Posted on 08/31/2006 10:08:00 PM PDT by West Coast Conservative
Edited on 09/01/2006 5:56:51 AM PDT by Admin Moderator. [history]
WE'RE RELUCTANT to return to the subject of former CIA employee Valerie Plame because of our oft-stated belief that far too much attention and debate in Washington has been devoted to her story and that of her husband, former ambassador Joseph C. Wilson IV, over the past three years. But all those who have opined on this affair ought to take note of the not-so-surprising disclosure that the primary source of the newspaper column in which Ms. Plame's cover as an agent was purportedly blown in 2003 was former deputy secretary of state Richard L. Armitage.
Mr. Armitage was one of the Bush administration officials who supported the invasion of Iraq only reluctantly. He was a political rival of the White House and Pentagon officials who championed the war and whom Mr. Wilson accused of twisting intelligence about Iraq and then plotting to destroy him. Unaware that Ms. Plame's identity was classified information, Mr. Armitage reportedly passed it along to columnist Robert D. Novak "in an offhand manner, virtually as gossip," according to a story this week by the Post's R. Jeffrey
Smith, who quoted a former colleague of Mr. Armitage.
It follows that one of the most sensational charges leveled against the Bush White House -- that it orchestrated the leak of Ms. Plame's identity to ruin her career and thus punish Mr. Wilson -- is untrue......
Nevertheless, it now appears that the person most responsible for the end of Ms. Plame's CIA career is Mr. Wilson. Mr. Wilson chose to go public with an explosive charge, claiming -- falsely, as it turned out -- that he had debunked reports of Iraqi uranium-shopping in Niger and that his report had circulated to senior administration officials. He ought to have expected that both those officials and journalists such as Mr. Novak would ask why a retired ambassador would have been sent on such a mission and that the answer would point to his wife. He diverted responsibility from himself and his false charges by claiming that President Bush's closest aides had engaged in an illegal conspiracy. It's unfortunate that so many people took him seriously.
Gee .......... written on a Friday in late summer when no one is around to read it. I am suprised they didn't write this on a Saturday and placed in prominently in the bottom inside corner between the help wanted and rental ads.
What did Fitzgerald know and when did he know it?
Yeah, "so many people". You mean, like ALL of the MSM, who lapped up every bit of bilge that spewed forth from Wilson's mouth, and who refused to report the story honestly, refused to point out that no crime had even been committed in the first place?
Hypocrite, weasel, scum - thy name is "journalist".
Bingo.......but I guess the MSM doesn't play that game (/sarc).
Have you seen the David Brooks column? [NYT yesterday, probably, Houston Chronicle today] Rather scathing, on this very topic.
This is what has never made sense to me: I still have Sen. Roberts statements and report from the Senate Intelligence Committee that says that what Wilson told the Committee in private session actually bolstered the Bush administration.
Iraq was indeed trying to purchase yellowcake uranium from Niger. So why in the world would the Bush administration need to discredit Wilson or his wife?
The entire thing was a made up "scandal" and that Republicans didn't better defend the administration is in itself scandalous.
The Washington Post has known the identity of the source (Armitage) for three years. I don't believe an apology will be forthcoming. The WaPo was in on the slander of Rove from Day 1.
I hope Libby's attorneys got a copy of Russert's statements last weekend. The blatant lies he told on air earlier this week should go a long way towards illustrating his lack of credibility.
Mr. Wilson will get a teaching post at Columbia.
The real story here is that one of the left's most persistent lies-of-the-week has finally been uncovered after it successfully managed to keep the Bush administration under a cloud of suspicion for 16 months.
That would be nice but I doubt it, unless the publisher pulls the rug out from under them. However, I doubt sales will be what they initially expected.
IMO, Powell and Armitage, by remaining silent in the face of such a media onslaught against the official WOT & Iraq position of the U. S. government, when they had the information that would stop that locomotive in its tracks had they only advised the President of the facts, committed sedition.
I admit that might be overstating the case, but this story has me seeing red, I'm so angry.
Now there is one question that MUST be answered: If (and that's a non-credible if) Armitage truly didn't know Plame's ID was protected with covert status, how did he learn her ID? Who told him? (But I really think he KNEW her ID was classified, or should have known.)
"It follows that one of the most sensational charges leveled against the Bush White House -- that it orchestrated the leak of Ms. Plame's identity to ruin her career and thus punish Mr. Wilson -- is untrue. The partisan clamor that followed the raising of that allegation by Mr. Wilson in the summer of 2003 led to the appointment of a special prosecutor, a costly and prolonged investigation, and the indictment of Vice President Cheney's chief of staff, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, on charges of perjury. All of that might have been avoided had Mr. Armitage's identity been known three years ago."
Three + years of lying to the American people and not a single apology from the George $oreA$$ controlled rats.
The $oreA$$ funded web sites will continue their character attacks on our president inspite of this reality.
Fitzy should be disbarred, tried for malfeance and if found guilty be sentenced to be Karl Rove's messenger boy.
"Create the story.....build the lead.....milk the sources till they bleed.....Headlines ....deadlines.....Run......Run.....Oh sh*t!......the Truth.."
You have described the standard POA of the mediots who control the MSM as their Bush Derangement Syndrome overcomes them daily.
http://www.freepress.org/departments/display/20/2006/2123
Check this site vs. some recent articles. The plan seems to be control od all info.
Thanks.
'What's more probable is that the WaPo can no longer deny the obvious.'
"Create the story.....build the lead.....milk the sources till they bleed.....Headlines ....deadlines.....Run......Run.....Oh sh*t!......the Truth."
Big Look posted the above later on in this thread.
It is apparent, that, even the Compost is scared of the reality that could come out of this 3+ year lie.
Shouldn't we at least have some hangings of the Traitorous Journalists and Politicians that lied about this story for 3 years?? I want some hangings just like they did!!!
Pray for W and Our Freedom Fighters
"The kettle's black, The kettle's black," cried the pot.
This is the closest we'll ever come to seeing the drive by media admit it's role in attempting to make this trivial non-story into a Bush Administration scandal. The story will slowly die, "not with a bang, bit a whimper". The real criminals, Joe Wilson and Patrick Fitzgerald, will simply slither slowly into oblivion.
Thanks for posting the last paragraph of this article/oped.
Our indexers need to preserve this last paragraph before it disappears into the ether zone.
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