To follow
Cheney – Rove – Bolton – Miller :: Case to be made.
I will present the case soon, I wanted to publish the Press Release of Patrick Fitzgerald in this diary, as most references I need are presented in quite some detail.
An Eye Opener – thanks CT Man!
Do you want to see how PFitz will nail Cheney?
Go check out this link over at TPM
TalkingPointsMemo by Josh Marshall
You will like what you read there!
Good morning to you!
(And goodnight for me… lol)
by Connecticut Man1 on Sat Oct 29th, 2005 at 11:32:15 PM PST
Questions to be asked from the additional information provided by the I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby Indictment that was not known before yesterday.
CNN: Official A is Karl Rove ◊ by catnip
Fri Oct 28th, 2005 at 05:45:25 PM PST
who makes a State Dep’t report on Ambassador Wilson and Valerie Plame to be shared with Libby.
Crucial information needed by DoJ Patrick Fitzgerald was the testimony of Judith Miller. After reading through the Indictment and concentrating on the timeline May-July 2003, some specifics come in focus and surrounds Aspen Leaf Judith Miller.
More to follow below the fold …
Scooter Libby is the central figure in the Office of the Vice-President to start attack on the Wilsons for two reasons:
- selective leaking by the CIA – true reason for dismissal of George Tenet in July 2004? – and
- the attack in several media articles on the Niger case and WMD claims made by VP Cheney before and after the Invasion and Occupation of Iraq in March 2003.
I will focus on the aspect that Libby sets up several reporters for the gossip circuit in Washington: Tim Russert and Matthew Cooper and perjures himself in protecting Aspen Leaf Judith Miller. Meanwhile on three prior dates Libby had discussed Ambassador Wilson, Niger forgery and CIA agent Valerie Plame Wilson – see the press release – with NYT reporter Miller, who did not publish an article herself. Was she the source for Novak and other reporters in the Bubble gossip circuit?
Patrick Fitzgerald didn’t have enough time after Miller’s last testimony to close the case for further indictments. This does explain the flurry of FBI agents checking the neighbors and friends of the Wilsons in recent days. This wasn’t necessary to gain evidence for the Libby Indictment of perjury and false statements.
THE NATION by David Corn
[minor edits, bold face and links added]
They knew
By Steve Gilliard BlogSpot — Friday, October 28, 2005
«« click on pic for resignation statements by POTUS and VP Cheney »»
Yeah, Scooter, lie to the FBI, your ass gets indicted
Overlooked in the current discussion.
Go to page 5 of the indictment. Top of the page, item #9.
On or about June 12, 2003, LIBBY was advised by the Vice President of the United States that Wilson’s wife worked at the Central Intelligence Agency in the Counterproliferation Divison. LIBBY understood that the Vice President had learned this information from the CIA.
This is a crucial piece of information. the Counterproliferation Division (CPD) is part of the CIA’s Directorate of Operations, i.e., not Directorate of Intelligence, the branch of the CIA where ‘analysts’ come from, but where the spies come from.
Libby’s a long time national security hand. He knows exactly what CPD is and where it is. So does Cheney. They both knew. It’s right there in the indictment.
Bush and Cheney Aides’ Testimony Contradicts Earlier White House Statement
By Jim VandeHei and Walter Pincus
Washington Post Staff Writers – October 2, 2005
But a new theory about Fitzgerald’s aim has emerged in recent weeks from two lawyers who have had extensive conversations with the prosecutor while representing witnesses in the case. They surmise that Fitzgerald is considering whether he can bring charges of a criminal conspiracy perpetrated by a group of senior Bush administration officials. Under this legal tactic, Fitzgerald would attempt to establish that at least two or more officials agreed to take affirmative steps to discredit and retaliate against Wilson and leak sensitive government information about his wife. To prove a criminal conspiracy, the actions need not have been criminal, but conspirators must have had a criminal purpose.
Lawyers involved in the case interviewed for this report agreed to talk only if their names were not used, citing Fitzgerald’s request for secrecy.
One source briefed on Miller’s account of conversations with Libby said it is doubtful her testimony would on its own lead to charges against any government officials. But, the source said, her account could establish a piece of a web of actions taken by officials that had an underlying criminal purpose.
Disgraced and White House Crippled
Rove, Libby and Miers at the White House earlier this year Khue Bui for Newsweek
[minor edits, bold face and links added]
TIMELINE EXCERPT FROM PRESS RELEASE ::
Subsequently, Libby allegedly lied about information he discussed about the CIA employment of Wilson’s wife, Valerie Plame Wilson, in conversations Libby had in June and July 2003 with three news reporters – Tim Russert of NBC News, Matt Cooper of Time magazine, and Judith Miller of The New York Times.
– page 2 –
On May 6, 2003, The New York Timespublished a column by Nicholas Kristof which disputed the accuracy of the “sixteen words”in the State of the Union address.
On or about May 29, 2003, in the White House, Libby asked an Undersecretary of State for information concerning the unnamed ambassador’s travel to Niger. The Undersecretary thereafter directed the State Department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research to prepare a report concerning the ambassador and his trip.
On or about June 9, 2003, a number of classified documents from the CIA were faxed to the Office of the Vice President to the personal attention of Libby and another person in the Vice President’s office.
– page 5 –
- on or about June 11, 2003, Libby spoke with a senior officer of the CIA to ask about the origin and circumstances of Wilson’s trip, and was advised by the CIA officer that Wilson’s wife worked at the CIA and was believed to be responsible for sending Wilson on the trip; [Indictment page 4 #7 – Oui]
- on or about June 12, 2003, Libby was advised by the Vice President of the United States that Wilson’s wife worked at the CIA in the Counterproliferation Division. Libby understood that the Vice President had learned this information from the CIA;
- on or about June 14, 2003, Libby met with a CIA briefer and expressed displeasure that CIA officials were making comments to reporters critical of the Vice President’s office, and discussed with the briefer, among other things, “Joe Wilson” and his wife “Valerie Wilson,” in the context of Wilson’s trip to Niger;
- shortly after publication on or about June 19, 2003, of an article in The New Republic magazine online entitled “The First Casualty: The Selling of the Iraq War,” Libbyspoke by telephone with his then Principal Deputy and discussed the article. That official asked Libby whether information about Wilson’s trip could be shared with the press to rebut the allegations that the Vice President had sent Wilson. Libby responded that there would be complications at the CIA in disclosing that information publicly, and that he could not discuss the matter on a non-secure telephone line; and
- on or about June 23, 2003, Libby met with Judith Miller [JM#1] of The New York Times. Libby was critical of the CIA and disparaged what he termed “selective leaking” by the CIA concerning intelligence matters. In discussing the CIA’s handling of Wilson’s trip to Niger, Libby informed Miller Wilson’s wife might work at a bureau of the CIA.
On July 6, 2003, The New York Timespublished an opinion article by Joseph Wilson entitled “What I Didn’t Find in Africa”. On the same day, the Washington Post published an article about Wilson’s 2002 trip to Niger, which was based partially on an interview of Wilson, and he was a guest on the television program “Meet the Press”.
– page 6 –
[Timeline July 2003 – President Bush Press Briefings – added Oui]
Following Wilson’s July 6, 2003 statements, according to the indictment, Libby engaged in the following actions:
- on or about July 7, 2003, Libby had lunch with the then White House Press Secretary [Ari Fleischer – Ed] and advised that individual that Wilson’s wife worked at the CIA, noting that such information was not widely known;
- on or about the morning of July 8, 2003, Libby met with Miller [JM#2] of The New York Times. When the conversation turned to the subject of Joseph Wilson, Libby asked that the information he provided on the topic of Wilson be attributed to a “former Hill staffer” ratherthan to a “senior administration official,” as had been the understanding regarding other information that Libby provided to Miller during this meeting. Libby then discussed with Miller Wilson’s trip and criticized the CIA reporting concerning Wilson’s trip. During this discussion, Libby advised Miller of his belief that Wilson’s wife worked for the CIA;
- on or about July 10, 2003, Libby spoke to NBC’s Russert to complain about press coverage of Libby by an MSNBC reporter. Libby did not discuss Wilson’s wife with Russert;
- on or about July 10 or July 11, 2003, Libby spoke to a senior White House official (“Official A”) [Karl Rove – ed] who advised Libby of a conversation Official A had earlier that week with columnist Robert Novak in which Wilson’s wife was discussed as a CIA employee involved in Wilson’s trip. Libby was advised by Official A that Novak would be writing a story about Wilson’s wife;
- on or about July 12, 2003, Libby flew with the Vice President and others to and from Norfolk, Va., on Air Force Two. On his return trip, Libby discussed with other officials aboard the plane what Libby should say in response to certain pending media inquiries, including questions from Time’s Cooper;
– page 7 –
- on or about July 12, 2003, in the afternoon, Libby spoke by telephone to Cooper, who asked whether Libby had heard that Wilson’s wife was involved in sending Wilson on the trip to Niger. Libby confirmed to Cooper, without elaboration or qualification, that he had heard this information too; and
- on or about July 12, 2003, in the late afternoon, Libby spoke by telephone with Miller [JM#3] and discussed Wilson’s wife, and that she worked at the CIA.
– page 8 –
[July 24, 2003 — Vice President’s Remarks on War on Terror at AEI – added by Oui]
Patrick J. Fitzgerald
Special Counsel Chicago
Office: Dirksen Federal Building Washington Office Bond Federal Building
219 South Dearborn Street,Fifth Floor 1400 New York Avenue NW, Ninth Floor
Chicago, Illinois 60604 Washington, DC 20530
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE PRESS CONTACT: Randall Samborn
FRIDAY OCTOBER 28, 2005 (312) 613-6700 (312) 353-5318
http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/iln/osc
WHITE HOUSE OFFICIAL I. LEWIS LIBBY INDICTED ON
OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE, FALSE STATEMENT AND PERJURY CHARGES
RELATING TO LEAK OF CLASSIFIED INFORMATION
REVEALING CIA OFFICER’S IDENTITY
WASHINGTON – Senior White House official I. Lewis Libby was indicted today on obstruction of justice, false statement and perjury charges for allegedly lying about how and when in 2003 he learned and subsequently disclosed to reporters then-classified information concerning the employment of Valerie Wilson by the Central Intelligence Agency. Libby was charged with one count of obstruction of justice, two counts of perjury and two counts of making false statements in a five-count indictment returned today by a federal grand jury as its term expired, announced Justice Department Special Counsel Patrick J. Fitzgerald.
The defendant, also known as “Scooter” Libby, has served since January 20, 2001, as Assistant to the President, Chief of Staff to the Vice President, and Assistant to the Vice President for National Security Affairs. Libby, 55, will be arraigned at a later date in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
The charges allege that Libby lied to FBI agents who interviewed him on October 14 and November 26, 2003; committed perjury while testifying under oath before the grand jury on March 5 and March 24, 2004; and engaged in obstruction of justice by impeding the grand jury’s investigation
– page 1 –
into the unauthorized disclosure – or “leaking” – of Valerie Wilson’s affiliation with the CIA to various reporters in the spring of 2003.
Beginning in late May 2003, Libby allegedly began acquiring information about a 2002 trip to the African country of Niger by Joseph Wilson, a former United States Ambassador and career State Department official, to investigate allegations concerning efforts by the former government of Iraq to acquire uranium yellowcake, a processed form of uranium ore. The CIA decided on its own initiative to send Wilson to Niger after an inquiry to the CIA by the Vice President concerning certain intelligence reporting. Wilson orally reported his findings to the CIA upon his return. Subsequently, Libby allegedly lied about information he discussed about the CIA employment of Wilson’s wife, Valerie Plame Wilson, in conversations Libbyhad in June and July 2003 with threenews reporters – Tim Russert of NBC News, Matt Cooper of Time magazine, and Judith Miller of The New York Times.
Prior to July 14, 2003, Valerie Wilson’s employment status was classified. Prior to that date, her affiliation with the CIA was not common knowledge outside the intelligence community. Disclosure of classified information about an individual’s employment by the CIA has the potential to damage the national security in ways that range from preventing that individual’s future use in a covert capacity, to compromising intelligence-gathering methods and operations, and endangering the safety of CIA employees and those who deal with them, the indictment states.
“When citizens testify before grand juries they are required to tell the truth,” Mr. Fitzgerald said. “Without the truth, our criminal justice system cannot serve our nation or its citizens. The requirement to tell the truth applies equally to all citizens, including persons who hold high positions in government. In an investigation concerning the compromise of a CIA officer’s identity, it is especially important that grand jurors learn what really happened. The indictment returned today alleges that the efforts of the
– page 2 –
grand jury to investigate such a leak were obstructed when Mr. Libby lied about how and when he learned and subsequently disclosed classified information about Valerie Wilson,” he added.
Mr. Fitzgerald announced the charges with John C. Eckenrode, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Philadelphia Field Office of the FBI and the lead agent in the investigation. The Washington Field Office and the Inspection Division of the FBI assisted in the investigation.
The indictment alleges that Libby had frequent access to classified information and frequently spoke with officials of the U.S. intelligence community and other government officials regarding sensitive national security matters. With his responsibilities for national security matters, Libby held security clearances giving him access to classified information. Libby was obligated by federal criminal statute, regulations, executive orders, and a written non-disclosure agreement not to disclose classified information to unauthorized persons, and to properly safeguard classified information against unauthorized disclosure.
According to the indictment, on September 26, 2003, the Department of Justice and the FBI began a criminal investigation into the possible unauthorized disclosure of classified information regarding Valerie Wilson’s CIA affiliation to various reporters in the spring of 2003. In January 2004, the grand jury investigation began examining possible violations of criminal laws prohibiting disclosing the identity of covert intelligence personnel (The Intelligence Identities Protection Act), improperly disclosing national defense information, making false statements to government agents, and perjury. A major focus of the grand jury investigation was to determine which government officials had disclosed to the media prior to July 14, 2003, information concerning Valerie Wilson’s CIA affiliation, and the nature, timing, extent, and purpose of such disclosures, as well as whether any official made such a disclosure knowing that Valerie Wilson’s employment by the CIA was classified information.
– page 3 –
The over-arching obstruction of justice count alleges that while testifying under oath before the grand jury on March 5 and March 24 2004, Libby knowingly and corruptly endeavored to influence, obstruct and impede the grand jury’s investigation by misleading and deceiving the grand jury as to when, and the manner and means by which, he acquired, and subsequently disclosed to the media, information concerning the employment of Valerie Wilson by the CIA. The obstruction count alleges that Libby made the following materially false and intentionally misleading statements:
- When Libby spoke with Tim Russert of NBC on or about July 10, 2003, Russert asked Libby if Libby knew that Wilson’s wife worked for the CIA, and told Libby that all the reporters knew it; and Libby was surprised to hear that Wilson’s wife worked for the CIA; when, in fact, Libby knew Russert did not ask Libby if Libby knew that Wilson’s wife worked for the CIA, nor did Russert tell Libby that all the reporters knew it. And, at the time of this conversation, Libby was well aware that Wilson’s wife worked at the CIA and Libby had participated in multiple prior conversations concerning this topic;
- Libby advised Matt Cooper of Time magazine on or about July 12, 2003, that he had heard that other reporters were saying that Wilson’s wife worked for the CIA, and further advised him that Libby did not know whether this assertion was true; when, in fact, Libby did not advise Cooper during that conversation that Libby had heard other reporters were saying that Wilson’s wife worked for the CIA, nor did Libby advise him that Libby did not know whether this assertion was true. Rather, Libby confirmed to Cooper, without qualification, that Libby had heard that Wilson’s wife worked at the CIA; and
- Libby advised Judith Miller of The New York Times on or about July 12, 2003, that he had heard that other reporters were saying that Wilson’s wife worked for the CIA but Libby did not know whether that assertion was true; when, in fact, Libby did not advise Miller during that conversation that Libby had heard other reporters were saying that Wilson’s wife worked for the CIA, nor did Libby advise her that Libby did not know whether this assertion was true.
Among the events leading up to these conversations, on January 28, 2003, President Bush delivered his State of the Union address which included sixteen words asserting that “The British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa.”
– page 4 –
On May 6, 2003, The New York Times published a column by Nicholas Kristof which disputed the accuracy of the “sixteen words” in the State of the Union address. The column reported that, following a request from the Vice President’s office for an investigation of allegations that Iraq sought to buy uranium from Niger, an unnamed former ambassador was sent to Niger in 2002 to investigate the allegations. According to the column, the ambassador reported back to the CIA and State Department in early 2002 that the allegations were unequivocally wrong and based on forged documents.
According to the indictment, beginning in late May and throughout June, Libby participated in multiple conversations concerning Valerie Wilson’s employment by the CIA, including on the following occasions:
- on or about May 29, 2003, in the White House, Libby asked an Undersecretary of State for information concerning the unnamed ambassador’s travel to Niger. The Undersecretary thereafter directed the State Department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research to prepare a report concerning the ambassador and his trip. The Undersecretary provided Libby with interim oral reports in late May and early June 2003, and advised Libby that Wilson was the former ambassador who took the trip;
- on or about June 9, 2003, a number of classified documents from the CIA were faxed to the Office of the Vice President to the personal attention of Libby and another person in the Vice President’s office. The documents, which bore classification markings, discussed, among other things, Wilson and his trip to Niger, but did not mention Wilson by name. After receiving these documents, Libby and one or more other persons in the Vice President’s office handwrote the names “Wilson” and “Joe Wilson” on the documents;
- on or about June 11 or 12, 2003, Libby was orally advised by the Undersecretary of State that Wilson’s wife worked for the CIA and that State Department personnel were saying that Wilson’s wife was involved in the organization of his trip;
- on or about June 11, 2003, Libby was informed by a senior officer of the CIA that Wilson’s wife was employed by the CIA and was believed to be responsible for sending Wilson on the trip;
– page 5 – - prior to June 12, 2003, Washington Post reporter Walter Pincus contacted the Office of the Vice President about a story he was writing about Wilson’s trip. Libby participated in discussions in the Vice President’s office concerning how to respond to Pincus;
- on or about June 12, 2003, Libby was advised by the Vice President of the United States that Wilson’s wife worked at the CIA in the Counterproliferation Division. Libby understood that the Vice President had learned this information from the CIA;
- on or about June 14, 2003, Libby met with a CIA briefer and expressed displeasure that CIA officials were making comments to reporters critical of the Vice President’s office, and discussed with the briefer, among other things, “Joe Wilson” and his wife “Valerie Wilson,” in the context of Wilson’s trip to Niger;
- shortly after publication on or about June 19, 2003, of an article in The New Republic magazine online entitled “The First Casualty: The Selling of the Iraq War,” Libbyspoke by telephone with his then Principal Deputy and discussed the article. That official asked Libby whether information about Wilson’s trip could be shared with the press to rebut the allegations that the Vice President had sent Wilson. Libby responded that there would be complications at the CIA in disclosing that information publicly, and that he could not discuss the matter on a non-secure telephone line; and
- on or about June 23, 2003, Libby met with Judith Miller [JM#1] of The New York Times. Libby was critical of the CIA and disparaged what he termed “selective leaking” by the CIA concerning intelligence matters. In discussing the CIA’s handling of Wilson’s trip to Niger, Libby informed Miller Wilson’s wife might work at a bureau of the CIA.
On July 6, 2003, The New York Times published an opinion article by Joseph Wilson entitled “What I Didn’t Find in Africa”. On the same day, the Washington Post published an article about Wilson’s 2002 trip to Niger, which was based partially on an interview of Wilson, and he was a guest on the television program “Meet the Press”. In the article he wrote, as well as in the print and broadcast interviews of him, Wilson asserted, among other things, that he had taken a trip to Niger at the request of the CIA in February 2002 to investigate allegations that Iraq has sought or obtained uranium yellowcake from Niger, and that he doubted Iraq had obtained uranium from Niger recently, for a
– page 6 –
number of reasons. Wilson said that he believed, based on his understanding of government procedures, that the Vice President’s office was advised of the results of his trip.
Following Wilson’s July 6, 2003 statements, according to the indictment, Libby engaged in the
following actions:
- on or about July 7, 2003, Libby had lunch with the then White House Press Secretary and advised that individual that Wilson’s wife worked at the CIA, noting that such information was not widely known;
- on or about the morning of July 8, 2003, Libby met with Miller [JM#2] of The New York Times. When the conversation turned to the subject of Joseph Wilson, Libby asked that the information he provided on the topic of Wilson be attributed to a “former Hill staffer” ratherthan to a “senior administration official,” as had been the understanding regarding other information that Libby provided to Miller during this meeting. Libby then discussed with Miller Wilson’s trip and criticized the CIA reporting concerning Wilson’s trip. During this discussion, Libby advised Miller of his belief that Wilson’s wife worked for the CIA;
* also on or about July 8, 2003, Libby met with the Counsel to the Vice President in an anteroom outside the Vice President’s office. During their brief conversation, Libby asked the individual what paperwork there would be at the CIA if an employee’s spouse undertook an overseas trip;
- no earlier than June 2003 but on or before July 8, 2003, the Assistant to the Vice President for Public Affairs learned from another government official that Wilson’s wife worked at the CIA and advised Libby of this information;
- on or about July 10, 2003, Libby spoke to NBC’s Russert to complain about press coverage of Libby by an MSNBC reporter. Libby did not discuss Wilson’s wife with Russert;
- on or about July 10 or July 11, 2003, Libby spoke to a senior White House official (“Official A”) who advised Libby of a conversation Official A had earlier that week with columnist Robert Novak in which Wilson’s wife was discussed as a CIA employee involved in Wilson’s trip. Libby was advised by Official A that Novak would be writing a story about Wilson’s wife;
- on or about July 12, 2003, Libby flew with the Vice President and others to and from Norfolk, Va., on Air Force Two. On his return trip, Libby discussed with other officials aboard the plane what Libby should say in response to certain pending media inquiries, including questions from Time’s Cooper;
– page 7 – - on or about July 12, 2003, in the afternoon, Libby spoke by telephone to Cooper, who asked whether Libby had heard that Wilson’s wife was involved in sending Wilson on the trip to Niger. Libby confirmed to Cooper, without elaboration or qualification, that he had heard this information too; and
- on or about July 12, 2003, in the late afternoon, Libby spoke by telephone with Miller [JM#3] and discussed Wilson’s wife, and that she worked at the CIA.
The false statement charge in Count Two of the indictment alleges that Libby lied to FBI agents on October14 and November 26, 2003, regarding the conversation with Russert on July 10, 2003. Count Three charges Libby with making false statements to FBI agents during the same FBI interviews in October and November 2003 relating to his July 12, 2003 conversation with Cooper.
The perjury charge in Count Four alleges that Libby lied while testifying under oath before the grand jury on March 5, 2004, about his conversation with Russert on July 10, 2003, because, in fact, Russert did not ask Libby if Libby knew that Wilson’s wife worked for the CIA, nor did Russert tell Libby that all the reporters knew it, and at the time of their conversation, Libby was well aware that Wilson’s wife worked at the CIA.
Count Five charges Libby with perjury before the grand jury for allegedly lying when he said that he told reporters that he was telling them what other reporters were saying – first, on March 5, 2004, about his conversation with Cooper on or about July 12, 2003, and second, on March 24, 2004, regarding conversations with reporters. In fact, Libby well knew that he did not advise Cooper or other reporters that he had heard other reporters were saying that Wilson’s wife worked for the CIA, nor did Libby advise Cooper or other reporters that he did not know whether this assertion was true.
If convicted, the crimes charged in the indictment carry the following maximum penalties on each count: obstruction of justice – 10 years in prison, and making false statements and perjury -5 years in prison, and each count carries a maximum fine of $250,000, making the maximum penalty for
– page 8 –
conviction on all counts 30 years in prison and a $1.25 million fine. Note, however, that the Court would determine the appropriate sentence to be imposed.
The public is reminded that an indictment contains only charges and is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
# # # #
– page 9 –
1. Conspiracy Indictment Next?! – Josh Marshall TPM Agrees ¶ DoJ Press Release
2. Mr. X Is David Wurmser ME Advisor to VP Cheney ¶ Link to ISA John Bolton
3. White House Awaits Grand Jury News ¶ It’s Rove … Lawrence O’Donnell
4. DeLay :: Gotcha – Fingerprints et al! ¶ Abramoff & Bob Ney
5. Prosecutor Fitzgerald Zeroes In :: Cheney – CIA Feud!
6. CIRCLE CLOSED :: Neocons – AIPAC – Shill Reporter ¶ Laurie Mylroie – Benador Associates
7. As Time Evolves :: Neocon Think ¶ A DEEP THROAT?
8. THIS IS MAJOR! ¶ Our Reichstag’s Fire
9. Israel and AIPAC Accused in Spy Case of Franklin, Pentagon Analyst
10. U.S. District Court Indictment Larry Franklin & AIPAC Directors
11. Judith Miller :: A Need To Know Basis
12. Judith Miller :: Libya – Gaddafi – Poindexter
.
Besides showing appreciation for his team in Washington DC, his assistant from Philadelphia standing next to him, the FBI agents doing the investigation, and his home base the Chicago District Attorney Generals’s Office – Patrick Fitzgerald praised the members of this Grand Jury for their dedication, time – 2 years – and work.
Made an interesting point that showed up unintentionally in the Libby Indictment, one of the GJ members had put forth a question to be answered by Libby, he told a lie and thus perjured himself. This is a vindication also for lying to a member of the Grand Jury.
Specifics on GJ statutes he refers to be answered at a later date by specialists from his Chicago base. There is always a GJ available who will handle further investigation by Fitzgerald, is normal procedure. Stressed the importance of upholding SECRECY of the GJ, prosecutors and people involved in the case. This is what the law dictates to protect people, witnesses can talk about their own experience before the GJ, I can only ask them not to supply information that could damage the GJ investigation.
Patrick Fitzgerald is a great guy, dedicated, clear vision of the law and responsibility, very intelligent in the Q&A session with reporters staying within the bounds of the official Indictment of Scooter Libby. What I had expected of him, he surpassed all – great – more to follow.
Clearly there is now an opening for Joe and Valerie Wilson to file a civil suit against Scooter Libby and perhaps WH officials who conspired to damage their reputation.
Fitzgerald Leads Legion of Lawyers to Libby Indictment
«« click on pic for bio »»
Patrick J. Fitzgerald
One question from reporter he did answer:
Q. Were you surprised in your investigation of how the Government runs its business.
Fitzgerald’s answer: “Yes”. – period!
TRANSCRIPT PRESS CONFERENCE
“Treason doth never prosper: what’s the reason?
For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.”
▼ ▼ ▼ MY DIARY
The Wilsons said they would bring a civil suit to anyone indicted. I believe it was a couple of weeks ago.
.
To use the words of NyBri, I could elaborate to give you my answer on Patrick Fitzgerald, however on kid-oakland just read the perfect comment ::
I am neither someone with a background in journalism, nor am I savvy or privy to beltway politics, nor am I a lawyer, nor do I know the ins and out of intelligence matters…(those links are all worthwhile)
but these things strike me from today’s events, take ’em worth a grain of salt:
Patrick Fitzgerald made a no-nonsense, straightforward case for one thing today: Lewis Libby lied to the FBI and the grand jury investigating the leak of a CIA employee’s identity, and his perjury and false statements noted in the indictment amount to an obstruction of justice.
Read on »»
Fitzgerald Leads Legion of Lawyers to Libby Indictment
Special counsel Patrick Fitzgerald and FBI Special Agentin Charge John Eckenrode are shown on a video screen during
a news conference about the indictments brought against U.S.
VP Dick Cheney's chief of staff, Lewis 'Scooter' Libby.
Jim Young/Reuters
“Treason doth never prosper: what’s the reason?
For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.”
▼▼▼ READ MY DIARY
Go check out this link over at TPM
You will like what you read there!
Good morning to you!
(And goodnight for me… lol)
.
Fri Oct 28, 2005 at 02:38:35 PM PDT
Today’s an ominous day for the country, a new low since Watergate in terms of openness and honesty in our government.
This indictment is far more than an indictment of one individual. It’s an indictment of the lengths to which Administration officials were willing to go to cover up their failed intelligence. It’s an indictment of their distortions about Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction and their serious blunders taking us to war and their vindictive efforts to discredit anyone who challenges their misrepresentations.
As we know, Scooter Libby and Vice President Cheney withheld critical documents in the Senate’s investigation of the use and misuse of intelligence and the abuse of power in the decision to go to war and in the management of the war.
These documents must be handed over, because the American people deserve answers.
That is why I’m urging the White House to hand over those documents
— and asking you to join me in doing so. We need as many Americans as possible to join us in the next few days to show the White House that we are not letting this indictment be the end.
Please join me at my website
“Treason doth never prosper: what’s the reason?
For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.”
▼▼▼ READ MY DIARY
.
The Huffington Post – Bob Cesca
Smearing Joe Wilson and leaking his wife’s name to Judy Miller, Matt Cooper, Bob Novak, and the rest is just one small part of a much larger and prearranged plot orchestrated by the PNAC neocons since the first Gulf War ended and Bush 41 lost re-election.
Propaganda and controlling the easily manipulated shills in the mainstream media has been an integral part of the larger strategy played out by the administration neocons. There’s a multitude of confirmed cases of propaganda coming from the administration and it’s clear that the Wilson effort is a White House Iraq Group (WHIG) and PNAC cousin of the propaganda campaigns waged by the Departments of Education, Defense, HHS and in the Medicare debate. (Not to mention the open case of Jimmy Guckert.)
Did a Bush loyalist, trying to protect the case for war in Iraq, obstruct an investigation into who blew the cover of a covert CIA operative?
“Treason doth never prosper: what’s the reason?
For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.”
▼▼▼ READ MY DIARY
.
I’m sure there are other dimensions of the verb “to libby” that haven’t yet occurred to me.
The Los Angeles Times argues that the ordeal may not be over for Vice President Richard Bruce Cheney. I agree.
A trial of Libby could yet throw up information that would spark further indictments. In fact, I take from Fitzgerald’s language on Friday that he actively envisages such a possibility.
Cheney was one of four individuals who told Libby that Valerie Plame Wilson worked for the CIA.
As Steve Gilliard picks up from Josh Marshall the canny insight that Cheney told Libby specifically that Plame Wilson was in a division in the Directorate of Operations. That is, any knowledgeable government official would immediately conclude that she was not a mere analyst but an undercover field officer.
For more insights:
● Beyond Middle East Studies.
● Did Bolton out Plame?
● Tomdispatch.
posted by Juan
“Treason doth never prosper: what’s the reason?
For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.”
▼▼▼ READ MY DIARY
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I’m sure there are other dimensions of the verb “to libby” that haven’t yet occurred to me.
The Los Angeles Times argues that the ordeal may not be over for Vice President Richard Bruce Cheney. I agree.
A trial of Libby could yet throw up information that would spark further indictments. In fact, I take from Fitzgerald’s language on Friday that he actively envisages such a possibility.
Cheney was one of four individuals who told Libby that Valerie Plame Wilson worked for the CIA.
As Steve Gilliard picks up from Josh Marshall the canny insight that Cheney told Libby specifically that Plame Wilson was in a division in the Directorate of Operations. That is, any knowledgeable government official would immediately conclude that she was not a mere analyst but an undercover field officer.
For more insights:
● Beyond Middle East Studies.
● Did Bolton out Plame?
● Tomdispatch.
posted by Juan
“Treason doth never prosper: what’s the reason?
For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.”
▼▼▼ READ MY DIARY
.
Republican concerted effort and PR strategy to limit damage for Bush, his presidency and the White House. This is of course an evil mind set, to permit 5 counts of felony to be off-set by so called hard work in getting the U.S. to invade Iraq on false evidence.
Oct. 28, 2005 — Mr. Libby has informed me that he is resigning to fight the charges brought against him. I have accepted his decision with deep regret.
Scooter Libby is one of the most capable and talented individuals I have ever known. He has given many years of his life to public service and has served our nation tirelessly and with great distinction.
In our system of government an accused person is presumed innocent until a contrary finding is made by a jury after an opportunity to answer the charges and a full airing of the facts. Mr. Libby is entitled to that opportunity.
Because this is a pending legal proceeding, in fairness to all those involved, it would be inappropriate for me to comment on the charges or on any facts relating to the proceeding.
Bush Statement »»
Disgraced - Libby moving away seen between US flag banner“Treason doth never prosper: what’s the reason?
For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.”
▼▼▼ READ MY DIARY
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By Robert Parry ◊ October 30, 2005
As an outsider to Washington, special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald appears to have misunderstood the finer points of how national security classifications work when a secret is as discrete – and sensitive – as the identity of an undercover CIA officer.
Under the rules of classification, however, to see such secrets an official must not only have a top-secret clearance but also special code-word clearance that grants access to a specific compartment governed by strict need-to-know requirements.
In both the Libby indictment and a hour-long press conference on Oct. 28, Fitzgerald showed no indication he understood how extraordinary it was for White House officials to be bandying about the name of a covert CIA officer based on the flimsy rationale that she was married to an ex-diplomat who had been sent on a fact-finding trip to Niger.
Fitzgerald, who is the U.S. Attorney in Chicago, appears to have bought into the notion that government officials had a right to discuss Plame’s covert status among themselves as long as they didn’t pass the secret on to journalists. Then Fitzgerald didn’t even seek punishment for that, limiting his criminal case to Libby’s lying about how and when he learned of Plame’s identity.
But to veterans of U.S. intelligence, one of the ugliest parts of Plame’s outing was the cavalier manner in which White House officials tossed around references to her CIA job to undercut her husband, former U.S. Ambassador Joseph Wilson, for criticizing George W. Bush’s case for war with Iraq.
Sensitive Secrets »»
“Treason doth never prosper: what’s the reason?
For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.”
▼▼▼ READ MY DIARY
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By Steve Gilliard BlogSpot — Friday, October 28, 2005
«« click on pic for resignation statements by POTUS and VP Cheney »»
Yeah, Scooter, lie to the FBI, your ass gets indictedOverlooked in the current discussion.
Go to page 5 of the indictment. Top of the page, item #9.
On or about June 12, 2003, LIBBY was advised by the Vice President of the United States that Wilson’s wife worked at the Central Intelligence Agency in the Counterproliferation Divison. LIBBY understood that the Vice President had learned this information from the CIA.
This is a crucial piece of information. the Counterproliferation Division (CPD) is part of the CIA’s Directorate of Operations, i.e., not Directorate of Intelligence, the branch of the CIA where ‘analysts’ come from, but where the spies come from.
Libby’s a long time national security hand. He knows exactly what CPD is and where it is. So does Cheney. They both knew. It’s right there in the indictment.
“Treason doth never prosper: what’s the reason?
For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.”
▼▼▼ READ MY DIARY
Two versions of a WaPo story… From TPM
This is gold! lol
Keep in mind what you read from the previous link:
Go check out this link over at TPM
TalkingPointsMemo by Josh Marshall
Josh Marshall really is on a roll over there at TPM.
Let me offer a link I found if it hasn’t been seen yet.
It has a few details and some insight as to what we might expect.
10-31-05,9:14am
I think it has some new information in it and I wanted to share. This is all tough to keep up with.
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Thanks for excellent link
Right Wing Watch – by Jason Leopold
Oct. 31, 2005 — Lawyers involved in the two year old probe said that two former Cheney aides had a hand in obtaining information about Wilson and shared it with Libby after the chief of staff had personally requested such information.
Those aides, David Wurmser and John Hannah, are now cooperating with Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald’s probe into the outing of Plame’s identity and CIA status to reporters. Wurmser and Hannah have agreed to cooperate with Fitzgerald after being told that they faced indictment for their role in outing Plame. The officials had told Fitzgerald that they were acting on orders from Bolton to obtain such information. Hannah a key aide to Vice President Dick Cheney and one of the architects of the Iraq war, and Wurmser was Cheney’s Middle East advisor and an assistant to Bolton.
Wurmser’s cooperation with Fitzgerald would certainly come as no surprise to those who have been following his career. Last year, he was questioned by the Federal Bureau of Investigation for his possible role in leaking U.S. security secrets to Israel.
According to a 2004 story in the Washington Post, the FBI interviewed officials in Cheney’s office and the Pentagon, including Hannah and Wurmser, former Defense Policy Board member Richard Perle, Undersecretary of Defense Douglas Feith and Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz, to determine if they were involved in leaking U.S. security secrets to Israel, the former head of the Iraqi National Congress Ahmed Chalabi and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).
The revelation that Hannah and Wurmser have become prosecution witnesses, as well as being identified as the original sources of the leak, indicates Fitzgerald now may be looking into the motive for outing Plame and how Administration officials sought to derail a vocal critic of Iraq intelligence.
MY PREVIOUS DIARIES ON WHIG – WURMSER – AIPAC ::
Rhode – Wurmser – Larry Franklin – AIPAC – Abramoff
“Treason doth never prosper: what’s the reason?
For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.”
▼ ▼ ▼ MY DIARY
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Tue Oct 18th, 2005 at 05:46:53 PM PST
While we wait for Patrick Fitzgerald to announce the results of his investigation of the Plame affair and since RAW STORY mentioned the little discussed John Hannah who may have flipped on his higher-ups, I thought it might be useful to present what we know about this man who has been flying under the radar.
The speculation that Hannah has been a cooperative witness in this case is actually old news. Back in early 2004, it was rumoured that Hannah, along with Libby, was facing possible indictments and by late summer that year speculation was rampant that he had flipped to the prosecution’s side.
As Juan Cole informed us then, Libby and his deputy Hannah worked together on Cheney’s foreign policy agenda:
“Treason doth never prosper: what’s the reason?
For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.”
▼ ▼ ▼ MY DIARY
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By David Horowitz – 1969 –
It should be noted in passing that the congeniality of foundation-dominated scholarship to the CIA reflects the harmony of interest between the upper-class captains of the CIA and the upper-class trustees of the great foundations. The interconnections are too extensive to be recounted here, but the Bundy brothers (William, CIA; McGeorge, Ford) and Chadbourne Gilpatric, OSS and CIA from 1943 to 1949, Rockefeller Foundation from 1949 on, can be taken as illustrative. Richard Bissell, the genius of the Bay of Pigs (and brother-in-law of Philip Mosely of Columbia’s Russian Institute), reversed the usual sequence, going from Ford to the CIA. (Characters in our story, so far, who belonged to a single upper-class club — the Cosmos — include Millikan, Rostow, Mosely, Gardner, Price, Perkins, Kissinger and Hannah.)
Of course turning professors into CIA agents is not the most common way in which scholarship is made to serve the international status quo. It is not a matter of giving professors secret instructions to falsify research results in the dead of night, but simply of determining what questions they will study. That is where the Ford Foundation comes in. So, for example, with part of the $2 million Ford grant that launched the Institute of International Studies at Berkeley as a major center, a Comparative Political Elites Archive Program was established there in 1965.
In practice, the political elites studied turned out to be the ruling elites in communist countries and the potential revolutionary elites in countries within the U.S.’s imperial orbit; the power structure of the American overseas system itself was naturally not a subject of interest. Not surprisingly, the Defense Department and the RAND Corporation were also participants in the Archive Program, which until recently was developing a kind of computerized international mug file.
“Treason doth never prosper: what’s the reason?
For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.”
▼ ▼ ▼ MY DIARY
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Now the Northern California and the Mid-Florida Pro Chapters of SPJ have criticized the Miller award in an open letter written by Peter Y. Sussman, a former president of the Northern California group, and Linda Jue, current vice president. “We hope to set the record straight on behalf of conscientious journalists around the country who support journalists’ First Amendment responsibilities but are deeply troubled by Miller’s earlier unprofessional conduct and SPJ’s failure to fully apply its own Code of Ethics to this case,” they write.
They observe that while SPJ was attempting to laud journalists’ attempts to protect their sources, “in this case, the message has been sullied by the ethical misdeeds of the messenger….We deplore the careless and deceptive use of confidential sources, as exemplified in Judith Miller’s reporting. We urge journalists to hold each other accountable before the government claims even more sweeping rights to interfere in the editorial process, eroding still further this country’s noble ideal of a free press.”
*
Here is the text of their letter:
The New York Times has admitted putting its legal support for reporter Judith Miller above its responsibility to inform readers about an issue of pre-eminent national importance. Similarly, the Society of Professional Journalists, at its recent convention, chose to put its commendable support of a journalists’ shield law above its ethical responsibility to “clarify and explain news coverage and invite dialogue with the public over journalistic conduct.”
We hope to set the record straight on behalf of conscientious journalists around the country who support journalists’ First Amendment responsibilities but are deeply troubled by Miller’s earlier unprofessional conduct and SPJ’s failure to fully apply its own Code of Ethics to this case.
[…]
“Treason doth never prosper: what’s the reason?
For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.”
▼▼▼ READ MY DIARY
.
Tough to beat many excellent diaries these past days, topics I was about to diary were published by other BooTribbers ::
Sun Nov 13th, 2005 at 07:41:24 AM PST
ARTICLE — Libby May Have Tried to Mask Cheney’s Role
By Carol D. Leonnig and Jim VandeHei – Washington Post Staff Writers
In the opening days of the CIA leak investigation in early October 2003, FBI agents working the case already had in their possession a wealth of valuable evidence. There were White House phone and visitor logs, which clearly documented the administration’s contacts with reporters.
And they had something that law enforcement officials would later describe as their “guidebook” for the opening phase of the investigation: the daily, diary-like notes compiled by I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby, then Vice President Cheney’s chief of staff, that chronicled crucial events inside the White House in the weeks before the identity of CIA operative Valerie Plame was publicly disclosed.
By Paul Krassner – Huffington Post
In 1992, an Israeli cop was killed. The response was to deport 400 Palestinian men, suddenly leaving 400 families behind. The UN condemned that action. Money was raised worldwide, including in the United States, with contributions from Muslim communities around the country. In Chicago, Mohammad Salah was chosen by the imam of his mosque to deliver the money to humanitarian agencies in the West Bank.
He flew to Israel on January 15, 1993. Apparently, he was followed from the moment his plane landed. He gave money to the organizations, was arrested a couple of weeks later and severely tortured. A couple of weeks after the torture began, prime minister Yitzhak Rabin himself invited Judith Miller to observe part of Salah’s interrogation.
Presumably because the Israeli government was unhappy about what the U.S. was doing to interdict the fundraising for Hamas, they decided to force Salah to say that he was an active big wheel in Hamas, and the way to spread that disinformation was was to get it into the New York Times. Miller was considered a longtime friend of Israel–there are those who have even suggested that she was in the employ of Mossad–but at any rate, she wrote a piece about fundraising for Hamas in America.
Enter Patrick Fitzgerald, who, besides his role as special prosecutor in the CIA leak scandal, is the U.S. Attorney in Chicago, and he will be prosecuting the Salah case.
NYT – Bill Keller’s “entanglement”
“Treason doth never prosper: what’s the reason?
For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.”
▼▼▼ READ MY DIARY