This afternoon on Capitol Hill, the Democratic Policy Committee hosted a hearing to examine the national security implications of disclosing the identity of a covert intelligence officer. The DPC, in other words, was willing to do what the majority party was not — take a serious look at the consequences of the Plame scandal and engage in some administrative oversight.
The hearings were broadcast on C-SPAN, but if you missed it, I have copies of the remarks made by the hearing’s chairman and several of today’s witnesses. They’re definitely worth reading.
* Opening statement from Senator Byron L. Dorgan, Chairman of the Democratic Policy Committee
* Remarks of Colonel W. Patrick Lang, former director of the Defense Human Intelligence (HUMINT) Service, and a retired senior officer of U.S. Army Special Forces
* Remarks on Larry Johnson, a decorated veteran of the CIA and the former deputy director of U.S. State Department’s Office of Counterterrorism
* Remarks of James Marcinkowski, a former CIA operations officer, and also has worked for the U.S. Navy and the FBI
The Republican talking points — Plame’s undercover status wasn’t important, Rove’s leak didn’t do any harm, the scandal didn’t undermine national security, etc. — look utterly ridiculous once you consider the expert testimony offered this morning.