Karl Rove assured us that he did not leak Valerie Plame’s name. Scott McClellan said it was ridiculous to suggest such a thing. The President said he did not know of “anybody in my administration who leaked classified information.”
They lied and parsed. There are important legal questions and a wide ranging grand jury investigation going on. It is fun to speculate on who did what, and when, and what the consequences might be. But, at the end of the day, we don’t have enough facts to make an educated guess about what indictments might be coming down, if any.
And, we can be sure that Bush will pardon his closest friend if he is ever convicted of a crime.
No, the legal angle to the Rove/Plame story is not the correct one to pursue. The correct angle is political.
:::flip:::
As long as Rove is in the White House, the White House cannot answer the basic question:
“If Rove concealed the fact that he was a leaker from the President, why hasn’t the President fired him?”
or this one:
“If Rove didn’t conceal the fact that was a leaker from the President, then the President has been engaged in a cover-up, and possible obstruction of justice. What did the President tell Fitzgerald?”
If we want to send the administration into a permanent bunker mentality, all we have to do is coordinate our message. Keep asking those two questions. Over and over and over.
We need Reid and Pelosi to take the lead. We need talking heads on the cable news. Outraged ex-intelligence officers are the best cudgel for this. We need Air America and the blogs to hit hard on this.
If they insist on keeping Rove in the White House, we have to make them pay a daily price. It will keep them from getting their message out, and it will help us on all fronts. It will open a schism in the GOP, it will further erode their credibility, especially on terrorism and national defense.
With the Supreme Court vacancies coming up, we need to go on offense, and blunt the potential for a nuclear option. It’s time to fight.
Booman you are dead on with your take on this. Repeat those two/three little questions over and over and over until every Dem and every “journalist” is saying it in their sleep.
I am on a business trip to Orlando – I took a two hour break in my fourteen hour day and returned to my room to do emails and grab a quick lunch, etc. I fortunate enough to catch the bulk of the questions asked in the press briefing today… My jaw dropped!
It’s all well and good to revel in come-uppance but where is the Democratic response and overt leveraging of what is occurring??!!
Yes. Yes. Keep the pressure on about Rove. He has got to be made toxic. (Or have his toxicity exposed, if you prefer.)
Otherwise, we might succeed in getting him out of the White House, but he still could manipulate things from the outside.
have been known to continue to run their criminal enterprises from inside maximum security prisons.
I think Reid has already made one comment requesting that Rove be fired, but it may be time for another one. I also read over at kos that Olbermann is going to deal with the story tonight.
You are right Booman it should be political. Say it loud, say it proud, “THEY ARE LIARS”.
Do any of you “hang” at the Air America blogs? Enjoy e-mail exchanges with any of them?
The Randi Rhodes Show blog, but I don’t post in the others. Sometimes I read the other shows just to find out the guests name or other resources that are mentioned.
In the past, I would find the show’s blogs to fill up with 300 one sentence comments, not providing any further information. A quick glance at the Al Franken show blog right now finds that today’s show generated 95 posts, many of which are more in depth.
Perhaps it is time for a review of my “no AAR show blog” policy. What about you, Susan?
I never make it to their blogs. I’m lucky if I listen even once a day. (I used to more.) But we should try … the hosts do read the blogs!
and Bush may indeed pardon Rove but I’m going to have so much fun watching him squirm all the way until he does.
i’m going to an action group meeting tonight and will relay precisely these thoughts. We’ll be letter-writing and blogging alot in the lead-up to the mid-terms and this would be a great use of our energy.
if they are on the defensive, having to protect the president and his top advisor, it will make it extremely difficult to coordinate the SCOTUS nominee’s or keep the troops in the House and Senate from defecting to protect themselves come 2006 mid terms.
Lets keep the pressure on, keep the WH press corps, asking Scottie the same questions over and over again, keep listening to him say ongoing investigation, over and over again. Maybe the American people will wake up out of their institutionalize mental midget mode and kick the hell out of this admin and its lackey’s in Congress.
I think Reid and Pelosi are on it and we need to keep backing them up. Reid commented today (from the AP story)
“The White House promised if anyone was involved in the Valerie Plame affair, they would no longer be in this administration,” said Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. “I trust they will follow through on this pledge. If these allegations are true, this rises above politics and is about our national security.”
(I LOVE the blurb for this story on the S.F. Chronicle website right now. “White House Clams Up: After insisting for two years that Rove had nothing to do with the CIA ID leak, McClellan now won’t comment. AP”
Now that blurb is EXACTLY the kind of thing I wanted to see after that press conference!! More of that please!
I have no big connections to help on this which made me think.. What is the action plan for bootribbers and kossacks?
One thing we can do — besides tell all our friends — would be to write very nice, POLITE notes to the major media shows, and ask them to look into the case.
E.g., Nightline. I just got their newsletter for tonight’s show. It’s about the Supreme Court nomination process. Nightline could do a good job on Rove, especially if they think lots of us will watch.
Anybody have a handy list of major media e-mails?
here.
I found this last year originally, before I knew how sick freerepublic was. This might be the only useful thing they’ve contributed to civilization.
all of their available resources!!
Just happen to have that list:
2020@abc.com,
thisweek@abc.com,
nightline@abcnews.com,
factorcorrections@airamericaradio.com,
mike@mikemalloy.com,
rrhodes@airamericaradio.com,
alan@alan.com,
info@alternativeradio.org,
info@alternet.org,
talk2us@americasblackforum.com,
jmccoy@atpco.com,
tnaegele@atpco.com,
feedback@ap.org,
jloven@ap.org,
kcarroll@ap.org,
lmargasak@ap.org,
msilverman@ap.org,
opinion@thewire.ap.org,
npickler@ap.org,
rfournier@ap.org,
sjohnson@ap.org,
pr@ap.org,
thunt@ap.org,
traum@ap.org,
bsenftleber@ajc.com,
bsteiden@ajc.com,
cwarmbold@ajc.com,
cynthia@ajc.com,
gmathis@ajc.com,
hklibanoff@ajc.com,
hpost@ajc.com,
jmallory@ajc.com,
jbookman@ajc.com,
jdwallace@ajc.com,
letters@ajc.com,
insideajc@ajc.com,
pgast@ajc.com,
rnarayanan@ajc.com,
rhenry@ajc.com,
atrios@comcast.net,
newsonline@bbc.co.uk,
btbtalk@aol.com,
news@bet.com,
anita@mindgallery.com,
jfetzer@d.umn.edu,
osanic@prouty.org,
hprzybyla@bloomberg.net,
hrosenkrantz@bloomberg.net,
dkeil@bloomberg.net,
ombud@globe.com,
goodman@globe.com,
kcooper@globe.com,
johnson@globe.com,
letter@globe.com,
brelis@globe.com,
oliphant@globe.com,
lettersbwol@businessweek.com,
richard_dunham@businessweek.com,
buzzflash@buzzflash.com,
query@cambridgeforum.org,
48hours@cbsnews.com,
60II@cbsnews.com,
60m@cbsnews.com,
bpc@cbsnews.com,
evening@cbsnews.com,
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info@commongroundradio.org,
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mail@democracynow.org,
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EmailRonn@aol.com,
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In addition to hammering away at the 2 fundamental politically charged points BooMan raises about why Bush is either engaged in a cover-up or he’s keeping on board his closest aid who lied to him about a very big thing, we need an additional component to this message that will resonate with the public on an emotional level, and will reduce the the effectiveness of the legalistic defense mounted by the Bush regime apologists.
So, some of our Dems could talk about how Rove and others would rather retaliate against those who disagree with them even when such retaliation violates the best interests of the country. And they could say something about the hypocrisy involved in all their talk about freedom and advancing democracy while simultaneously violating the spirit of the law here at home in order to attack fellow Americans who challenge them. Of course, all of us here in the blogosphere could combine our millions ofvoices and deliver this message too, but it would be great if our poiticians could take some initiative for themselves to make these points.
Virtually every Presidential 2nd term seems to have a Major Scandal. The Bush junta is characterized by breathtaking recklessness and hubris, so the odds that it will be an exception are high indeed. May this be it?
Somehow I don’t think so. It’s too early, too. But it could be a kind of pre-quake – something to shred the President’s media teflon suit. Which is about time.
The strategy outlined by BooMan is a sensible one. Let’s hope the media work it out for themselves, since after all, they appear to feel that anything proposed in the blogosphere is quite beneath them. With the notable exception of the ‘Rathergate’ story, of course.
I just sent this to the e-mails lists in which I’m active.
And keep on asking ‘How many are dead because of this?’
Lou Dobbs just said that this investigation has already been longer than Watergate in its entirety.
I think you’re right on about the political strategy, Boo. The legal part will take care of itself, or not.
Ideally, the questions will keep popping right through the 06 elections and beyond. However, I can see Bush paniking and dumping Rove as he tells us how he’s shocked, shocked that such a fine man could have made such an error that now he has to be sacrificed because of the slanders from the America-hating, Christian-hating liberal press and the vicious partisan Democrats.
How does our side preempt that out? Perhaps by keeping the murmer going about how much Bush himself must have known: is it really credible that his closest advisor and strategist, his constant companion over decades, could defy his orders and then lie about it for years?
It would be interesting if anything in this case suggested future involvement by the Supreme Court. Now THERE would be a new twist in the nomination process.
The press is all over this, as are prominent Democrats.
Thanks catnip, that was an encouraging view. GMA on ABC this morning had a 2 or 3 minute segment with lots of footage of mr chubby cakes at various places and events. Of course nothing in depth, but still mentioning it and the WH silence. Pretty SCMSM that ABC is.
Hope it stays focused on the story and keeps asking the hard questions.
And political is probably far more damaging than criminal, even if criminal acts are found and or prosecuted. If the questions are unrelenting.
Great ideas, and a great strategy. Hope people pick up on it.
Another thing to remind people of is that Bush Sr fired Rove for the same thing… leaking information. So, beyond all the other stuff he’s done, he has a record of being untrustworthy and disloyal – to those who he’s is supposed to be serving and now to the country. We can’t afford to have someone like him around the office of the land.
But…dubya is trying so hard to be the anti-father, there’s a good chance he won’t do anything. I can just imagine George HW wagging his finger at dubya saying he told him so…
If I remember right it was also that Rove leaked whatever story it was to guess who…Robert Novack or as Jon Stewart calls him(novack) Douchebag of Liberty..or something to that effect.
would fire Rove is if the big boss Cheney told him to.
I do wonder if Rove is being seen as the pillar of the administration. Bush loudly gave him credit for his having been placed in office.
With Bush’s tendency to dig in coupled with the knowledge that if Rove goes so goes any credibitity the admin has they’ve essentially put themselves into a cornor. They are damned by letting Rove go and damned for keeping him.
Anyway, that’s my half-baked opinion. If they let him go i’d be surprised.
a refresher blurb on the previous Rove/Novak alliance here.
has the Best Headline Ever! Let’s remind everyone how “tight” Bush and Rove are–he calls him Turdblossom. What’s this? Do I have a smile on my face finally? Woohoo!
Woohoo indeed..and hasn’t he also been called ‘bush’s brain’? Which certainly links TB to bush as almost one and the same..kinda hard for bush to distance himself like he tried or did do with Ken Lay.
Bush Puts Partisan Politics Ahead of National Security
I hope Jesse Berney won’t mind my posting his DNC blog post here. I use this to illustrate a fine talking point communicated nicely through the new and improved DNC website.
My favorite part of all of this? It’s only monday!
Good so far, but the strategy must include the outcome demanded. Because it’s not unprecedented for a top White House aide to leave in the last two years of the second term, when things are winding down. If Rove resigns from his job “to pursue other opportunities” or “to spend more time with his family”, is that good enough?
Here is their breakdown of CIA Leak Quotes. No wonder Scotty was sweating today. He got caught LYING!
just ended his report on hardball by asking the question of whether Rove was doing all this on his own or with orders from higher up.
This… just after discussing Rove previously acting to protect Cheney.
Hmmmm….
Hat tip to MyDD.com for this reminder:
I’m glad you brought this up. Seems like we ought to be mentioning that in every other breath. “Well, you know he’s done this kind of thing before. The first Pres. Bush fired him for leaking to Novak. . .”
We know Bush as an angry, cruel, secretive, vengeful man. But as distasteful as those traits sound now, they are some of the characteristics that made him the “ideal” person for the job after 9-11, if by “ideal” we mean somebody whose own emotional needs exactly matched those of a majority of people in the country. People were angry, they wanted vengeance, and the crueler, the better. Bingo.
So what happens when an angry and vengeful man gets stymied in some vital way? One thing Bush seems to do is get stubborn and start making more mistakes. Social security “reform,” for example. When it obviously wasn’t going anywhere, he dug his heels in and just kept pushing harder, until he had dug himself an even bigger and more noticeable hole of failure. (We don’t know what he’s up to in secret or what might burst out next.)
If Rove were to get forced out, imagine how angry and vengeful Bush will be. His other most pronounced trait–blind loyalty–is unlikely to make him turn that anger against Karl. I wonder what in the world he will do with those emotions, who will pay, and how, and whether this time he’ll be angry enough–and impulsive enough without Rove to stop him–to blunder in fatally hubristic new ways.
Pay no attention to me. I know this is counting unhatched chickens. I’m just talking to myself and happened to be typing at the time.
Scott McClellan.

well, I see we’re all hyped up here but simply getting rid of Rove seems like not much of a goal.
Aides go off the payroll all the time. He’ll never leave admitting this is why.
They’ll stonewall until the din dies down, and then he’ll accept a private sector job for big bucks and remain influential with the Bushies.
http://mediachannel.org/blog/node/84
Good question BooMan.
The writer agrees there will be political damage.
He goes on to show disdain for some of the grandiose posturing of the media around this story. And yet he thinks that there ‘is blood in the Bush waters’ and only if the opposition and the media keep on this will there be any real damage to KR.
BIll at Liberal Oasis just called Rove “Benedict Rove.”
I like it.
Let’s repeat it often.
— heard on Janeane’s Air America show
John at America Blog has a great graphic of “Benedict Rove” himself, for t-shirts, mousepads, etc.
http://www.cafepress.com/americablog/710977
Marketing genius – and so timely, too!
Could someone please please explain to me what Novak’s role in all of this is and why they aren’t holding his feet to the fire?
All good stuff, but this is just the tip of the iceberg. This is just one instance of how they intimidate people into falling into lockstep behind the BushAd right wing extremist agenda.
The Rove Plame leak was a criminal act against the American government and the American people, and it injured Valerie Wilson, all of her covert contacts, and U.S. national security.
But the main thing is that is exposes their strategy for FIXING THE FACTS AROUND THE POLICY using scare and intimidation tactics.
[We will go after you and we will go after your family if you don’t cooperate with us.]
Fixing facts is a very complex endeavor. Especially for the Leader of the Free World and his minions.
But they are good at it. They are experts. Look how they FIXED THE FACT that Al Gore won the US presidential election in 2000 and FIXED THE FACT that John Kerry won it in 2004.
The White House is “a wretched hive of scum and villainy.”
that it goes beyond the “simple leak.” As long as the leak is the only focus, all those RDNW (“Rove did nothing wrong” arguments will keep getting heard.
There is no “did he or didn’t he” in this. He outed Plame and discredited Wilson for a very clear reason – part of the massive deception and coverup involving those non-existent WMD’s and the way the evidence for them was concocted.
This is serious – it’s the beginning of the connect the dots between the DSM, all the lies, and everything illegal and immoral they did to prevent the lies from becoming public.
Rove threatened our security in more ways than one – and it’s part of a pattern.
Pimping my diary on this subject here: http://www.boomantribune.com/story/2005/7/12/02817/8833