If the Administration has a videotape with what amounts to a confession by Osama bin Laden for the 9/11 attacks, you might think that it would broadcast the video far and wide. Today's Washington Post quotes senior government officials claiming that they have just such a videotape, retrieved from Jalalabad, showing Mr. bin Laden using "language that indicated he was familiar with the planning of the attacks". On NBC's Meet the Press today, Dick Cheney confirmed the story and described the video to Tim Russert this way:

It's pretty clear, as described to me, that he does in fact display significant knowledge of what happened and there's no doubt about his responsibility for the attack on September 11th.

We've not been eager to give the guy any extra television time than he could obtain for himself.

Fair enough, this is certainly a reasonable concern. It may have made sense to slip the video quietly to Pakistan for initial publication, or mail it anonymously to Al Jazeera, or something like that. But then why was the story leaked to the Washington Post?

Karen Hughes

Ms. Hughes is a skilled propagandist, a worthy opponent for Mr. Bin Laden, so perhaps she has engineered the leak as part of a Machiavellian plot to confuse the enemy. She also has a history of using leaks in battle against internal enemies in the Administration, but it's hard to imagine that she would allow petty squabbles to influence her handling of such a critical national security matter.

In any case, now that the story is out, there seems to be no reason to delay the release of the incriminating portions of the tape, at least. Much of the world lacks faith in the Administration's assertions of culpability by Mr. bin Laden, and any substantiation could be helpful.