Scooter Libby Charged With Revealing Ship Movements?

Oregon Magazine ^ | October 30, 2005 | Larry Leonard

[WaterDragon]

Special Prosecutor Fitzgerald, widely admired by Chicago prosecutors for his creative genius in locating new ways to charge people with crimes, said words to this effect: "These are not charges that Mr. Libby outed a covert CIA agent." He is not, apparently, a stupid man, for that charge would have required eventual proof of a violation of the 1982 Identities Act, which obviously has not taken place. (More about that, below.) Then to justify this indictment he referred to a statute in the U.S. Code which upon investigation proves his reputation for creativity since it relates to (can you believe it?) the release of information about ship movements!

In wartime, loose lips sink ships. That was on wall posters at the Portland, Oregon shipyards during WWII. Perhaps this statute was passed back then.

As I listened to this press conference, I thought of Clinton's top security man, Sandy Burglar, tip-toeing out of a building full of national security documents with some of them stuffed into his sox. Stealing classified documents sounds like a bad thing. He got a fine in the neighborhood of $50,000, probably paid by friends of Bill Clinton. He will serve no jail time.

But "outing" a CIA employee who openly works in Virginia?

He violated which law? ....(snip)

[Liberty Valance]

bump

[muawiyah]

One guy has been successfully prosecuted under that particular law ~ Clinton wanted to pardon him ~ I think he did so ~ the military people went crazy arguing that if you let that one guy loose everybody will be doing it.

[ErnBatavia]

The thing the "media" still can't get the hang of is that the majority of Americans are onto them. They just can't get a kite that'll fly, and this scenario is going to meet the same fate.

About the only positive result for them is that the 'Rats have their next election cycle mantra (which should also backfire) - "Cronyism and Corruption"

[SandRat]

Now this (the article link) is most interesting.

[FlingWingFlyer]

"...Sandy Burglar, tip-toeing out of a building full of national security documents with some of them stuffed into his sox."

ROTFL!!!! Like Sandy would say, "It's Good To Be A DemocRAT!"

[thompsonsjkc]

I thought Fitzgerald indicted Libby for outing Mr. Sulu.

[Political Junkie Too]

I thought Fitzgerald indicted Libby for outing Mr. Sulu.

I thought Fitzgerald indicted Libby for beaning a batter in the head with a baseball.

-PJ

[chiller]

This from Oregon? HOT DAMN! Whoever wrote this is one to watch. He or she puts proper perspective to this load of crap.

[MCCRon58]

Actually, Fitzgerald, in his quest to assist the MSM in their present day quest to be the next Archibald Cox, confused Scooter 'Libby' with the other Libby (G. Gordon) of Watergate fame.

After all, when such as him want to follow an old play book, one Libby's as good as another.

[TWohlford]

"This isn't for a minute about national security. Few Democrats give a damn about that. What this is about is 2006"

Yup... that one he's got nailed. Cept it's also about 2008, too.

[Political Junkie Too]

in his quest to assist the MSM in their present day quest to be the next Archibald Cox, confused Scooter 'Libby' with the other Libby (G. Gordon) of Watergate fame.

LOL! Libby... Liddy... Let's call the whole thing off!

-PJ

[freekitty]

HUH?????????

[68-69TonkinGulfYachtClub]

"Sen Kerry : Libby Indictment Shows White House Corruption"

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1511450/posts

Hanoi Kerry goes unpunished for treason and Libby and Delay get indicted.

Hanoi Kerry and Move On FReeper crowd 2
Real Americans 0

There is no need to impeach Hanoi Kerry from the US Senate

He is there illegally!

WAKEUP AMERICA!

For those who "forgot" what Hanoi Kerry
did in the past read on and learn the truth.

Hanoi Kerry was still a USNR officer while he:
gave false hearsay testimony to Congress
negotiated with the enemy
helped the US lose a war
abetted in the deaths of millions
created a hostile environment for all servicemen

Why is Kerry still in the US Senate?
This is in violation of
U.S. Constitution Amendment 14 Sec 3
http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.amendmentxiv.html

And the FBI has proof of his treason.

Hanoi Kerry Timeline of a traitor
includes FBI files

May 1970
Kerry and Julia traveled to Paris, France and met with Madame Nguyen Thi Binh, the Foreign Minister of the Provisional Revolutionary Government of Vietnam (PRG), the political wing of the Vietcong, and other Viet Cong and Communist Vietnamese representatives to the Paris peace talks, a trip he now calls a "fact-finding" mission.

(U.S. code 18 U.S.C. 953, declares it illegal for a U.S. citizen to go abroad and negotiate with a foreign power.)

http://www.archive-news.net/Kerry/JK_timeline.html

a) A person charged with absence without leave or missing movement in time of war,
or with any offense punishable by death,
may be tried at any time without limitation.

http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/ucmj.htm#*%20843.%20ART.%2043.%20STATUTE%20OF%20LIMITATIONS

---

Why are the "Move On FReepers" so careful NOT to attack hanoi kerry
head on and refuse to join in the demand to oust the traitor from the US Senate?

The "Move On FReepers" are going to hate Judge John Roberts

"If the Constitution says that the little guy should win,
the little guy's going to win in court before me.
But if the Constitution says that the big guy should win, well,
then the big guy's going to win,
because my obligation is to the Constitution. That's the oath," he said.

Judge John Roberts 09/15/05

U.S. Constitution Amendment 14 Sec 3
http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.amendmentxiv.html

---

"Move On FReepers" "swore" klintoon, hitlery, hanoi kerry, sanbdi ber(bur)glar, al bore, jane beno,
wouild be prosecuted for
pardongate, chinagate, the bribes in upstate NY in the 2000 NY Senate race, waco, etc, etc,
"when" the "time was right".

---

"Move On FReepers" : Go back to DU where you came from!

[MNJohnnie]

WOW! I did not know there were any sane people left in Oregon. I thought all the Californians who migrated north drove the sane people out.

[libstripper]

Patrick Fitzgerald—A Tale of Two Cases and a Congressman

The general media view of Patrick Fitzgerald, the special prosecutor who has indicted “Scooter” Libby for perjury, obstruction of justice, and false statements in the Plame leak investigation is that he is an incorruptible “prosecutor’s prosecutor.” A closer look at an earlier communications interception case involving Senator Tom Harkin (D, Iowa) and the Libby case, a curious recommendation for him made by Representative Gerald Nadler (D, NY), and his own background all suggest something far different and more sinister.

I. THE TWO CASES

According to an October 22, 2005 NewsMax article, http://www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2005/10/22/142646.shtml Fitzgerald. was the U.S. Attorney assigned to investigate a communications interception case where operatives of U.S. Senator Tom Harkin (D, Iowa) arranged to secretly tape a strategy meeting involving Harkin’s Republican opponent, Rep Greg Ganske. Brian Conley, a former aide to Harkin, made the recording while attending the meeting at the request of Rafael Ruthchild, a Harkin operative, and returned the recording and recorder to Ruthchild. When the Ganske campaign learned of this, they complained to Polk County, Iowa Attorney John Sarcone and to Fitzgerald, the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois. Conley and Ruthchild both refused to participate in the investigation and Ruthchild resigned from her job with Harkin.

The Federal statute in this case, 18 USC § 2511(1)(a) specifically prohibits any person from intercepting “any wire, oral or electronic communication[.]” This taping of the Ganske meeting appears to have been such an illegal interception. Nevertheless, the noted NewsMax article reported that Fitzgerald, after about a two week investigation, “announced there was no violation of federal law by Harkin’s team.” Fitzgerald apparently did not even interview Harkin, who “staunchly denied he had any prior knowledge of the possibility of a criminal tape plot.”

This starkly contrasts with Fitzgerald’s investigation of the Plame leak case. Here the alleged underlying violation was of either the 1992 Intelligence Identities Protection Act (the Identities Act) or the Espionage Act. The Identities Act prohibits disclosure of the identities of “covert” CIA agents, 50 USC § 421, and narrowly defines a “covert” CIA agent as an individual whose “identity . . . is classified information and . . . who is serving outside the United States or has within the last five years served outside the United States[.]” The Espionage Act, 18 USC § 793 is equally narrow in that it applies only to a specifically listed set of disclosures, not including the disclosure of covert agents’ identities and prohibits such disclosure only if it is done “with intent or reason to believe the information is to be used to the injury of the United States, or to the advantage of any foreign nation[.]”

Plame wasn’t a “covert” agent since she had returned to the United States more than five years before her identity was disclosed. There couldn’t have been a violation of the Espionage Act because “covert” agents’ identities aren’t covered by that act and any disclosure of her identity was to protect the United States from the damage she and her husband were doing to it, not with intent to use the knowledge to injure the United States or help a foreign power.

Nevertheless, Fitzgerald went ahead with the Plame investigation without any reasonable chance of discovering any underlying statutory violation while he dropped the Harkin investigation, in spite of clear appearances that there was an underlying violation. Why??

II. THE CONGRESSMAN

Enter Gerald Nadler (D, NY), a far left Democratic congressman from New York, who distinguished himself with his passionate defense of ex-president Clinton during Clinton’s impeachment by the U.S. House of Representatives. Subsequently, Mr. Nadler enthusiastically supported of Hillary Clinton in her run for the NY Senate seat she now holds. He can be anticipated to do his all supporting her in her likely run for the presidency in 2008.

Mr. Nadler has apparently been watching Patrick Fitzgerald’s handling of the Harkin and Plame cases and approved of the way he’s done both or, at least, Fitzgerald’s handling of the Plame investigation. Once again our old friend NewsMax has done some worthwhile digging and gone to Mr. Nadler’s website. On October 22, 2005 NewsMax, http://www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2005/10/22/234208.shtml reported that “Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee are so pleased with reports that Leakgate prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald is about to indict senior White House officials that they want him to lead an impeachment investigation into whether President Bush lied to Congress about Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction.” According to the same report, Nadler has written to the Justice Department and requested it to expand Fitzgerad’s investigation.

All this leads an inquiring mind to ask why Nadler, a strong supporter of Hillary in all her endeavors, is such a strong supporter of Fitzgerald. Is it possible that he knows something about Fitrzgerald, or ethically dubious communications involving Fitzgerald, that have not been publicly disclosed?

Fitzgerald’s background and general present situation suggestion that’s exactly the explanation for Nadler’s view.

Fitzgerald will turn 45 on December 22 of this year. He has served a little more than four years as US Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, having been confirmed on October 24, 2001. Before the his entire career was spent in various positions in the Justice Department, meaning he is now and has always been a man of no more than upper middle class means. His whole career shows that he’s a very ambitious man. According to an August 4, 2005 article in the Chicago Sun-Times http://www.suntimes.com/output/elect/cst-nws-fitz04.html US. attorneys normally only serve four year terms, Fitzgerald’s is up, and there’s “speculation that he’ll be shown the door[.]”

Thus, it boils down to the fact that Fitzgerald is a very ambitious lawyer of no more than upper middle class means who’s at the end of his current career trajectory. He must find another way to advance and has shown an unscrupulous willingness to attack the Bush administration in the Plame investigation far different from his disinclination to follow a more promising investigation against Harkin. Now he has the golden opportunity of a lifetime—the chance to be the lynchpin of the Democrats’ effort to do what they have been absolutely unable to do since 2000, elect a Democratic President and Congress by destroying the Bush presidency in a time of war. If Fitzgerald accomplishes that, he will be their superstar and is almost assured to become Hillary’s Attorney General. His motive for pursuing this investigation where there is no underlying crime is clear—he ambitiously and unscrupulously desires to become Hillary’s Attorney General.

[Mike Fieschko]

Just curious, and maybe this is a minor point, but why would a US attorney in Illinois investigate what happens in an Iowa election? Why did Ganske's people complain to the US attorney in Chicago?

[Southack]

It actually works to our advantage to have Scooter Libby indicted. Dems may be ecstatic, but that's simply because they haven't yet realized that they've scored an "own goal."

Scooter Libby, after all, is one of them.

How do I know that Scooter Libby and his wife are life-long Democrats?

Because I pay more attention than do silly, immature reporters.

Scooter was vice-president of Yale's student Democrats...an active anti-war student activist...out of college he worked for Dechert Price, a law firm that **only** donates money to Democrats...from 1985 to 2000 Scooter was infamous Democrat Marc Rich's attorney (of President Clinton's Pardon-gate infamy)...Scooter won two awards in 1993 from the Clinton Administration...also did NSC work for the Clinton Administration...and never made a donation to a Republican.

Robert Novak called Libby "no partisan gunslinger."

His wife was more recently a staff attorney for Senate Democrats on the Judiciary Committee, a position to which Democrats apply a litmus test (either you are one of them or else you don't get on it).

[Mind-numbed Robot]

Great Magazine. Thanks for posting the article. I can't believe all this good conservative thought coming out of Oregon.

[RussP]

Will someone please answer one question for me. Had V. Plame worked undercover in the past five years, or hadn't she? I can't quite determine this conclusively from anything I have read. This article seems to suggest that she had not. If that is true, than this whole case is beyond absurd.

The "outing" law that this entire case was based on required that the "outed" operative had to have worked undercover in the past five years. If she hadn't, then the investigation was a joke.

I realize that the investigation was a joke even if Plame *had* worked undercover in the past five years, but if she hadn't it is even more of a joke. Why does no one point this out?