Keith interviewed investigative journalist Gerald Posner last night, who did a great job of shattering all of the inconsistencies and improbabilities in the FBI's official case against alleged anthrax killer Bruce Ivins.

The strongest evidence they have going for them is also their Achilles‘ heel and that he‘s psychological profile. That fact that he‘s very unstable, that he was someone who was an alcoholic, that he might wanted to have the vaccine continue to go along, but that‘s also the fact that he could have been set up as a cutout or puppet or used by a group of people who wanted the anthrax out there.

They also knew about his weak psychological profile. How was he employed with the most secret biological warfare lab in the United States with this type of background that we now hear about? That they should have known about from day one. The Defense Department should hang its head in shame.

For even more on this story, see Glenn Greenwald's extensive coverage:

Vital unresolved anthrax questions and ABC News

Additional key facts re: the anthrax investigation

Journalists, their lying sources, and the anthrax investigation

The FBI's emerging, leaking case against Ivins

The FBI's selective release of documents in the anthrax case

Full transcript below the fold:

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I'd love for somebody to explain this one to me. I know he was working on the anthrax vaccine, but who nominated Ivins for this award? This item has not been picked up by the press like it should have. C&L's Mark Groubert tells me via email:

On March 14th, 2003 Bruce Ivins, the alleged anthrax killer and anthrax vaccine inventor, was awarded the highest civilian honor of the Pentagon by Army Secretary Thomas White. Exceptional Civilian Service Award

The LA Times:

At a Pentagon ceremony on March 14, 2003, Ivins and two colleagues from USAMRIID were bestowed the Decoration of Exceptional Civilian Service, the highest honor given to nonmilitary employees of the Defense Department. "Awards are nice," Ivins said in accepting the honor. "But the real satisfaction is knowing the vaccine is back on line.

As David Willman reports:

Bruce E. Ivins, the government biodefense scientist linked to the deadly anthrax mailings of 2001, stood to gain financially from massive federal spending in the fear-filled aftermath of those killings, the Los Angeles Times has learned.

Ivins is listed as a co-inventor on two patents for a genetically engineered anthrax vaccine, federal records show. Separately, Ivins also is listed as a co-inventor on an application to patent an additive for various biodefense vaccines...read on

On April 26th, 2003, almost a month after White gave Ivins the award, the Army Secretary was fired by Donald Rumsfeld supposedly for this:

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