I was wrong. Plame DID apparently state her relationship when recommending Ol'Joe:
"The CPD reports officer told committee staff that the former ambassador’s wife ‘offered up his name’ and a memorandum to the deputy chief of the CPD on February 12, 2002, from [Wilson’s] wife says, ‘my husband has good relations with both [Niger’s prime minister] and the former Minister of Mines (not to mention lots of French contacts), both of whom could possibly shed light on this sort of activity.’”
I think the more we learn about geeky Joe Wilson, the more we understand why Plame wanted to get him out of the country!