Libby's Jury Hears Rant Of Diplomat ... (Armitage:profanity-laden rant)

NY Sun ^ | February 13, 2007 | JOSH GERSTEIN

[IrishMike]

WASHINGTON — The jury in the trial of I. Lewis Libby Jr., who served as Vice President Cheney's chief of staff, has heard powerful evidence that two other officials were responsible for disclosing the identity of a CIA officer, Valerie Plame.

Over a prosecution objection, the defense played an audio recording yesterday of a profanity-laden rant in which a former deputy secretary of state, Richard Armitage, told a prominent journalist, Bob Woodward of the Washington Post, about Ms. Plame's ties to Langley a month before she was unmasked in a syndicated column by Robert Novak. Mr. Novak also testified yesterday, recounting to jurors how Mr. Armitage's identification of Ms. Plame, and a subsequent confirmation from President Bush's top political aide, Karl Rove, resulted in the July 14, 2003, article that prompted the investigation that ultimately snared Mr. Libby.

Another Post reporter who joined the parade of press witnesses, Walter Pincus, added more drama to the session by declaring that he was told about Ms. Plame's CIA connection by the White House press secretary, Ari Fleischer, two days before Mr. Novak's column appeared. That aspect of Mr. Fleischer's role in the saga had not been made public previously.

Mr. Woodward testified that the disclosure from Mr. Armitage came in a June 13, 2003, interview as the pair discussed news reports that a former ambassador, Joseph Wilson IV, had traveled to Africa at the CIA's request to investigate claims that Iraq was seeking uranium from Niger. Mr. Wilson later complained to reporters that the White House ignored his report that such a deal was impossible and deliberately inserted misleading language into President Bush's 2003 State of the Union address.

[IrishMike]

Audio Link and transcript links.

[Lurker]

FYI.

L

[IrishMike]

Text of a Recorded Conversation Between Armitage and Woodward
http://www.nysun.com/article/48554

[johnny7]

“ ...a profanity-laden rant in which a former deputy secretary of state, Richard Armitage, told a prominent journalist, Bob Woodward of the Washington Post, about Ms. Plame's ties to Langley”

And the DBM treated his Plame gaffe as if it was so sweetly innocent. Man, how I hate these skunks!

[angkor]

Bob Woodward of the Washington Post, about Ms. Plame's ties to Langley a month before she was unmasked in a syndicated column

Yes yes, but when did the the bartender at Kinkead's and the maitre de at CityZen know about it?

[bjc]

I don't get the import of Libby being the source of the story about the trip being in response to some inquiry by Cheney, since there is apparently documentation that the trip was organized prior to any query from the OVP. Is this simply another example of an uniformed reporter?

[IrishMike]

Cheney's the target ... simple.

[silverleaf]

Mr. Woodward testified that the disclosure from Mr. Armitage came in a June 13, 2003, interview as the pair discussed news reports that a former ambassador, Joseph Wilson IV, had traveled to Africa at the CIA's request to investigate claims that Iraq was seeking uranium from Niger

I believe this frappe arose because Wilson was claiming (or allowing his journalist friends to believe) that he, Joe Wilson, was sent to Africa at the request of VP Cheney.... this made Joe look like a big man on a mission from the highest levels of govt - instead of being a semi-contractor hack who traveled on a 5 star boondoggle on the CIA's dime because his wife pulled some strings.

Libby and others in the know were most adamant in refuting the involvement or even prior awareness of the VP or the White House in "Joe's big sweet mint tea adventure"

[showme_the_Glory]

I haven't been following all the details but it sounds like what I first heard was pretty much correct. Plame in the CIA was not a secret to many.

[angkor]

Plame in the CIA was not a secret to many.

With a lying blowhard bigmouth of a husband like Joe Wilson, how could it have been?

[JWinNC]

geepers... what a circus... the trial about nothing continues

[Loyal Buckeye]

Based on the little I have seen and heard from Armitage, I am not impressed.

[Western Phil]

"... Wilson was claiming (or allowing his journalist friends to believe) that he, Joe Wilson, was sent to Africa at the request of VP Chaney."

It is hard for me to believe that a sophisticated intelligence service as the CIA would operate as they apparently did by sending Wilson on an investigation. In my opinion his report, the method of gathering information and the subsequent media fiasco show considerable incompetence.

It is clear that Chaney was not aware that Wilson had been sent to Africa it seems to have been a surprise to him that the agency did that.

[popdonnelly]

The Associated Press is doing its best today to blame it all on the Administration. They're lying. The Armitage tape shows that Joe Wilson was calling around DC to let everyone know it was him and his wife who were responsible for the Niger trip. The entire story of the Administration waging a secret campaign against Wilson is a lie.

Unless the news media admits publically to the truth in this case, I will never believe a single thing they publish again.

[popdonnelly]

"Is this simply another example of an uniformed reporter?"

That would be the kindest way of putting it. At this point, every reporter in D.C. should be able to figure out what happened. Wilson was blabbing to every reporter he could find about his Niger trip, long before Novak even decided to write a column. The "White House is out to get me" story was a concoction of Wilson and David Corn. The rest of the news media played along, even though there were people who knew or could have guessed at the truth.

[John D]

I will never believe a single thing they publish again.

---

Have you ever?

[silverleaf]

Phil, In a nutshell, I think the CIA is complicit in making this case murky (if not outright obstructing a fair investigation) by NOT definitively stating whether Valerie was a "COVERT OPERATIVE" ... or NOT.... !!!!

because the CIA was/is so poorly managed, partisan ridden, and because of its appallingy shoddy (and apparently unaudited) practice of handing out money for "official" (???) "intelligence gathering" (???) travel by amateurish partisan hacks like Joe Wilson.

[Freee-dame]

It seems that Novak wrote the article on July 11 and sent it out to his 100 or so syndicated papers that day. Though it was embargoed until Monday, July 14, anyone in the newsrooms that got the copy of the 11th was free to read it. Did any of us in the general public ever know before this that columns went out over the AP (an enemy of Republicans/conservatives) wire? or that news people had access to columns up to three days before they were published?

Perhaps some of the news people testifying that they learned about Valerie Plame from Novak's column are hoping that the defense/American people would not find out that they learned it from the embargoed copy they had access to before publishing. Is misleading lying? not if you are a "prominant" newsperson, it seems.

[Freee-dame]

Phil, In a nutshell, I think the CIA is complicit in making this case murky (if not outright obstructing a fair investigation) by NOT definitively stating whether Valerie was a "COVERT OPERATIVE" ... or NOT.... !!!!

Perhaps she was not a covert agent, but had conveniently never had her name removed from the list of those who were receiving extra pay for being in that status. If this is the case, I wonder how many are doing this at the CIA? sort of like getting combat pay when you are not qualified for it. I have no evidence of this, but it could explain the CIA's reluctance to clarify her status.

[Howlin]

Thank you; I am getting ready for a trip and am hopelessly behind on my pings!