wells called former Ambassador Joe Wilson a habitual liar. And for the first time, said the defense planned to call five witnesses he said would testify that Wilson openly discussed his wife's employment at the Central Intelligence Agency.
The goal would be to undermine the government's case that Wilson's wife Valerie was an undercover CIA operative and that the outing of her status in this newspaper column was part of a Bush administration campaign to punish Ambassador Wilson for accusing the president of lying about the case for war in Iraq. The defense also disclosed it would challenge the credibility of a key government witness, former undersecretary of state Mark Grossman.
The indictment alleges it was Grossman who first told Libby Wilson's wife worked at the CIA. Libby told the grand jury he first learned from a reporter. Libby attorney Wells said Grossman was "not being totally candid" in his grand jury testimony and said he had a friendship with Wilson dating back to college.
The defense showed the judge e-mails it said supported its allegations about Grossman. But the documents were not quoted from at the open hearing because they are classified.
Rove remains a subject of the grand jury investigation, as defined for the fifth time recently. He, like Libby, acknowledges being involved in an aggressive White House campaign to rebut Wilson's allegations, but denies breaking any laws.
(on camera): The judge has repeatedly warned both sides he wants the trial narrowly focused on the charges against Mr. Libby, not the broader political debate about why the United States went to war in Iraq. The prosecutor today said in the courtroom, "This courtroom is not the appropriate place to try the war." Yet, as Mr. Libby faces these serious legal charges against him, it also seems inevitable that there will be a courtroom reenactment of that political debate.
John King, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: And we contacted former undersecretary of state Mark Grossman about the defense plan to challenge his credibility. We were told Grossman had no comment. But we did get a response from former ambassador Joe Wilson.
He says the case isn't about him, it's about whether Lewis "Scooter" Libby lied. And Wilson says, "The special prosecutor believes several White House officials were engaged in a campaign to discredit, punish and seek revenge on me. It would appear that campaign is ongoing."
Let's get some analysis about Scooter Libby's defense in the CIA leak case. Our senior legal analyst, Jeff Toobin, is joining us from New York.
A good strategy as conveyed today? What do you think?
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SR. LEGAL ANALYST: It's certainly a classic strategy in a white collar case. The defense is saying, or will say to the jury, look, this is a complicated story. It involves politics. It involves people with various agendas. This isn't simply about lying to the grand jury.
What the prosecution wants this case to be about is exactly that, a simple story about whether Scooter Libby lied or not, and it doesn't matter about the whole political story. And we can be sure this debate is going to be going on right up to the trial and through it.
BLITZER: Let me read to you what the district judge, Reggie Walton, said in response to Libby's attorneys. He said, "You want to try the legitimacy of us going to war. I don't see how that will help us determine whether Mr. Libby lied when he talked to the FBI and went before the grand jury."
It sounds simple -- pretty simple there.
TOOBIN: Well, that's what Judge Walton is saying now. But the defense is going to keep pushing this all the time, including when the witnesses testify, because this debate is going to go on even when the witnesses are being cross-examined, even if they don't get all the documents they want, even if the defense isn't allowed to call all the witnesses they want.
They are going to get from each witness the fact that this was a complicated political struggle and Scooter Libby was just one player in it. The prosecution is going to try to limit that and say, look, it doesn't matter about the politics. All that matters is whether Scooter Libby told the truth. So. today's hearing is just one battle in a long war. And fortunately for the Bush administration, this case is going to trial after the midterm elections not before in January.
BLITZER: Scheduled to begin in January. Jeff Toobin, thanks very much for that.
Let's stay in New York. Jack Cafferty is standing by with "The Cafferty File."
Hi, Jack.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: All the big players are in New York. Jeff Toobin and me.
So Congressman Patrick Kennedy is going to rehab. Again.
Following a car crash in the wee hours of Thursday morning, and some erratic behavior afterward, Kennedy announced today he's checking himself into the Mayo Clinic for help with addiction and depression. The police report says booze was involved. Kennedy denies that, saying that his problem is prescription medication.
As Kennedy was leaving the room today, a reporter asked him if he was going to resign his congressional seat, to which Kennedy replied, "I need to stay in the fight." Exactly how does one stay in the fight from a hospital room in Minnesota?
This is the second car Kennedy's wrecked in the last three weeks. He went through rehab in this same hospital in Minnesota last December. It didn't work. He went through rehab while he was still in high school. That didn't work either.
How does anybody know if it's going to work this time? Which raises a question about the kind of representation the people in Rhode Island are getting from Mr. Kennedy.
Here's the question: Should Representative Patrick Kennedy resign his congressional seat?
E-mail your thoughts to caffertyfile@CNN.com or go to CNN.com/caffertyfile -- Wolf.
BLITZER: You're going to get a lot of e-mail on this one, Jack. Just wait. Thanks for that.
CAFFERTY: OK.
BLITZER: And coming up, more on his story.
Also, ordinarily the shock of a car crash is unforgettable, but Congressman Patrick Kennedy says he can't remember his crash at all. We're going to tell you about that stunning admission and what it means.
And Congress takes another hit to its approval rating. We'll have the new numbers.
The former prime minister of Israel. What does Benjamin Netanyahu think about the Iranian's president's call for Israel to be destroyed? Should Israel launch a preemptive strike against Iran? I'll ask him in a one-on-one interview.
Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: There are new developments in the story we've been following. It's not often a person stumbles out of bed, drives his car, crashes near the United States Capitol, and doesn't remember anything at all about it. But that's precisely what Democratic Congressman Patrick Kennedy says happened to him. Right now he says he thinks he knows why and what he needs to do about it.
Let's bring in our Brian Todd. He's outside the Capitol right where the accident occurred. He's joining us live -- Brian.
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, three important bombshells surrounding this case today. Number one, the Capitol Hill police came out with a very strong statement about their handling of this incident. We're going to get to that in a moment.
Also, we've obtained a cop of the police report. Some very important new detail in that.
And, just a short time ago, the congressman came out and gave his version of what led up to this accident.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
REP. PATRICK KENNEDY (D), RHODE ISLAND: The incident on Wednesday evening concerns me gratefully.
TODD (voice over): A contrite Congressman Patrick Kennedy speaks about addiction to prescription painkillers and says he will check into rehab.
As to the car accident...
KENNEDY: I simply do not remember getting out of bed, being pulled over by the police, or being cited for three driving infractions.
TODD: But CNN obtained this traffic accident report. Notice a box marked "sobriety," indicating Kennedy had been drinking. His ability was impaired. Under "contributing circumstances," officers cite speed, alcohol influence, driving on the wrong side of the street and driver inattention. Kennedy denies using alcohol.
The report also says Kennedy drove fast in a construction zone without lights, swerved three times, almost hit a police car, then hit a checkpoint barrier head on. The report lists Kennedy's eyes as red and watery, speech slightly slurred, and his balance unsure after exiting his green Ford Mustang.
Kennedy claims a prescribed anti-nausea medicine left him drowsy, as well as the sleeping pill Ambien.
KENNEDY: That's not an excuse for what happened Wednesday evening, but it is a reality of fighting a chronic condition for which I'm taking full responsibility.
TODD: A law enforcement source tells CNN police are checking Capitol Hill bars and restaurants for Kennedy's whereabouts before the accident. A Capitol Hill Police detective, tight-lipped after leaving the Hawk & Dove bar. Kennedy emphatically denying published reports that he was there.
STUART LONG, OWNER, HAWK & DOVE: I have one night manager who thinks he may have served him, but...
TODD: The Hawk & Dove owner tells a CNN affiliate the bar has no receipts from Kennedy.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TODD: Capitol Hill Police having to answer some very tough questions themselves tonight. Our sources and a letter from the head of the police union to the acting police chief say that the policemen on the scene were told to leave the scene by their superior officers, they were not allowed to give Kennedy a sobriety test, and then Kennedy was driven home.
We a short time ago got a statement from the Capitol Hill Police. "It has been determined that in the initial stages supervisors employed improper judgment. Corrective administrative and personnel action has been taken."
Important to note here, a top congressional source tells CNN that the watch commander involved in those decisions in those early morning hours has been reassigned -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Brian Todd at the scene of that accident.
Thanks, Brian, for that.
And soon after his son announced he had been -- he was about to reenter rehab for an addiction to prescription drugs, Senator Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts released this statement: "I love Patrick very much and am very proud of him. All of us in the family admire his courage in speaking publicly about very personal issues and fully support his decision to seek treatment. He has taken full responsibility for events that occurred Wednesday evening, and he will continue to cooperate fully in any investigation."
That statement from Senator Kennedy.
Congressman Kennedy says that just before his crash, a prescribed anti-nausea medication left him drowsy and that he'd taken some sleeping pills, including those known as Ambien. How might those drugs have contributed to his crash?
Joining us now, are CNN senior medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
You take that anti-nausea pill, you take Ambien, is it possible he just wakes up in the middle of the night not knowing what he's doing, gets in his car and drives around?
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it's a remarkable story for sure, but it is possible, Wolf. And that's something we've been doing some digging on.
There have been some stories about people who take Ambien alone, very small studies actually looking at about only 30 documented people having very similar stories, remarkably similar, actually, to the congressman's. We did some digging today, Wolf. We found this one story. The man that you're about to see asked us not to use his name.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I took the Ambien. I went to bed. I was reading. The next thing I know, there's a policeman at my car door.
And he got me out of the car. He asked me to do field sobriety tests. I failed all of them.
They handcuffed me and took me to jail, most of which I really don't remember. I only remember because I've read the police report.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GUPTA: Sounds pretty familiar, right, Wolf? I mean, that's remarkable.
That man actually was handcuffed. He went to jail. His case is actually on appeal now, we learned today as well. But there have been other cases, a very small number, I should add, of people actually finally waking up when they're actually in jail.
Ambien, we called them as well. The makers of Ambien, I should say, Sanofi. They released this statement to us.
They specifically say, "It is important to emphasize that although sleepwalking may occur during treatment with Ambien, it may not necessarily be caused by it. It is difficult to determine with certainty whether a particular instance of sleepwalking is drug induced, spontaneous in origin, or a result of an underlying disorder."
But Wolf, your question, can this happen? Apparently, it can happen and it has.
BLITZER: What is he looking forward to in the rehab, the treatment he's about to begin?
GUPTA: You know, it's an interesting question, because I listened to the statement -- to his press conference, like you did, and he talked specifically about an addiction to painkillers. I guess it's worth pointing out -- maybe it's obvious -- that neither Ambien nor Phenergan, which is an anti-nausea medication, neither one of those are painkillers.
So I'm not sure how that exactly enters into the mix. These are two very different medications from any sort of painkillers, so I don't know what exactly is in store for him.
BLITZER: I'm sure it's going to be a tough rehab process. We wish him good luck.
Sanjay, thanks for that.
GUPTA: Thank you.
BLITZER: Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
Our Internet reporter, Abbi Tatton, has more on Congressman Kennedy -- Abbi.
ABBI TATTON, CNN INTERNET REPORTER: Wolf, we posted the Washington, D.C., police report from this week online, where officers describe Kennedy's eyes were red, that his balance was unsure, his speech slurred from that incident this week.
Now another police report. This one from Portsmouth, Rhode Island, also involving Congressman Kennedy three weeks ago.
It details Kennedy was traveling, driving in this car here. He turned into a pharmacy. This car here was unable to stop in time, and he collided with the congressman's car. In this police report from Portsmouth, Rhode Island, the physical condition of the congressman appeared normal.
The congressman's office told us this was a minor accident not related to his condition. This is all posted at cnn.com/situationreport -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Abbi, thank you.
Still to come tonight in THE SITUATION ROOM, you've told pollsters how you really feel about this Republican-led Congress. Now we're going to tell you the collective results.
And how does the former Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, feel about Iran's call for the destruction of Israel? My one-on-one interview with Benjamin Netanyahu, that's coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Zain Verjee is off, but there she is, Fredricka Whitfield, standing by to give us some other news.
Hi, Fred.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello to you, Wolf.
Well, Britain has a new foreign secretary. British Prime Minister Tony Blair demoted Jack Straw today, one day after Blair's Labour party lost heavily in local elections. Straw reportedly had expressed doubts about the Iraq war to his boss and called military action against Iran over its nuclear program nuts.
Straw's replacement is Environment Minister Margaret Beckett. Straw will now head the British parliament's House of Commons.
Some optimism tonight about one of the world's worst humanitarian crises. The Sudanese government and Darfur's largest rebel group have signed an internationally-backed peace accord, last-ditch diplomacy by the U.S. credited with helping negotiations.
Two autopsy reports on the death of a Florida teenager and two very different conclusions. A Florida medical examiner says 14-year- old Martin Lee Anderson suffocated after he was held and punched by guards at a juvenile boot camp in January/ That contradicts an initial autopsy report which found Anderson died of a blood disorder. State and federal investigators into the boy's death are ongoing -- Wolf.
BLITZER: What a story. Thanks, Fred, for that. We'll get back with you.
Just ahead, President Bush may be sinking lower and lower in the polls, but wait until you hear what people think about the Republican- led Congress. We're going to bring you the latest numbers.
And what is this sudden resignation of the CIA director mean for America's war on terror?
All that's coming up in our "Strategy Session."
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Welcome back to THE SITUATION ROOM. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington.
A new effort today by President Bush to try to repair his image. He went to a Washington, D.C., hardware store to tout a new jobs report, saying it's evidence that the economy is strong. But take a look at this.
A new AP-Ipsos poll showing his approval rating falling to 33 percent. That's a new low for the president in that poll, and it's in line with several other recent surveys.
Let's bring in our senior political analyst, Bill Schneider.
What does this poll tell us not only about the president, Bill, but about the Republican-led Congress? WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, how low can you go? Not the president here, but Congress. Look what's happened to Congress' approval rating over the course of this year.
They've dropped from 35 percent, a low figure, in February, to 25 percent -- 25 percent in the latest Associated Press-Ipsos poll. Why? Oh, well, immigration, they can't pass a bill. They can't pass a budget.
Spending not under control. Ethics, you now have a Democrat under investigation, like Jack Abramoff. And Duke Cunningham has gone to jail. Tom DeLay has resigned from Congress. And, of course, gas prices. What can Congress do about gas prices, Wolf? Well, they thought about passing a $100 rebate. That got laughed off the agenda. It is becoming the symbol of a Congress out of touch with the American people, just like Terri Schiavo case -- that case was last year.
BLITZER: Since the Republicans are in the majority in both the House and the Senate, I assume these bad numbers for Congress are going to hurt the Republicans more than the Democrats. Is that a fair assessment?
SCHNEIDER: That is fair, because look, there is mounting evidence from this poll that the voters may take out their anger over the Republicans who, after all, make up most of the incumbents in Congress. It has been their Congress for most of the past 12 years.
A majority of Americans now say they'd like to turn over control of the Congress to the Democrats. Just over a third say they'd like the Republicans to stay in control. And some Republicans see the danger in the fact that they are losing their own political base.
Take a look at this. When we asked Republicans -- or this was the AP -- asked Republicans do you approve the job Congress is doing, only 37 percent of Republicans say they approve of the job of Congress. More than 60 percent of Republicans disapprove of their own Congress. This is a very bad sign because it means they're in danger of losing their own political base.
BLITZER: Bill Schneider, thanks very much. And bill is part of the best political team on television. CNN, your campaign headquarters.
President Bush could announce Porter Goss' replacement as CIA director as early as Monday or Tuesday, that according to a senior Bush administration official. In a bombshell announcement earlier today, Goss said he's leaving the post he's held for less than two years.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: Joining us now are CNN political analyst and Democratic strategist Paul Begala; and Terry Jeffrey, the editor of "Human Events."
Here is how Porter Goss explained his decision, didn't really explain why he's stepping down, but what he said in the Oval Office.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PORTER GOSS, RESIGNED AS CIA DIRECTOR: I would like to report back to you that I believe the agency is on a very even keel, sailing well. I honestly believe that we have improved dramatically your goals for our nation's intelligence capabilities, which are, in fact, the things that I think are keeping us very safe.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: How unusual is it for a CIA director to resign, Terry, without having a successor named at the same time?
TERRY JEFFREY, EDITOR, "HUMAN EVENTS": It's very unusual. And that cryptic statement from Porter Goss raises a lot of questions, Wolf.
This is a guy who was House Intelligence chairman and a person who actually had 10 years of experience in the clandestine service of the CIA, thought that the CIA was decimating its human-intelligence- gathering capabilities. We found out he was right on September 11.
He went in there on a mission to rebuild specifically that, ran into a lot of friction inside the CIA. I hope he got the backing he deserves from the president of the United States. This is a very bad sign. We need a CIA that works, and this was a guy who could have made it work the way it was supposed to.
BLITZER: I made a few calls to sources I have in the CIA today. And everyone acknowledges there is a morale issue at the CIA right now.
Jane Harman, by the way, who is the ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, she said the other day, she said, "Our intelligence reorganization is in a slow startup, and the CIA is in a freefall."
PAUL BEGALA, POLITICAL ANALYST: And this doesn't help. I don't buy the excuse we are given. Forgive my skepticism, but...
BLITZER: There's no excuse. There's no explanation given.
BEGALA: Well, that's a good point. They haven't given us one.
There has to be more here than meets the eye. And I think we will find it out in the fullness of time. But Washington, even the CIA, isn't very good about keeping secrets. But if this is simply Porter Goss losing out on a bureaucratic battle with John Negroponte, the national intelligence director...
BLITZER: Which is what our John King is reporting.
BEGALA: If that's the sum and substance of it, then I think Mr. Goss has done a terrible disservice to the agency and to the country, in abruptly resigning in a petulant way like this, without an orderly transition to a new leader at the CIA. I suspect there's a lot more to this than just a bureaucrat fight, though.
BLITZER: What do you think, Terry?
JEFFREY: Well, I suspect there is a lot more to it.
But Porter Goss is a great patriot. He really was a guy dedicated to a mission. We have had a lot of movement in changing the type of bureaucracies that oversee our intelligence in the last few years. It's not clear we have made real progress.
I do believe Porter Goss was someone who is dedicated to making that progress. I think Jane Harman knows that, too. But we do need answers, Wolf. We need to know to why he leave -- why he left.
BEGALA: This is where I disagree with Terry. I don't know Porter Goss from -- from boo, but he's a politician. He was a Republican congressman. Before that, he had worked for the CIA for many years. So, it wasn't a terrible choice by the president. He chaired the relevant committee in the Congress.
But it seemed to me that, when he went to the CIA, he never stopped being a Republican politician. There were a whole lot of reports that rather than trying to rebuild and upgrade the CIA's capacity, he spent his time politicizing the agency with a Republican partisan agenda, which was really unprecedented, even when President Bush's father, another Republican politician, ran the agency.
BLITZER: You totally disagree with that.
JEFFREY: No, I think that's -- look, the Senate Intelligence Committee report on Iraq, among other things, reported, we did not have a single human intelligence source reporting on Saddam's weapons of mass destruction in the years leading up to the Iraq war -- an absolute, utter, complete failure to do its core mission.
Porter Goss was the guy who understood how that mission should be done. He ran into a lot of people in that institution who weren't doing their jobs. And, of course, that caused friction. And I hope that isn't what led to his leaving now. The CIA still needs to be fixed.
BEGALA: But that report itself was written by Republican politician Pat Roberts, the senator from Kansas.
JEFFREY: It was unanimously signed off on by the Senate Intelligence Committee.
BEGALA: Excuse me. And since that -- since that report was written, Terry, Tyler Drumheller, one of the top officials at the CIA, has come forward and said, no, we actually had as a source one of Saddam's top officials, who told us that there were no weapons of mass destruction.
So, that report is, as they used to say in the Watergate days, overtaken by events.
JEFFREY: So, you think the CIA was doing its job when Bill Clinton was in office?
BEGALA: I think that -- I think Porter Goss has politicized the agency. And I think there's something going on here, that there's...
JEFFREY: You think the CIA was doing its job?
BEGALA: I think that there's -- I think ...
JEFFREY: How did he politicize -- what -- name one thing he did to politicize the agency.
(CROSSTALK)
BEGALA: Look, he is running through that agency right now.
They have lost, by one account in the Associated Press, 300 years of experience, veteran officers being driven out...
JEFFREY: So, Paul...
BEGALA: ... of the agency because of the political agenda that Mr. Bush has sent Mr. Goss to enact in that agency.
JEFFREY: You would say that, when you have an agency that absolutely doesn't do its job, that absolutely, utterly failed to collect intelligence on Iraq, you send a new director in there, you say it's not a good sign that he's cleaning house and he's getting people out who were not doing their job?
(CROSSTALK)
JEFFREY: He should have left them there?
BEGALA: They are firing the guys who got it right.
JEFFREY: Who got it right in the CIA? What did they get right?
(CROSSTALK)
BEGALA: Tyler Drumheller, for one.
JEFFREY: Who got it right?
BEGALA: Tyler Drumheller, for one. The people who were warning that there were no weapons and there were no links to al Qaeda, the people who were warning that Mr. Bush and Mr. Cheney were misleading the country, they have been purged. And the dunderheads who got it wrong...
JEFFREY: Paul...
BEGALA: ... are being promoted.
JEFFREY: George Tenet, the man that President Clinton named director of the CIA, used to be a staff director for Patrick Leahy when he ran the Intelligence Committee, went to the Oval Office... (CROSSTALK)
JEFFREY: ... looked President Bush in the eye, and, according to Bob Woodward, twice said, "it's a slam dunk. The weapons of mass destruction are there."
BLITZER: All right.
JEFFREY: No one has refuted that story.
BEGALA: And Bush gave him a medal.
JEFFREY: That was your CIA director.
(CROSSTALK)
BEGALA: He was Mr. Bush's, too. And Bush gave him a medal.
JEFFREY: Bush should not have done it. He should have put Porter Goss in there.
BLITZER: This is a good discussion, guys, but, unfortunately, we're out of time, a serious discussion.
(LAUGHTER)
BLITZER: Clearly, there's a lot we don't know about Porter Goss' decision. But we're going to find out. I'm sure of that.
Thanks to Terry Jeffrey and Paul Begala.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: And up ahead tonight, Iran says it will attack Israel if the United States moves against Iran's nuclear program. Is Israel at risk? I'll ask the former Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.
An anti-war activist that had numerous encounters with Donald Rumsfeld, but what led a former CIA analyst to get into an extraordinary showdown with the defense secretary. We'll ask. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Are chilling new threats from Iran and al Qaeda putting Israel at greater risk? Earlier I spoke with the former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: Prime Minister, thanks for joining us.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the president of Iran, has flatly said, and I'll quote him, he said, "Israel must be wiped out from the map of the world, and God willing, with the force of God behind it, we shall soon experience a world without the United States and Zionism." How seriously do you take these threats emanating from Iran?
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, FORMER ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: Very seriously. I read recently an interview with a Holocaust survivor in one of the European papers, and the interview asked them, what is your main lesson from the Holocaust? And he said, my main lesson is that when somebody tells you that he's going to exterminate you, believe him.
Now, I believe the intentions of the president of Iran when he says he intends to wipe Israel off the map of the Earth. But I also know that it's not just Israel that he's threatening, but the entire free world.
Hitler threatened the Jews. Indeed, he was an enormous threat, as it turned out, an enormous catastrophe for the Jews, but he turned out to be a catastrophe for the entire world.
And I think Mr. Olmert, the current prime minister of Israel, was right when he called Ahmadinejad a latter-day Hitler, because they share the same fanaticism, and the same mentality, but if this regime will be armed with nuclear weapons, then the danger for the entire world will be enormous.
BLITZER: So, at what point does Israel take a unilateral preemptive strike against Iran, along the lines of what you did in 1981 against the Iraqi nuclear reactor at Osirak? Is that even in the cards?
NETANYAHU: The difference between 1981 and today is that at the time, Israel was alone, and indeed was, I believe (ph), castigated by the international community for wiping out Saddam Hussein's nuclear bomb factory before it became operative.
Today, that is not the case. I think there is a great awareness in Washington, in the United States, and indeed around many capitals, that the arming of Iran with atomic bombs would endanger the entire world, would endanger not only Middle Eastern peace, but you know -- if people are worried about the oil prices today, wait until Iran has a nuclear umbrella from which it could carry out its designs to capture the Arabian Peninsula. That would really push oil prices high.
So I think there is an awareness and there is an American-led international action, and I think everybody who is -- wants to see peace in the world, everybody who wants to have sanity rule the world would support this American-led international effort.
And, by the way, would not necessarily be a military confrontation, because it might not be necessary. If the world, the free world, unites around this American initiative, you probably won't have to use force, and Iran would back off.
BLITZER: So the notion of an Israeli military strike, that's not in the cards, at least not now.
NETANYAHU: I think we all support the United States' effort. I think that Israel is a very strong country, and Israel has known in the past and will know in the future how to defend itself. But we would all prefer to see a solution, if possible, a peaceful solution, led by the American pressure on Iran to disarm, or to discontinue its nuclear program.
BLITZER: You've spent a lot of time worrying about terror attacks against Israel. Osama bin Laden in that April 23rd audiotape that came out, he said this, he said -- "The blockade which the West is imposing on the government of Hamas proves that there is a Zionist, crusaders' war on Islam." How worried are you specifically about al Qaeda threats against Israel, as opposed to Hamas or Hezbollah?
NETANYAHU: Well, I'm worried. And I've spoken about it for quite some time. I'm worried that al Qaeda will penetrate our region. It already has begun to do so in Jordan, in the Sinai, and elsewhere, in the Egyptian Sinai. It seeks to establish and has established cells in Gaza. Yes, al Qaeda could out-Hamas Hamas.
That's the problem with these madmen. They each vie to be more extreme, more violent than the others. They all want to get rid of Israel, because merely because Israel is an extension of the free Western civilization that the United States is leading. They see us as an extension of the U.S., and in this sense, they're right.
But there's no reason why when they attack every other Western position that they will not seek to attack Israel, and perhaps the greatest nightmare is that they will be able to bring the shoulder- fired missiles that they have already tried to use against an Israeli aircraft in Mombasa, in Africa, against our civilian aircraft.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: Benjamin Netanyahu speaking with me earlier. He was, by the way, odd man out when Israel's new coalition government was sworn in this week. The former prime minister is now an opposition leader. His Likud Party fared poorly in the recent elections in Israel.
Let's check in with CNN's Fredricka Whitfield at the CNN Center. There's a developing story in Florida you're watching, Fred.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: That's right, Wolf.
New fires are being reported in Brevard County, Florida, so much so that many firefighters are working hard to try to put it out. They're even using mosquito control helicopters to dump water in the area that is now on fire.
Initially, this fire started on one side of the road, and then over a bit of time, jumped over to the other side of the road. Now a four-mile stretch of I-95 near Cocoa is closed. So you can expect some pretty serious backups there -- traffic backups on I-95. And now authorities are looking for a possible arson suspect -- Wolf.
BLITZER: And those fires very, very close to homes, as we can see. Thanks, Fred, for that. We'll watch it. Jacki Schechner is watching this situation online. What are you picking up, Jacki?
JACKI SCHECHNER, CNN INTERNET REPORTER: Wolf, some pictures a little bit earlier today. That fog actually not just causing delays but actual traffic jams and accidents. Take a look at how the smog that's coming in. This is our affiliate WFTV in Brevard County. You can see some of the pictures here that have come in, all of the crashes.
All of the captions on these photos talk about how the smog descended in the blink of an eye. It happened very, very quickly and there was nothing anybody could do to avoid these many accidents along I-95. And it does say that some of the firefighters in the area were prepared to shut the roads down as soon as they needed to. And if they hadn't, they don't know how much worse it could have possibly been, Wolf.
BLITZER: Jacki, Thanks. We'll watch this developing story.
Up ahead tonight in THE SITUATION ROOM, a showdown with Donald Rumsfeld. What would lead a top former CIA analyst to publicly confront the defense secretary over the conflict in Iraq?
And Congressman Patrick Kennedy says he's going into rehab for substance abuse after crashing his car on Capitol Hill. Should he give up his seat in Congress? Jack Cafferty reading your e-mails. Stay with us.
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BLITZER: The "Bottom Line" on today's market numbers, the Dow Jones Industrial Average saw its fifth straight week of gains. It rose more than one percent. The S&P 500 was also up one percent, hitting a five-year high. And the NASDAQ also climbed.
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has been taking heat over the war in Iraq. But the temperature soared during an extraordinary showdown with a former top CIA analyst.
Our senior national correspondent John Roberts has more -- John.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, overnight Ray McGovern has become one of the most talked-about men in America. Praised by some, vilified by others for his terse exchange yesterday with the secretary of defense over Iraq's reported weapons of mass destruction.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RAY MCGOVERN, FORMER CIA ANALYST: You said you knew where they were.
DONALD RUMSFELD, DEFENSE SECRETARY: I did not. I said I knew where suspect sites were and we were ... MCGOVERN: You said you knew where they were, near Tikrit, near Baghdad, and north, east, south and west of there. Those are your words.
ROBERTS (voice-over): So who is McGovern? A 27-year-old veteran of the CIA, who during the Reagan administration, prepared the super- secret president's daily brief and upon retirement in 1990, received a letter of thanks from the first President Bush. And he has no regrets about the very aggressive stand he took with Rumsfeld.
MCGOVERN: He has the kind of confidence -- I would say arrogance, hubris -- where, you know, he can handle just about anything. Well, he can handle just about anything except the facts.
ROBERT: McGovern is also a fierce opponent of the war in Iraq, the founder of Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity, a group of 54 former analysts and operatives from the CIA and other intelligence agencies.
He is well-known for his anti-administration writings on intelligence, secret prisons, even the CIA leak investigation. Former CIA director John McLaughlin has known McGovern for years.
JOHN MCLAUGHLIN, FORMER CIA DEPUTY DIRECTOR: Ray McGovern was a very well-respected analyst who was always outspoken, entitled to his views and not shy of controversy.
ROBERTS: The conservative blogs are all over McGovern, describing him as a nut job with extreme views on a variety of topics, highlighting how back in January, he tried to deliver a set of mock indictments to the White House. How does McGovern feel about such criticisms?
MCGOVERN: That's true. We have extreme views. You see, we were brought up in a culture that's really exemplified by the inscription in the marble right at the entrance to the CIA headquarters that says "you shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free".
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: What's interesting about yesterday's exchange and the vilification of McGovern is that in arguing with Rumsfeld, he did appear to have the facts on his side. So what's really at issue here is the tone. Speaking truth to power for some, just plain rude for others -- Wolf.
BLITZER: John Roberts, thanks very much. Let's find out about some tornadoes that are developing right now. Rob Marciano, what is going on?
(WEATHER REPORT)
BLITZER: We'll watch it with you, Rob. Thanks.
Let's find out what's coming up right at the top of the hour. Paula's standing by -- Paula. PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, Wolf. Thanks so much. We'll continue following both of tonight's developing stories. Why did CIA Director Porter Goss resign, and what problems may have led to Congressman Patrick Kennedy's traffic accident and his decision to seek treatment for his addictions and depression? Did he get special treatment from the police? We'll have a man representing a police union weigh in on that.
Plus how did a woman start a revolution in crime fighting simply by reaching for her camera-equipped cell phone? I'm going to show you exactly what she did coming up at the top of the hour -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Sounds good, Paula. Thanks very much.
When we come back, Jack Cafferty. We'll take a quick break.
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BLITZER: Jack's in New York with "The Cafferty File" -- Jack.
CAFFERTY: Thanks, Wolf.
Congressman Patrick Kennedy said today he's going to go to rehab at the Mayo Clinic up in Minnesota, get some help for his addictions and his depression. This comes a day after he slammed his car into a security barricade on Capitol Hill. The question we asked is whether he ought to resign his Congressional seat.
Larry, in Tobaccoville, North Carolina says, "It's a big scandal and he ought to resign. Whether he asked for special treatment or not, he got it because of Ted. This is an embarrassment and offensive to the average person who would have been jailed for the same behavior."
Francis in Santa Barbara, California: "Obviously Patrick Kennedy has a serious problem. And it would be the height of opportunism for him to remain in public office. He needs to take a few years off and see whether he can ever overcome the monkeys on his back before contemplating a return to a position of public trust."
Keri in Providence, Rhode Island: "We elected Patrick because we know he has a good heart and votes with it. He's not a perfect person, but who is? He's a man with a conscience who just stood up in front of the entire nation and admitted he has a problem. He had my vote two years ago and will again in November."
Janice in Houston writes, "No, he shouldn't resign his Congressional seat. I think he deserves a chance to pull his life together. This is the same chance that you or I would get from our employers if we were in the same situation."
Ron in Clarkston, Michigan and clean since July of 2005 writes, "I've been to rehab just one more time than the Congressman, and it's simply beyond me how he could stay in office while trying to get clean. Who's he kidding?" And Arnold in Athens, Ohio: "Jack, it's about time the kids of America had another Kennedy to look up to. It's been so long" -- Wolf.
BLITZER: We'll see you on "IN THE MONEY" Saturday and Sunday, Saturday 1:00 p.m. Eastern, replay Sunday 3:00 p.m. Eastern.
CAFFERTY: Yes, sir.
BLITZER: If you haven't seen Jack's show on the weekends, to our viewers, good idea to check it out.
CAFFERTY: Thanks, Wolf.
BLITZER: Thanks, Jack.
I'll be back Sunday on "LATE EDITION" with more on the sudden resignation of the CIA director, Porter Goss. Among my guests, Congresswoman Jane Harman, and Senator Pat Roberts. All that comes up Sunday on "LATE EDITION," 11:00 a.m. Eastern, the last word in Sunday talk.
Until then, thanks very much for joining us. I'm Wolf Blitzer in THE SITUATION ROOM. Coming up right now, "PAULA ZAHN NOW" -- Paula.
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