Posted on 07/14/2005 9:32:15 PM PDT by blake6900
Source: Rove Got CIA Agent ID From Media By JOHN SOLOMON, Associated Press Writer
Presidential confidant Karl Rove testified to a grand jury that he learned the identity of a CIA operative originally from journalists, then informally discussed the information with a Time magazine reporter days before the story broke, according to a person briefed on the testimony.
The person, who works in the legal profession and spoke only on condition of anonymity because of the secrecy of grand jury proceedings, told The Associated Press that Rove testified last year that he remembers specifically being told by columnist Robert Novak that Valerie Plame, the wife of a harsh Iraq war critic, worked for the CIA.
Rove testified that Novak originally called him the Tuesday before Plame's identity was revealed in July 2003 to discuss another story. The conversation eventually turned to former Ambassador Joseph Wilson, who was strongly criticizing the Bush administration's Iraq war policy and the intelligence it used to justify the war, the source said.
The person said Rove testified that Novak told him he had learned and planned to report in a weekend column that Wilson's wife, Plame, had worked for the CIA, and the circumstances on how her husband traveled to Africa to check bogus claims of alleged nuclear material sales to Iraq.
Novak's column, citing two Bush administration officials, appeared six days later, touching off a political firestorm and leading to a federal criminal investigation into who leaked Plame's undercover identity. That probe has ensnared presidential aides and reporters in a two-year legal battle.
On Thursday, Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid of Nevada pressed for legislation to strip Rove of his clearance for classified information, which he said President Bush should already have done. Instead, Reid said, the Bush administration has attacked its critics: "This is what is known as a cover-up. This is an abuse of power."
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., said Democrats were resorting to "partisan war chants."
Across the Capitol, Rep. Rush Holt (news, bio, voting record), D-N.J., introduced legislation for an investigation that would compel senior administration officials to turn over records relating to the Plame disclosure.
Rove told the grand jury that by the time Novak had called him, he believes he had similar information about Wilson's wife from another reporter but had no recollection of which reporter had told him about it first, the source said.
When Novak inquired about Wilson's wife working for the CIA, Rove indicated he had heard something like that, according to the source's recounting of the grand jury testimony.
Rove told the grand jury that four days later, he had a phone conversation with Time magazine reporter Matt Cooper and — in an effort to discredit some of Wilson's allegations — told Cooper that Wilson's wife worked for the CIA, though he never used her name.
An e-mail Cooper recently provided the grand jury shows Cooper reported to his magazine bosses that Rove had described Wilson's wife in a confidential conversation as someone who "apparently works" at the CIA.
Robert Luskin, Rove's attorney, said Thursday his client truthfully testified to the grand jury and expected to be exonerated.
"Karl provided all pertinent information to prosecutors a long time ago," Luskin said. "And prosecutors confirmed when he testified most recently in October 2004 that he is not a target of the investigation."
Rove's conversation with Cooper took place five days after Wilson suggested in a New York Times opinion piece that some of the intelligence related to Iraq's nuclear weapons program was twisted to exaggerate the Iraqi threat. Novak's column identifying Wilson's wife as a CIA employee and Cooper's magazine piece came out a few days later.
Pressed to explain its statements of two years ago that Rove wasn't involved in the leak, the White House refused to do so this week.
"If I were to get into discussing this, I would be getting into discussing an investigation that continues and could be prejudging the outcome of the investigation," White House spokesman Scott McClellan said.
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Associated Press special correspondent David Espo contributed to this story.
My guess would obstruction of justice against Miller and the NYT. Miller has been released from her confidentitality clause. The NYT could have her out in a heartbeat if they had proof it was Rove that leaked. I think they are keeping her from releasing that info, and she can't tell all. Too many people in high places would take a fall if she did.
Look who the players are. Mandy is married to Cooper. Mandy has some important job with the dims. The dims have the hildabeast. Lets just hope Judith doesn't slip on any soap while she's locked up and dies. It isn't too healthy to have the goods on the Clintons.
Wilson himself said on CNN this afternoon that she was NOT an operative at the time Novak wrote his column.
ah, the press and the tar baby...
Didn't watch CNN today (usually don't!), but on Fox, there still seemed to be some confusion about what job she actually held at the CIA. It is clear, however, that she hasn't been stationed outside the US since 1997, so there was no violation the law - no matter what job she had.
Doesn't much matter what Fox says; her husband admitted she wasn't undercover at the time Novak published his column.
The NY Times needs to disclose to their shareholders if they are paying hush money to Judith Miller to keep her quiet while she's in jail.
Thanks for my late night giggle.
Is there a reputable newspaper that can start asking some real question about how these people got their info. I would think their investigating a crime would be more important than goofy Novak.
On the other thread on this topic, Pukin Dog says PLAME herself told Judith Miller, which is why she went to jail -- she can't reveal her source without exonerating Rove.
Clarification: On the thread STARTED by PD, someone suggested (may have been PD, can't remember, just baked 8 dozen cookies and I'm tired) that Plame was the source for Miller. Thanks for allowing me to clarify that. Going to bed now.
Nobody, including PD, knows who told Judith Miller; we're all just guessing.
Hell, for all I know, you're Valerie Plame.
No, she's skinnier than me. And 'liberaler' than me, too.
Judith Miller's role in this may be unclear because she wrote so often of the threat of WMDs that the left abandoned her, but her employer before the NYT was the Progressive (whatever that is),but I think that we can safely assume from the name that she is not a Republican and would not be telling Rove anything that he did not already know.
Judith Miller wrote about WMDs, Plame analyzed WMDs. It is has also been speculated that Miller was familiar with Scott Ritter.
Maybe Valerie Plame is just a super secret identity and the person really doesn't even exist. I don't know whether she was an operative or not but any women that lets that cat out of the bag after only three dates (as Wilson says in his book) can't really be that much of a spy to begin with.
Telling someone you're a spy kinda blows hell outta the whole concept of being a spy, doncha think?!
BTW, has she testified before the Grand Jury because it seems to me she should be asked who she's told about her employment at the CIA.
Oh, no, do not do that to me. I couldn't handle Ritter involved in this.
You know, I don't know if any of those Cwazy Wilsons have been to the GJ.
The NYT, the WA PO and 36 other papers filed briefs with the court asking for an end to the investigation because it appeared that no crime had been committed. It was when their request was denied that they issued the fatwah on Karl Rove, trying to force the administration to request that the prosecutor shut down the investigation without any charges.
The whole point is that Rove isn't the target of this investigation. They never would have opened the investigation if they were looking at Rove. Ashcroft knew that no crime had been committed. He looked at this, but didn't open the investigation until he got a request from the CIA to look for the leaker.
Yeah, and it turns out that Ritters movie was paid for by a Muslim that was related to the same people who paid Wilson and Hagel. They are all on the Alamoudi payroll.
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