So Who is Telling the Truth: Clinton or Rice?

As I was watching CNN Newsroom, I started wondering if Jamie McIntyre was interviewing for a position at Faux News or about to write something for the National Review:

MCINTYRE: If nothing else, the debate over President Clinton’s spirited defense shows the conclusion is debatable. Officially, the White House is staying out of it. Spokesman Tony Snow, a former Fox News commentator, quipped “he retorts, you decide”.

McIntyre’s attempt to fact check what Clinton said to Chris Wallace showed lots of items that basically confirmed what Clinton had said – and yet McIntyre spins these items as if they challenged what Clinton factually noted?
This pathetic excuse for journalism was preceded by:

HARRIS: Hold on, Mr. President. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice challenging President Bush’s predecessor. As you may have seen in a weekend interview, Bill Clinton fired angry accusations against the Bush White House. He says the administration didn’t actively pursue al Qaeda until after the 9/11 attacks. And that he even left the Bush team a comprehensive strategy on terrorism.Rice adamantly rejected that in an interview with “The New York Post.” Right counters, “but what we did in the eight months was at least as aggressive at what the Clinton administration did in the preceding years. We were not left a comprehensive strategy to fight al Qaeda.” One board member asked, “so you’re saying Bill Clinton is a liar?” Rice’s response, “no, I’m just saying that, look, there was a lot of passion in that interview and I’m not going to – I would just suggest that you go back and read the 9/11 Commission report on the efforts of the Bush administration in the eight months.” There you have it.

Rice’s interview can be found here. She is certainly at odds with President Clinton on two matters. As far as the efforts of the Bush Administration before 9/11, only one thing comes to my mind – her presentation of the DeLenda Plan to President Bush on September 4, 2001. This was the plan that Sandy Berger presented to her on December 20, 2000 and that Richard Clarke discussed with her on January 25, 2001. Of course, Dr. Rice denied ever hearing of this plan when she testified before the 9/11 commission. So – no, Bill Clinton did not lie. The liar is Dr. Rice.

Faiz and ThinkProgress have more on what our mainstream media seems incapable of reporting.