Neocons Investigate Themselves

President George W. Bush's choice to co-chair his commission to investigate intelligence failures prior to the Iraq war is a long-time, rightwing political activist closely tied to the neoconservative network that led the pro-war propaganda campaign.

Federal appeals court judge Laurence Silberman, who will chair the panel with former Virginia Democratic Senator Charles Robb, also has some history in covert operations. In 1980, when he served as part of former Republican president Ronald Reagan's senior campaign staff, he played a key role in setting up secret contacts between the Reagan-Bush campaign and the Islamic government in Tehran, as part of what became known as the "October Surprise" controversy. Rewarded with his appeals court judgeship several years later, Silberman helped advise rightwing activists during the '90s on strategies to pursue allegations of sexual misconduct by then-Democratic president Bill Clinton.

Besides Silberman and Robb, a conservative Democrat who also has strong ties to neoconservatives through the Democratic Leadership Council, Bush chose five other commission members, while indicating that two more have yet to be named. The five include Arizona Republican Senator John McCain; former White House counsel for Clinton and former president Jimmy Carter, Lloyd Cutler; Yale University President Richard Levin; former deputy Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) director, Admiral William Studeman and retired appeals court judge Pat Wald.

In unilaterally determining the composition of the panel, Bush rejected appeals by the opposition Democrats in Congress that they be given a role in picking its members and therefore enhance its credibility. The appointment of both Silberman and Wald to the commission is seen as particularly curious, because they are known not to get along. In his controversial book, "Blinded by the Right," former right-wing journalist David Brock claims that Silberman who hates Wald "with a passion" gave "false information" to him about the judge.

Brock depicts Silberman as a major, if discreet, figure in the right-wing network that harassed Bill and Hillary Clinton for various alleged scandals during the 1990s. Brock, who describes Silberman as his "mentor," has since admitted that many of his attacks on Democrats were based on little or no evidence. "A consummate Washington insider for more than two decades," Brock wrote, "Larry would often preface his advice to me with the wry demurrer that judges shouldn't get involved in politics -- 'that would be improper,' he'd say -- and then go ahead anyway."

"He was a behind-the-scenes adviser to the conservative editors of the 'Wall Street Journal' editorial page, and he delighted his conservative audiences with his acid critiques of the liberal press," added Brock.

Silberman has also reportedly been known as aggressive and sometimes abusive, even in his written opinions. He once accused Clinton of "declaring war on the United States" by permitting his aides to attack Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr in the Whitewater case, while, during an argument with another appeals court judge, he is reported to have said, "if you were 10 years younger, I'd be tempted to punch you in the nose."

But it is his role in the 1980 election that is perhaps most intriguing about Silberman. He is alleged to have set up and participated in a mysterious meeting in Washington on Oct. 2, 1980 -- one month before the election -- with Reagan's top foreign policy adviser, then-Marine Lieutenant Colonel Robert McFarlane (Reagan's national security adviser during the Iran-Contra scandal), and at least one Iranian arms dealer. It was the culmination of a series of secret meetings -- never reported to the U.S. government -- between Reagan campaign officials and Iranians who purported to represent the government of the Ayatollah Khomeini.