Curt Weldon: The Troublemaker

Hero or conspiracy theorist?
The louder Weldon shouts, the more divisive he becomes. One camp calls him a hero and a patriot; the other brands him a hyperventilating conspiracy theorist. Locked in the most competitive campaign of his career, one that the national Democratic Party believes it must win to regain power in Congress and is financing to the hilt, Weldon is probably ill-advised to be engaging in theatrics. And yet there he is.

For Weldon's critics -- and even for some of his supporters -- the maddening thing is that much of what he says cannot be completely disproved or verified. Indeed, Weldon has often been right about the course of world affairs. However, much of what he says, particularly about 9/11 and terrorism, has threads of truth, and he can overreach. The CIA has surely failed to predict major world events. But does that mean that it's totally incompetent? The 9/11 commissioners said their report isn't the last word. But does that mean that Able Danger should be part of the record, or that commissioners are willfully eschewing its significance to protect themselves? And what if a handful of analysts did identify Mohamed Atta? Clearly they, or their superiors, were unable or unwilling to effectively use that discovery. Would it have stopped the attacks? Weldon may often be right. But is he always accurate?

At a time when even the most mundane utterances of any senior politician are picked up as soon as they fall from his or her lips, Weldon -- a proud loudmouth -- is the easiest of easy targets. And yet he heads straight into the breach, almost gleefully, practically begging his opponents to challenge him. But as Weldon rails about Watergate-style cover-ups and hitches his wagon to mysterious "friends" in the intelligence world, people have started whispering. Perhaps his current vulnerability emboldens them. Behind his back -- and surely he knows this -- many in Washington ask a pointed question: Is he crazy?

Since first being elected to Congress in 1986, Weldon has walked a fine line between narcissism and heroism, between being right and being cast as a nut. The stakes have never been higher, but this isn't new territory for him. He has always managed to stay atop the tightrope, and the people around him have learned how to balance his passionate self-certainty with his short, attention-getting fuse. It's a delicate dance. As one intelligence professional with close ties to many in the whispering (conservative) class put it, "Curt Weldon is someone you want on your side. But not passionately."

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