Case against aides (doesn't have leg to stand on. (Valerie Plame case) (MUST READ: NO CRIME)

Chicago Sun Times ^ | Oct. 25, 2005 | MICHAEL BARONE

[FairOpinion]

The problem is that the narrative line being offered up by the press is almost entirely wrong. And it is almost certainly true neither of the statutes that might cover the situation -- the Intelligence Identities Protection Act of 1982 and the Espionage Act of 1917 -- was violated, at least by anyone in the administration.

Consider the Intelligence Identities Protection Act. To violate it, you must disclose the name of a covert agent who has served abroad within the last five years, while knowing that that person was a covert agent. It does not appear that Plame was a covert agent who had served abroad within five years of the disclosure of her name to reporters. She was a desk officer at CIA headquarters at Langley at that time. This law was narrowly drafted and intended only to apply to people who purposefully endangered covert agents abroad. That is clearly not the case here.

The Espionage Act is less narrowly drafted. But it does set out specific things that cannot be disclosed -- ''information concerning any vessel, aircraft, work of defense, Navy yard,'' etc. The list does not include identity of CIA agents -- there weren't any in 1917 -- which is why the drafters of the 1982 IIPA felt the need for a new law to protect a very limited class of covert operatives.

So it seems clear to me that an indictment under either of these statutes would be a gross injustice.

To visit the rigors of criminal indictment, trial and punishment on someone who has done nothing that is specifically forbidden is unjust -- the very definition of injustice.

But why should there be indictments if there was no crime?

[thoughtomator]

Maybe because reporters committed crimes pertaining to the matter?

[FlingWingFlyer]

If Fitzy is dumb enough to get on his knees for his DNC massas and hand down indictments, I'd give anything to see Goss come out and say, "I've been through the ho's record. She was a desk jockey not a superspy."

[RasterMaster]

The DUmocrats will have to cheat in order to eat their Fitzmas candy. It never occurs to them that the 1-5 indictments could be:

1. Wilson

2. Plame

3. Miller

4. Russert

5. Novak

[FairOpinion]

"There are other laws this could fall under."

===

Such as?
The point is that if there is no crime, you don't run around investigating people -- can you imagine if any American citizen can be investigated willy-nilly, just to see if there is any crime they can pin on him, "just because"?

[Brillo_Breaks]

Sealed indictments are usually used in large scale conspiracy cases, like drug trafficing, or gang and organized crime. They use them to indict some people involved, without giving away all the info in your case to the other targets you're still investigating. Sometimes to buy time, sometimes in an effort to flip one witness against others.

In fact, that's exactly how Fitzgerald did things with some earlier cases. Indict a few lower leveled folks, make em understand how serious things are, and then get them to turn on the people that ordered the crimes.

[Dolphy]

And it is almost certainly true neither of the statutes that might cover the situation -- the Intelligence Identities Protection Act of 1982 and the Espionage Act of 1917 -- was violated, at least by anyone in the administration.

Didn't the DOJ investigate this for a couple of months before turning it over to Fitzgerald? Surely they would have determined Plame's status and in talking with Novak determined if her name or just status as Wilson's wife was leaked. Or did they turn up something that caused them to bring in Fitzgerald?

[FairOpinion]

I think he may well indict White House staff, but that itself should be illegal.

You need "reasonable cause" for search and seizure, and if there was no crime, how does the prosecutor justify getting everyone's notes and deposing them under oath?

Don't people in the Bush administration have the protection of the US constitution? Only the terrorists? (ref. teo McCain act of terrorist protection )

[Brillo_Breaks]

The point is that if there is no crime, you don't run around investigating people -- can you imagine if any American citizen can be investigated willy-nilly, just to see if there is any crime they can pin on him, "just because"?

It's not, 'Just Because'. I'm saying there are other statues that make this illegal, not just the two cited.

[FairOpinion]

" I'm saying there are other statues that make this illegal"


===

Such as???????????????

[Dolphy]

I'll go with Wilson, Plame, Corn (who actually first suggested Novak outed her) along with CIA and INR analysts :)

[Christian4Bush]

btt

[McGavin999]

Good tactic to use on some lower level CIA then.

[T. Buzzard Trueblood]

...just about everything Wilson said publicly about his trip to Niger was untrue. He said that he had discredited reports that Iraq sought to buy uranium in Niger. But the CIA people to whom he reported concluded that, if anything, he substantiated such reports.

[Howlin]

True, Rove and Libby did seek to discredit Joseph Wilson -- as they should well have done. As the Senate Intelligence Committee concluded in a bipartisan report in July 2004, just about everything Wilson said publicly about his trip to Niger was untrue. He said that he had discredited reports that Iraq sought to buy uranium in Niger. But the CIA people to whom he reported concluded that, if anything, he substantiated such reports. He said that he pointed out that certain other intelligence reports were forged. But the forgeries did not appear until eight months after his trip. He said his wife had nothing to do with his trip to Niger. But it was she who recommended him for the trip. And on and on.

Michael Barone is THE MAN, one of the only TWO reporters I listen to anymore.

[Peach]

Wilson's lies are almost legendary at this point.

What I've never understood is how Wilson knew about the forged documents so many months before it was known the documents were forged.

[FairOpinion]

Another good article:

Will Karl Rove Be Another Indicted for a Non-Crime?

Even the ultra-liberal (actually leftist) NY Times said that Rove and Libby will more than likely be exonerated of the charge of "outing" former covert CIA agent Valerie Plame and that they did not violate the 1982 Intelligence Identities Protection Act. But, the Times went on to say that Special Prosecutor Fitzgerald would probably indict at least Rove on his inability to correctly remember a conversation he may have had. HOLD IT! During the Clinton Whitewater hearings both Bill and Hillary Clinton said they 'couldn't remember things' over 1,300 times combined! Neither one of them were indicted for their consistent lapses of memory. But, they were both Democrats. Rove and DeLay are not. Do you see a conspicuous and defined pattern here?

[Mo1]

Yep .. nice to know that not everyone in the press/media has forgotten the REAL FACTS

[MJY1288]

I'll say it again

Joe Wilson is the one who has been shown to be a liar in the Senate Investigation, The British Intel agencies, and any and all honest reporters who don't hate Bush.

The simple fact that the CIA Director George Tenet, did not know of Joe Wilson's trip to Niger in advance is a major scandal in itself. Here we have an issue that could be the difference between war and peace, and the CIA Director was not told of this adventure???

This trip to Niger that was arranged by Valerie Plame was an orchestrated attempt to undermine the Foreign Policy of this President and our Constitution clearly gives the President of the United States the power to decide what our foreign policy will be. A rogue element within the CIA obviously ignored this Constitutional power granted to the POTUS when they sent a former Ambassador to Niger to get the results they wanted in order to undermine this Presidents foreign policy.

This is how I see this whole deal

[McGavin999]

Is it tomorrow yet? I want this thing to be OVER!

[Brillo_Breaks]

Didn't the DOJ investigate this for a couple of months before turning it over to Fitzgerald?

Yeah. Investigation started July 30th, then December 30th Ashcroft (who ran that investigation) recruses himself and has his deputy pick someone. The deputy appoints Fitzgerald that same day.

Surely they would have determined Plame's status and in talking with Novak determined if her name or just status as Wilson's wife was leaked.

Presumably the CIA knew her status and whether a law may have been violated when they asked for an investigation, and if not, I'm relatively certain the Ashcroft's investigation would have figured that out...