The Plame Name Game

October 1, 2003 12:43 AM

Chickenhawk DownThe Daily Kos challenges readers to come up with a new name for the CIA-Wilson-Plame business that doesn't include the term "gate." Many amusing suggestions have been logged in comments. Entries include The Plame Game, Intimigate, FrogMarch, Novack-aine, and Karl's Bad. Whatever your political persuasion, the name game can be fun. Surely MeFi wags can come up with a few witty ideas.
posted by madamjujujive (35 comments total)

Intimigate

The only thing more gatey than that would be if they called it gategate. Speaking of which, when are they going to have a gategate?

I'd call it gategate.
posted by The God Complex at 12:48 AM on October 1, 2003

Neoconned
posted by mathowie at 1:27 AM on October 1, 2003

I'm sick of adding the damn -gate suffix to every political scandal too. I mean, it wasn't the Water Hotel.

Some of the comments/suggestions at Kos are tremendous. "The Plame Affair" does sound very classy.

Um... I like Plame Out, 'cause it's a pun and it refers to the admin's "outing" of Plame as undercover.

I think my favorite suggestion at Kos was "The one where Rove goes to jail."
posted by nath at 1:42 AM on October 1, 2003

"Karl Rover, Karl Rover, the CIA calls you over."

Not very catchy, but I bet they'd do the double arm link and totally throw him down into the grass.

Neoconned

I wish I'd thought of that.
posted by The God Complex at 1:42 AM on October 1, 2003

Cakefrosting
posted by planetkyoto at 2:04 AM on October 1, 2003

I think you're all having your Karl and eating it too.

But perhaps a new expression could be 'Roveing undercover agents'?
posted by Onanist at 2:44 AM on October 1, 2003

"Sucks to be you '03"
posted by angry modem at 5:08 AM on October 1, 2003

The PlameGame
posted by chaz at 5:25 AM on October 1, 2003

Giving it a cute name just makes it sound like political oneupsmanship (Filegate, Travelgate, etc.). Call it what it is: Treason.
posted by rcade at 5:43 AM on October 1, 2003

Good one Matt!

I wonder this is the Bush idea of a faith-based outing?

From the Daily Kos: "whack-a-mole."
posted by madamjujujive at 5:56 AM on October 1, 2003

Follow the YellowCake Road. To Treason.
posted by nofundy at 5:57 AM on October 1, 2003

I predict that soon the word 'treason' will become so diluted by misuse that it will become essentially meaningless.
posted by andrewzipp at 6:17 AM on October 1, 2003

How about:

Asshat in Chief
posted by DragonBoy at 6:40 AM on October 1, 2003

I've been leaning hard on "Frog March." I like the idea of naming the whole thing after the outcome I'm hoping for.
posted by soyjoy at 7:00 AM on October 1, 2003

I've seen the situation referred to as the "Plame Affair" in a few places, which sounds like it 'fits'... kind of like a spy novel title!
posted by SenshiNeko at 7:11 AM on October 1, 2003

predict that soon the word 'treason' will become so diluted by misuse that it will become essentially meaningless.

Perhaps so, but not in this case. It is both accurate and needed.

If the chickenhawks are overusing/misusing the word for anyone who disagrees with neocon policy then perhaps a frog march will correct that problem. ;-)
posted by nofundy at 7:12 AM on October 1, 2003

Labelling the scandal is so 1998. This is 2003, and that means BRANDING the scandal! So how about a reality show tie-in: "While You Were Outed?" Cue host: "While Valerie Plame was out spying, her friends Karl, George, and Bob got together and redecorated her house with a splashy neon sign saying 'National Security Asset Lives Here!'"

Yes, I watch too much TLC.
posted by stonerose at 7:14 AM on October 1, 2003

How about Hot Karl? It is a steaming mess, after all.
posted by Officeslacker at 7:39 AM on October 1, 2003

But perhaps a new expression could be 'Roveing undercover agents'?

Or "Rove-ing reporters."

And stonerose, that was great, thanks.
posted by soyjoy at 7:44 AM on October 1, 2003

that's great stonerose! : >

and "Plame Game" is good, but it's not a game, so maybe "Leak House" (with a nod to Dickens)?
posted by amberglow at 7:54 AM on October 1, 2003

Oh, here's one that should appeal to the Bushies' biblical bent:

"Acts of the Apostates"

;-)
posted by stonerose at 8:01 AM on October 1, 2003

Some may say that calling this "treason" goes too far. To those I would point out the following quote, first spotted on TalkingPointsMemo.com:

Even though I'm a tranquil guy now at this stage of my life, I have nothing but contempt and anger for those who betray the trust by exposing the name of our sources. They are, in my view, the most insidious of traitors.
George H.W. Bush
April 16th, 1999
Dedication Speech
George Bush Center for Intelligence
posted by cps at 8:27 AM on October 1, 2003

Headline from The Christian Broadcasting Network...

Leak Probe Raises Eyebrows

*Represses juvenile snickering
posted by jaronson at 10:42 AM on October 1, 2003

Oh, and...

Mr. Novak writes again...
posted by jaronson at 10:59 AM on October 1, 2003

Turd Blossom Down
posted by y2karl at 11:23 AM on October 1, 2003

From the latest Novak article (my emphasis):
He asked me not to use her name, saying she probably never again will be given a foreign assignment but that exposure of her name might cause "difficulties" if she travels abroad.

Then he follows it with:
He never suggested to me that Wilson's wife or anybody else would be endangered. If he had, I would not have used her name.

I don't see how those two things line up. The guy says don't use her name, as it will cause problems, then he goes ahead and uses her name not thinking it would endanger anyone. wtf?
posted by mathowie at 11:49 AM on October 1, 2003

Novak is spinning so furiously he doesn't know which way is up. He's already contradicted his July statement to Newsday and floated a ridiculous lie that "operative" doesn't always mean "clandestine."

I linked to this in the older thread, but I'll add the text here, since it's not too long...

Dear CNN,

You really can't have on one of the principals of the story on discussing it, particularly when much of what he says is in conflict with what your reporters are saying. You look foolish and unprofessional.

Love,

Atrios


Atrios has been a juggernaut on this. Therefore I vote that the name of the scandal should be ATRIOSIANA.
posted by soyjoy at 12:13 PM on October 1, 2003

Yes, I watch too much TLC.
No, if you were really watching too much TLC, you'd name the scandal:
"Trading Plames"
"While You Were Outed"
"Leakyard Wars"
"What Novak to Wear"
or from its sister Discovery Channel:
"Monster Karl"
"Dead Spies by Design"...
Yes, I'm having too much fun.
posted by wendell at 2:28 PM on October 1, 2003

Even more ironic is that Novak's original purpose for calling the White House was to find out how they could have made such a political blunder as to send Wilson to Niger to investigate the uranium deal. After all Wilson is the only one who got WMDs right. All the other suckup analysts got it wrong. I can see why they would think Wilson would be a mistake.
posted by JackFlash at 3:53 PM on October 1, 2003

When they take the perps away in handcuffs, the headline will be: CAKE WALK.

Wait, isn't that what they said the war would be? Hmmm...
posted by airgirl at 5:38 PM on October 1, 2003

Considering an award may be in order if this brings down the whitehouse... call it

The Plame d'Jaune calamity

Named after the prize for the winningest film at Cannes, France, the Palme d'Or. Instead of gold, it's yellow[cake] in this case.

Plame, palme, c'est la meme chose. It reads the same, with a nod.
posted by alicesshoe at 6:31 PM on October 1, 2003

airgirl: 25 bonus points for CAKE WALK.

you lose 10 points, however, for spelling it out in the next line. Sorry.
posted by soyjoy at 9:17 PM on October 1, 2003

Smear Eye for the Wife Spy?
posted by amberglow at 9:18 PM on October 1, 2003

The Name of Plame drops mainly from column space
posted by drezdn at 11:12 PM on October 1, 2003

Maureen Dowd wrote today (10/2 NYT) that Valerie Plame and Karl Rove go to the same church!

I found this interesting too: "He and his wife also gave $1,000 each to the Bush-Cheney campaign "before South Carolina," he said, "which was a real rude awakening about the way Ralph Reed & Co. went after John McCain's wife and kid."

There's Lord of he Flies quality to the internecine political savagery of the new Republican right. At this point, it would make a great documentary: "I used to be a loyal Republican, but I got a rude awakening when......."
posted by troutfishing at 5:08 AM on October 2, 2003