Reply #272: Hello! What do you think of my letter to the media regarding Plame? [View All]

[robertpaulsen]

I've written a rough draft of a letter encouraging the media to pick up the slack on the Plame investigation. I'm curious about your input. Don't hesitate to let me know if I'm taking the appropriate tone, or if I left out anything important that I need to impress upon them.

Dear

Next month, our country celebrates a rather infamous anniversary. It has been 20 years since Richard Nixon resigned from the office of the Presidency. This momentous event was brought about in no small part to the diligence of a free and inquisitive media propelled by the groundbreaking investigation of Woodward and Bernstein into the crimes and the cover-up of those crimes at Watergate. Without the persistence of the media at that time, the crimes of the Nixon administration would never have seen the light of day.

20 years later, our country faces another scandal that John Dean, one of the key figures in the Watergate cover-up, describes as worse than Watergate. I know you are all familiar with the outing of Valerie Plame as a CIA agent. This is a scandal so serious that John Ashcroft had to recuse himself from the case, because of his association with key figures connected to this scandal who may or may not face indictment for this incredible breach of national security.

However, I am writing because I am frankly underwhelmed at the lack of media attention given the Grand Jury investigation into this scandal. All that I have learned from the major media outlets regarding this investigation is that Bush and Cheney had to retain a private lawyer and that Bush was questioned by Fitzgerald for 70 minutes. What I am asking for is that you pursue a journalistic investigation into the Plame scandal with the same diligence that you pursued the Watergate scandal.

Are you aware of Joe Klein's article in Time from June 27 regarding Valerie Plame? He says, "Furthermore, there is intense anger over the White House's revealing the identity of Plame, who may have been active in a sting operation involving the trafficking of WMD components". This is explosive information that I have not seen anywhere else. Further investigation must be done in order to assess the full implications of this "sting operation".

You have a unique and important challenge that lies ahead. I don't think I am overstating the matter by saying that the fate of our country lies in the balance. You must pursue every lead, every source, every angle you can related to the Plame scandal. Sure there may be bureaucratic resistance, but you have the First Amendment and the will of the people on your side. We must discover the truth. Please remain diligent, inquisitive and above all, persistent in your pursuit of the truth.

Thank you.