Kean steps in for Kissinger: Henry Kissinger's abrupt resignation from the 9-11 commission leaves the cover-up in the hands of an establishment second-stringer. (Conspiracy Update).

Forced to choose between cementing the 9-11 cover-up and continuing the cover-up of his corrupt dealings as an international power broker, Henry Kissinger favored the latter. On Friday, December 13th, Kissinger informed the White House of his resignation as head of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks. The ruling Establishment has a deep bench, however. On the following Monday President Bush announced the appointment of former New Jersey Governor Thomas Kean, who, like Kissinger, is a member in good standing of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Just one day before his unexpected resignation, Kissinger had met with relatives of 9-11 victims to discuss potential conflicts of interest arising from his international consulting firm, Kissinger Associates (KA). As previously reported in these pages (see "Kissinger: Cover-up King" in our December 30th issue), Kissinger created his consulting firm during the mid-1980s in collaboration with Brent Scowcroft and Lawrence Eagleburger. The firm gives secret high-level briefings to an equally secretive list of clients. Essentially a form of matchmaking between foreign rulers and private corporate and banking interests, KA briefing sessions are conducted orally, with nothing committed to paper.

After President Bush announced Kissinger's appointment, critics from across the political spectrum protested that Kissinger' s business contacts with foreign interests created potential conflicts of interest. Commentators and Democratic politicians demanded that Kissinger submit financial disclosures detailing any potential conflicts. The administration, reflecting its penchant for official secrecy, insisted that because Kissinger was an uncompensated presidential appointee, he wasn't required by law to submit a financial disclosure statement.

However, two reports from the Congressional Research Service concluded that all commission members would be required to comply with Senate ethics guidelines, including financial disclosure requirements. This finding prompted former Senator George Mitchell, selected by Democratic congressional leaders to serve as commission co-chair, to resign from the panel shortly before Kissinger did.

It's possible that Kissinger--who exists in a cocoon of privilege--simply believed that he could bluff his way through the conflict-of-interest issue. After all, that strategy worked for his underlings at Kissinger Associates. Lawrence Eagleburger refused to disclose the firm's client list during his 1989 Senate confirmation hearings; Eagleburger went on to serve as assistant secretary of state, and then acting secretary of state, during the first Bush administration. Nor was Brent Scowcroft required to reveal potential KA-related conflicts before serving as national security adviser to George Bush (the elder).

Unspecified "Assurances"

During his December 12th meeting with representatives from 9-11 family groups, Kissinger offered unspecified "assurances" that his business contacts would not compromise his role as chairman of the terrorist commission. According to an AP report, Kissinger "outlined procedures he was considering for the commission's 10 members to disclose potential conflicts of interest." According to Stephen Push, spokesman for the group Families of September 11th, the proposed guidelines were designed in such a way that Kissinger would not be required to release a list of his consulting firm's clients.

It's realistic to suspect that Kissinger had hoped to enlist the support of the 911 families as a way of neutralizing his critics, but they proved less than enthusiastic about Kissinger's self-serving proposal. Although Push said that the meeting offered the prospect of "a good working relationship" with Kissinger, the families didn't consider his proposed disclosure guidelines to be (in Push's words) "an alternative to following the law."

Kissinger outlined the essentials of his proposal in his resignation letter to President Bush, pointing out that he was willing to submit "all relevant financial information" to the White House and yet another "independent" review board. But this arrangement would have left the matter largely in the hands of the president--who appointed Kissinger--and Kissinger himself. Obviously, this would satisfy nobody.

Remember that Henry Kissinger, who introduced the phrase "decent interval" to the diplomatic lexicon, is a past master at plastering a face-saving veneer over abject surrender. By floating his untenable proposal, Kissinger was able to cast himself as the victim of insatiable, unreasonable critics. "It is clear that, although specific potential conflicts can be resolved ... the controversy would quickly move to the consulting firm I build and own," he wrote to President Bush. "I have, therefore, concluded that I cannot accept the responsibility you proposed."

Kissinger's Closet

According to the December 16th Christian Science Monitor, it was the demand for disclosure by the victims' families, who acted "with the moral clout of 9-11 behind them ... that proved to be a deal-ender for former Secretary of State Kissinger." Had Kissinger ignored that demand, it would have been a public relations disaster for both the commission and the White House. Had he complied, a graveyard's worth of skeletons would have tumbled from his closet, including Kissinger Associates' role in facilitating Saddam Hussein's arms build-up. This, in turn, would have prompted renewed interest in the role played by the first President Bush in keeping financial and material aid flowing to Iraq during the late 1980s--despite Saddam's gas attacks on Iraq's Kurdish minority, the lethal 1987 Iraqi attack on the U.S.S. Stark, and plentiful evidence of Saddam's aggressive designs. (See "Building the Beast of Baghdad" in our October 21, 2002 issue.)

When Kissinger was appointed, critics nationwide exclaimed, "The 'fix' is in!" Congressional resistance, coupled with concerted action by a small but devoted group of citizens, resulted in the fix being pried out. While Thomas Kean isn't likely to be zealous in pursuing the truth about Black Tuesday, Kissinger's unexpected withdrawal illustrates that timely citizen activism can still have a positive impact.