BOB NOVAK, My Leak Case Testimony - Cites Who's Who as source

The Drudge Report ^ | july, 11,2006 | drudge

[blogblogginaway]

BOB NOVAK, My Leak Case Testimony: 'I learned Valerie Plame's name from Joe Wilson's entry in 'Who's Who in America'... MORE Published reports that I took the Fifth Amendment, made a plea bargain with the prosecutors or was a prosecutorial target were all untrue... MORE... My primary source has not come forward to identify himself... Bill Harlow, the CIA public information officer who was my CIA source for the column confirming Mrs. Wilson's identity. I learned Valerie Plame's name from Joe Wilson's entry in 'Who's Who in America'... I answered questions using the names of Rove, Harlow and my primary source... I considered his wife's role in initiating Wilson's mission, later confirmed by the Senate Intelligence Committee, to be a previously undisclosed part of an important news story. I reported it on that basis.

[popdonnelly]

"And then why complain about her exposure afterwords, demanding the DOJ get involved?"

Wilson was part of the Kerry campaign at the time, and allegations of White House leaking of classified information would help the Kerry campaign.

[popdonnelly]

"Wilson himself said he wanted to see the perp "frogmarched" to the courthouse!"

Wilson has wound up revealing himself as a buffoon. But I wonder how many similar scams occur in Washington, with the perpetrator getting away with it.

[fiftymegaton]

So where does Marc Grossman fit in this mess? I don't imagine Powell or even his deputy Armitage were in a position to follow Novak around in order to bump into him on the street.

[FredZarguna]

Novak says his source called him the next day to tell him it was inadvertent.

Actually, I believe Novak says he was told by a third party that his original source claimed the leak was inadvertent. That's not necessarily suspicious: once it became a story, it took on a life of its own. The source may have had a very wide ranging discussion with Novak, read his column, and realized, "Oh sh!t, he might have got that Plame story from something I said." If he is highly placed in Central Intelligence or State, he could well have realized his legal exposure if he didn't make it clear that he didn't intend to reveal the information Novak was able to infer from his slip.

And if the source did not mean to say it, and it should not have been said, then why did Rove not have a problem confirming it?

Again, not very suspicious. Byron York reported some time ago that Plame's situation was no big secret. Rove (and probably Libby as well) would not have known how carefully--for purely technical reasons--this sourcing had to be treated. But a non-political career government employee probably would.

This is one reason that the leak is likely Armitage or someone in the State Department: because Novak's source could also have been one of the people who revealed this information to Libby (his failure to recollect that a "classified source" at State gave him the information is part of the indictment against him.) It's also also the reason that the indictment is so reprehensible: Libby may have received this information from so many different people, some in an official capacity, some sub rosa, some as just part of gossip, that he genuinely didn't recall where the information authoritatively came from.

[Dolphy]

I thought Rove said something like you heard that too.

Here's another interesting twist. Novak says that when he was interviewed he was presented with 3 waivers and the Feds knew his sources. Some people speculate that his source was Armitage, who interestingly enough gets the most nods as the source that landed Woodward in front of the Grand Jury last year. What's interesting is that Woodward's source didn't approach Fitzgerald until late in 2005. Link

So it doesn't seem that Novak and Woodward share the same source...only the same characterization regarding the absence of political motive.

[tobyhill]

Exactly. All it took was a simple,"Wilson's wife who works as a desk jockey at the CIA got him the gig" and a quick look into the Who's Who, wham bam Wilson's wife just turned into Valarie Plame.

[WOSG]

most of the speculation is around Armitage. Woodward named Armitage, for one, so he's a known source.
Armitage 'cooperated' with Fitzgerald's grand jury, whatever that means.

I think it means he told the truth about this non-crime.
Since Armitage hasnt come forward publicly, Novak will not reveal his name publicly.

"They have it leaked by someone who hints to the reporter that he is really speaking for the real source. .... That way the real source can truthfully say I did not leak this story."

... and Armitage was Powell's right-hand man, completing the loop.

I may be in the minority here, but IMHO Novak has been a class act here, defending journalistic principles while cooperating with the investigation and not grandstanding ... *and* not giving the Lefties their "Fitzmas".

[Just mythoughts]

If Rockefeller had NOT made his special trip in January of 2002 approximately one month prior to Joe's Niger tour, I would agree he (Wilson) and his woman were at the core.

However, Rockefeller told all of us about him personally going and warning Syria, (and Jordan, Saudi Arabia) that Saddam's days were numbered. What I have not discovered who else went with Rockefeller on that tour.

[AnnaZ]

I looked over your other book, A Patriot's History, on Amazon, and believe I have to have it.

= )

[Lancey Howard]

Wow! Just got back from a concert. Thanks for the ping!

[Sir Gawain]

np

[kabar]

If Rockefeller had NOT made his special trip in January of 2002 approximately one month prior to Joe's Niger tour, I would agree he (Wilson) and his woman were at the core.

Wilson was not paid for his trip except for travel expenses, never made a written report, never signed a non-disclosure agreement, and actually reported back orally that Niger may in fact have been approached by Iraq to buy yellowcake. If he was trying to discredit the administration, why would he do that? It was only after the fact that Wilson made up his story about why he went there and what he found. The Senate Intelligence Committee Report shows what he said to be a lie, which is why the WP distanced itself from Wilson.

Report on the US Intelligence Communities PreWar Intelligence Assessments on Iraq

[Sacajaweau]

Novak is an old timer. He probably remembered her name from when Joe Wilson and Valerie Plame were living together in DC before they got married. he did a little research to verify it. Everyone knew she worked for the CIA and he checked that out, too. Valerie wasn't the secret. The envoy (Wilson himself) was the secret. Joe announced it in his article and when he talked to Novak a couple days before Navak's article came out, Joe told Novak to "leave my wife out of this".

Sounds like a threat to me....and I'm sure that's EXACTLY why Novak published the article.

[Suzy Quzy]

What if it's Colin Powell??? THAT would be great!!

[Neverforget01]

The whole story was silly from the beginning. Why send a former ambassador to a country to ask if they are engaged in yellowcake sales? Surely this would be the job of a covert agent, especially since Wlson opposed even sanctions against Iraq.

I'm sure this was what befuddled Novak and he asked why Wilson was sent. Someone said, "I think his wife has CIA connections and she suggested he go. A good reporter,Novak followed up and discovered Valerie Plame in Who's Who and called the CIA. She was either not a covert agent or our CIA is inept for telling a REPORTER that Valarie was a covert agent, but don't tell anyone!!

[ltc8k6]

So, an official inadvertently told Novak that Wilson's wife played a part in sending Wilson to Niger, but didn't use her name.

Novak checks up on Wilson to see what he can learn via research. Novak reads Wilson's own entry in Who's Who and learns that Wilson's wife's name is Valerie Plame. Info that has been in the book since 1999.

Novak calls Rove, who sort of confirms the info since Novak apparently already knows it.

Novak then calls the CIA and asks if Plame works there. It's not classified, so Harlow confirms it.

Fitzgerald knows all the players and has known them for a while, since Jan 14, 2004. Fitzgerald has not indicted any of Novak's sources.

So what was all the hub bub about? Why did a reporter sit in jail? What the hell has Fitzgerald been doing all this time?

Why is he bothering with Libby?

Is that all we get for all this time and money?

This would be hilarious if it weren't so serious.

[Just mythoughts]

Joe Wilson has told multiple lies, and how do we know that he was not paid by somebody outside the confines of government? He was sure specific about what dollar figure could be traced to the CIA, like we would ever be given access to CIA travel expenditures.

Joe Wilson also tried to point the finger of blame for his trip to Vice President Cheney, as though using that name was cover for his trip.

Wilson has demonstrated he is all about making a dollar and willing to play the covert guy in order to make his dollars.

It is what Wilson did after his trip that gives clues for why he was selected. and he play US like a finely tuned violin. These liberals got their trigger for an independent counsel just like Rockey's memo described.

Their goals of saving Saddam (access to his oil) and destruction of President Bush have come at price but one could say they are miserable failures.

[FredZarguna]

So what was all the hub bub about?

The hubbub is about nothing. Please see my post #376 in this thread for an explanation.

Why did a reporter sit in jail?

Miller sat in jail to hype her book. The far more interesting question is why did Novak not sit in jail? And we now have the answer.

What the hell has Fitzgerald been doing all this time?
Why is he bothering with Libby?

The answers to these two questions are related: there is actually some fire to all the David Shuster/TruthOUT/DUmmie smoke. The answer is that Fitzgerald has been trying to snare Karl Rove in a perjury trap for most of the last two years. He has been unable to do that because there was no crime in the first place, and--unlike Libby's--Rove's recollections have been clear enough that he hasn't made a contradictory statement that can be maneuvered into a perjury charge.

Everyone has been asking: "why has Rove been asked to appear before the Grand Jury so many times?" The answer: he had not yet incriminated himself. Fritz tried to rattle Karl Rove via the DC rumor mill, and with Libby's indictment, and he failed. He was almost certainly the target of Fitz's investigation all along. The problem was, Rove wouldn't allow a corrupt prosecutor to manufacture a crime against him. Novak's revelations make that pretty obvious, although you do need to connect the dots.

This would be hilarious if it weren't so serious.

It's not hilarious, and it is serious. Opportunistists in the intelligence community and their allies in the Democrat party saw a chance to embarrass the President. Luckily, they have failed. The President should pardon Libby before he leaves office, if Libby hasn't already been acquitted by then.

[nopardons]

bttt

[BigSkyFreeper]

This is just too funny, considering Wilson himself said he wanted to see the perp "frogmarched" to the courthouse!

That's why I always maintained from the word "go" it was Wilson who initially leaked the name, because he's married to the sap.