If Wilson was sent on a classified mission, why wasn't he investigated for disclosing classified information to Walter Pincus?
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Posted on 10/28/2005 10:29:03 PM PDT by Diddle E. Squat
A number of observations tonight from people who know and follow the CIA leak case:
The first is that they view the indictment against Lewis Libby as very strong. One source called it "as clear-cut an indictment" as one would ever see, and the consensus is that Libby is in serious trouble. If Libby lied as much as Fitzgerald accuses him of lying, the sources say, then Libby acted in an astonishingly reckless way.
The observers also suspect that Fitzgerald has some strong but as yet unrevealed evidence to support the centerpiece of his perjury charge against Libby, that is, Libby's testimony to the grand jury about his conversation with NBC's Tim Russert on July 10, 2003, in which Libby swore that it was Russert who told him that Valerie Wilson worked for the CIA:
"Mr. Russert said to me, did you know that Ambassador Wilson's wife, or his wife, works at the CIA? And I said, no, I don't know that. And then he said, yeah – yes, all the reporters know it. And I said, again, I don't know that. I just wanted to be clear that I wasn't confirming anything for him on this. And you know, I was struck by what he was saying in that he thought it was an important fact, but I didn't ask him anymore about it because I didn't want to be digging in on him, and he then moved on and finished the conversation, something like that."
What is striking about the indictment, observers say, is that Fitzgerald does not say simply that Russert has another recollection. Instead, the indictment says:
In truth and fact, as Libby well knew when he gave this testimony, it was false in that: a. Russert did not ask Libby if Libby knew that Wilson’s wife worked for the CIA, nor did he tell Libby that all the reporters knew it; and b. At the time of this conversation, Libby was well aware that Wilson’s wife worked at the CIA...
In another place in the indictment, Fitzgerald states flatly that "Russert did not ask Libby if Libby knew that Wilson's wife worked for the CIA, nor did he tell Libby that all the reporters knew it." That sort of definitiveness has led the observers to suspect that Fitzgerald has some sort of evidence that clearly supports Russert's account of the conversation.
In addition, the observers are unanimously appalled by the performance of Libby's lawyer, Joseph Tate. This is something that has been discussed for quite a while now -- at least since Libby's infamous "the aspens will already be turning" letter to Judith Miller. What lawyer, they ask, would have allowed his client to write and send such a letter -- clearly raising suspicions that Libby was trying to influence testimony and possibly obstruct the investigation? Now, Libby is said to be in the market for a good criminal defense lawyer. If he had done that earlier, the observers say, he might not be in the trouble he is in now.
Another consensus opinion is the cautious belief that Karl Rove might not, ultimately, face any charges. Rove is not mentioned by name in the Libby indictment, and only once by a pseudonym -- "Official A." Although the indictment is not about Rove, the observers get the sense that Rove emerges as a far less important player in the whole affair than Libby; it was Libby, for example, and apparently not Rove, who got in touch with the CIA and the State Department about the Wilson matter. In addition, word is that Rove made some sort of presentation to Fitzgerald in the last days of the investigation that made Fitzgerald less inclined to take action against Rove. What that involved is is not clear.
And finally, many observers of the investigation marvel at what is still not known after nearly two years of probing. Who leaked the story to Robert Novak? What, precisely, was Valerie Wilson's status at the CIA at the time Novak's column revealed her identity? Fitzgerald presumably knows the answers to those questions. But, at least so far, he isn't saying.
I think it's pretty obvious that it was Karl Rove.
We dont. I think one is an assistant secretary of state who gave the info to Libby upon request. Maybe the other is Fleicher the press secretary. He knew and had been in meetings with Libby where Wilson and his wife were discussed.
Thanks,
but then if Novak revealed his sources, which he undoubtedly did, otherwise he would have shared fate with Ms Miller, why weren't those sources indicted?
I can see a couple of reasons myself - a) - there really was no charge to answer. Ms Wilson's status may have been classified but not covert - amazing that it can be so hard to get a defintive answer to that relatively simple question!
b) - in some obscure way only the first person who leaks is guilty of a crime. Is that so? (But how does one then protect against several, parallel leaks? - it sounds too weird.)
Before the day started I knew Fitzgerald as well as I knew Libby which is to say not at all. The press had a slobbering lovefest over Fitzgerald. I was unimpressed. He had answers to all the questions on the tip of his tongue, but so did Bill Clinton. I did not think he was smooth. He was trying a bit too hard to sell himself and the investigation in a way which led me to believe he has some insecurity about his prosecution. The fact that it appears so clearly that Libby was lying, leads me to believe that Libby may have some kind of defense. As the indictments lay on the public record awhile, I think those who are students of such matters, may come to the conclusion that there is much less there than slobbering MSM would like us to believe. The fact that Libby told the same lie more than once to different parties leads me to believe that he has a defense. This guy by all reports is smart, he is no Craig Livingstone or Billy Dale. If Libby was in a position to tell his story for a couple of hours to a national audience with friendly questioners, he might come off looking as good as the MSM would have us believe Fitzgerald looks.
Fox has disappointed me with their coverage on this. They had the odious Walter Pincus, social acquaintace and involed in this case, as a talking head.
And the blonde in front of the court house looked a little too gleeful and a little too anxious for a public and humiliating arrest for Libby.
The true conservatives on Fox are few.
Something I've found to be increasingly intriguing.... the documents that Wilson claimed to be forgeries. The Senate Intelligence Committee revealed that Wilson had not seen the documents before he called them fakes. Now, there's a rift between the Italians and the French, as some Italian fellow (alias Giacomo?) admitted that he had been paid for some time by French Intelligence to undermine the war in Iraq by delivering false and misleading information to British and American Intelligence agencies, including the documents that Wilson claimed were fake.
If I've read this right, Wilson not only knew and reported of the existance of the documents before he could have physically seen them, he knew they were fakes before he had seen them. The only conclusion I can reach on this is that Wilson, his wife, French Intelligence, and probably someone in the CIA besides Wilson's wife were in collusion. There's just too many coincidences.
Here's a snip from one of the articles;
Giacomo" was allegedly first engaged by the French secret service to investigate genuine fears of illicit trafficking in uranium from Niger. He collected a dossier of documents - some real, some forged by a diplomat - by offering large sums of money to Niger officials.
American intelligence officials were further misled over Saddam's supposed attempt to buy uranium when France - which effectively controls mining in Niger - told Washington that it had reason to believe that Iraq was trying to do so. "Only later did Paris inform Washington that its belief had been based on the same documents that had tricked the Americans and the British," an Italian diplomat said.
"This was la grande trappola [the big trap]. The Americans were now convinced by the French that Saddam really was trying to buy uranium. They thought the French must be right, since not even a gram of uranium in Niger could be shifted without their knowledge."
http://news.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2004/09/05/wuran05.xml
If Wilson was sent on a classified mission, why wasn't he investigated for disclosing classified information to Walter Pincus?
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Sorry guys, Scooter is toast. And that's actually probably the best-case scenario for the Bush administration, because Scooter isn't well known in the public and they can throw him under the bus and drive away and few people will notice.
The indictment makes it clear that it's not just reporters testimony that would show that Scooter lied to the feds about what/when he knew about Valerie Plame, but also testimony from people like Ari Fleischer and even Cheney. And it's not just me who thinks he's toast. Byron York agrees.
This court case could get ugly if it goes to trial, but at the same time if Scooter DOES get that high-powered lawyer that high-powered lawyer will likely persuades him not to just take one for the team and plead guilty and wait for his pardon, but instead fight the charges vigorously and air all the dirty political laundry for the country to see. Another danger spot is if Fitz changes his mind and decides to seek some sort of plea deal to bust Rove for something. Because "official a" is listed that means that official (Rove) is still a target in the investigation.
If so, he wouldn't be the first one found in the Veep's office in recent days.
Maybe his crime was breaking cadence?
He-Said:She-Said.
Is this really what all the fuss is about?
It Is Astounding that a mans life of service and career would be gutted and devastated over this...
At the same time, Libby seems to have really blown it; he seems oblivious to the fact he was tap dancing in a minefield...
How could he be so stupid as not tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth?
Dick must be royally pissed off...meanwhile GW is busy being busy somewhere else...
SCOOTER WHO?
"But could not he argue that telling the truth in the GJ would be self-incriminating"
If Libby believed his testimony would be self-incriminating, then he should have invoked his 5th Amendment protection. The worst thing to do is lie. The alternative was to use the Hillary Clinton defense: "I don't recall".
Lying before a Grand Jury and to FBI investigators is serious business.
If Libby is proven to have done that, he should be punished. Our system and the Rule of Law cannot function when citizens, including high government officials do not tell the truth under oath.
That being said, the question I would ask is why?
Why would someone as bright and experienced as Libby lie before a Grand Jury when his own written notes contradicted that testimony?
Why don't you just have a trial and then convict him?
Yes, the charges are very serious, but we haven't even heard Scooter Libby's side of the story. We haven't even seen a transcript of any of his grand jury testimony outside of the three or four paragraphs included in the indictment.
What proof do you have that Official A is Karl Rove?
Well stated. I agree.
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