Posted on 07/14/2005 9:40:04 PM PDT by FairOpinion
SANFORD: No, I think it's pretty clear that what Karl Rove said to Time magazine's Matthew Cooper doesn't even come close to the kind of knowing violation that is required by the act. Really, the act really requires an intent to harm national security, and that certainly can't be said in these circumstances, I think.
I think a covert agent under the act has to be someone who has deep cover, who is working abroad. Not just traveling abroad, but is stationed and working abroad sometime within the last five years.
And USA Today reported that Joe Wilson's book has even made -- if you do the timeline, the Wilsons were married in 1998. There's some question whether she was even abroad during the last five years.
She really had a desk job at [CIA headquarters in] Langley [Virginia] and was driving in and out of the CIA every day. That's not exactly deep cover.
SANFORD: Well, ... it is worth remembering that when Robert Novak, the columnist, disclosed her identity in his column, he had called the CIA to tell them he was going to do that, and they didn't stop him.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
Karl Rove, President Bush's chief adviser, leaves Air Force One upon arrival from Indianapolis, Ind., at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., Thursday, July 14, 2005. Rove's allege involvement in a news leak that exposed a CIA officer's identity has made him a political liability for President Bush, who has not yet talked about Rove's future in the administration, or his actual role in the leak. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Seems like Novack told Rove.
Excellent interview! Especially the part about Novak telling the C.I.A. he was going to use her name and the them not stopping him.
PHILLIPS: Well, breaking the law or partisan politics, do you think Valerie Plame [Wilson's wife] is now damaged goods?
SANFORD: Well, ... it is worth remembering that when Robert Novak, the columnist, disclosed her identity in his column, he had called the CIA to tell them he was going to do that, and they didn't stop him.
They did not do what the CIA normally does in that situation if they want to protect or continue to protect somebody's identity. ...
They didn't call his syndicate. They didn't scream at him, say you're going to endanger her life or [en]danger her career, that sort of thing. They just sort of shrugged and said, "Well, I guess she won't be getting any more overseas assignments."
I don't think that's the kind of affirmative measures that the agency needs to be taking in order to invoke the statute.
Even if she worked or didn't work for the CIA it still looks shady for someone to spread rumors of someones work. Why in the world during our GWOT would someone even try to hint that someone worked for the CIA, even if she was a janitor or had no cover with the agency, it still looks low.
That's a question you should really pose to Joe Wilson. As soon as he started spreading lies about the genesis of his trip to Africa, it was a dead certianty that his wifes involvement and her identiy would make it into the press.
And it did.
We still don't know who leaked Plame's name. We do know that Rove learned the name from Novak. That is, the Press leaked the name to the White House, not the other way round as you seem to have it in your head.
You've never lived in Northern Virginia.
Gee whiz....on your home page, you say you are a proud member of the Peter Pan Club (never grow up)...well, kid, you're a Freeper now...time to grow up and grow a pair.
Any idiot who doesnt know a misdemeanor from a felony can tell there was no law broken. I heard an interview with Congressman Peter King and he said Wilson had his wife's name on his website before her name was even published. Liberalism is hopefully in its death spasms.
I don't know about anyone else, but combined with Wilson's admission that Plame wasn't undercover; these lawyers and the woman who WROTE the damned law saying there's nothing there; the NYT story coming out tomorrow amounts to this being the greatest tempest in a teapot since the DeLay "scandal".
The DUmmies will be asking "What happened???" this time tomorrow, calling the Times a rightwing tool and such. I'm sure many will be more cautious, but for me, this story is over.
DU placed on suicide watch
CIA, NSA, DIA, NISC are a dime a dozen in the DC metro area. Just because they work there doesn't mean they are covert.
This story gets better and better. Okay, I'll bite: how did Novak find out Plame's identity? Obviously he didn't get it from Rove. And I think he has said he didn't get it from anyone else in the Bush Admistration. Meanwhile, Judith Miller refuses to testify about what she knows. Hmm...
A birdie tells me that Novak's ultimate source is either Joe Wilson (through intermediaries) or Mandy Grunweld (Matt Cooper's wife and Democratic Party hack). Now wouldn't that be sweet?
And .. there was another lawyer over on FOX saying almost exactly the same thing.
The "Rove must go" mantra has just been blown apart and it's laying in pieces on the ground. Tomorrow .. we'll see who in the dems line-up is stupid enough to try to pick them up.
Wilson had the info about his wife posted on his website.
You can't get much more public than that.
My understanding is that Fitzgerald is a Republican.
On fox they stated he was a democrat.
Tomorrow .. we'll see who in the dems line-up is stupid enough to try to pick them up.
My vote is for UpChuck Schumer.
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