did the reporters tell the investigators or the GJ that they did not know Wilson's wife was CIA before talking to Rove and Libby? Did they lie? Or better to ask, were their claims investigated?
the entire GJ was a perjury trap - but only for Rove and Libby.
The indictment doesn't have evidence of probing that question, except as I pointed out before, Cooper mentioned Plame to Libby before Libby mentioned Plame to Cooper. Cooper testified thusly.
You keep going back to answer the question "who outed Plame," and I keep trying to drag you back to the indictment, which is "Libby didn't tell the truth to investigators."
The case would be obviously silly if Plame's employment with the CIA is as well known as Jay Leno. But the DEMs drummed up enough noise that "Plame was illegally outed," and the WH went along, even having the DoJ appoint an Independent Counsel, and even to this day President Bush saying "this is a serious investigation." From the point of view of "the system," there is more than a shred of credibility to the investigation.
Your objection is that the investigation is not serious, because it is obvious there was no illegal outing. And I say the time to make that point is before being ordered to testify. As it stood in October and November 2003 (when Libby gave his first false reports), it was a serious investigation - that is a year and half before Miller went to jail over providing testimony.
The latest date alleged false testimony was given by Libby was March 24, 2004. This is months before the dates that Miller (August 12 & 14, 2004) and Cooper (May 21, 2004) were first subpoenaed to testify. The "no crime committed" defense was raised in the amicus brief to the DC Circuit Court of Appeals AFTER it's opinion was issued in February 2005; and the brief was prepared in support of a motion to rehear the appeal en banc. The motion for rehearing en banc was denied, and the SCOTUS denied certiorari.
My point being, the case was serious enough to make it to the Supreme Court.
the entire GJ was a perjury trap - but only for Rove and Libby.
It was also a "testify or else trap," which played hard for some reporters, e.g., Miller and Cooper. Miller went to jail over her refusal to testify, and new law was made at the DC Circuit Court of Appeals regarding reporters First Amendment and common law privilege protection in GJ proceedings, extending the Branzburg case [Branzburg v. Hayes, 408 U.S. 665 (1972)] from reporters who published articles to those who did not.
DC Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion issued February 15, 2005 ...
http://pacer.cadc.uscourts.gov/docs/common/opinions/200502/04-3138a.pdf
Brief by 36 News organizations that no outing crime was committed ...
March 23, 2005 Amici Brief of 36 News Organizations for en banc rehearing
Certiorari denied by the SCOTUS - see P.10, Case Nos. 04-1507 & 04-1508 ...
http://www.supremecourtus.gov/orders/courtorders/062705pzor.pdf