Perle Scam

Defense Policy Board chairman Dick Perle isn't waiting for a share of oil revenues; he wants to be paid now. The neo-con chickenhawk has figured out how to make the New Imperialism both fun and profitable, according to The Nation.

During and after his chairmanship, Perle used his insider status to demand fees for appearances on a number of foreign broadcasts, which included British, Canadian, Japanese and South Korean television. While paying interviewees is common practice in some countries, a number of media outlets made exceptions for Perle. "We did pay Perle because of his position [in a] prominent advisorship to the Secretary of Defense," says a European correspondent who, like most journalists interviewed, requested anonymity because of network discomfort at publicly discussing payment policies. Fees ranged from under $100 to $900--minor sums to someone like Perle, but federal regulations covering officials in his capacity make no distinctions based on amount.

Wow. Shouldn't David Frum be spanking Dicky P. right about now?

Perle's response to the story was drafted by one Chris Hitchens:

The suggestion that being paid for work I do is somehow an abuse of my role as a member of a government advisory board is the sort of slander I expect from The Nation which, since the collapse of regard for the vision of its founders, and the paucity of ideas to replace it, has been reduced to impugning the character of those whose ideas have prevailed over yours.

Advantage: The Nation. After all, it got Perle to respond for free.