FITZ vs CHENEY-MURRAY WAAS-EXCLUSIVE- CIA Leak Probe: Inside The Grand Jury

[kpete]

ONLINE EXCLUSIVE
CIA Leak Probe: Inside The Grand Jury
By Murray Waas, National Journal
© National Journal Group Inc.
Friday, Jan. 12, 2007

On the flight back to Washington, Cheney huddled with two of his top aides -- I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, his then-chief of staff, and Catherine Martin, then assistant to the vice president for pubic affairs. According to federal court records, the three discussed how to counter and discredit the allegations made by a former U.S. ambassador, Joseph C. Wilson IV, that the Bush administration had manipulated and distorted intelligence information to make the case to go to war with Iraq.

...............

The extraordinary amount of time and energy that Cheney personally devoted to the issue, as well as his intensity of emotion regarding it is underscored by this exchange between a federal prosecutor and Libby when Libby testified before the grand jury:

"Was it a topic that was discussed on a daily basis?" a federal prosecutor asked.

"Yes, sir," answered Libby.

"And it was discussed on multiple occasions each day in fact?"

"Yes, sir."

"And during that time did the vice president indicate that he was upset that this article was out there which falsely in his view attacked his own credibility?"

"Yes, sir."

...........

more at:
http://news.nationaljournal.com/articles/0112nj1.htm

[blogslut]

1. Kicksies

Murray Waas rules.

[Tellurian]

10. Thanks, kpete for posting..

good news abounds!

[goforit]

2. Will this case ever come to a productive finish?

[exlrrp]

38. Don't hear much about Fitzmas any more, do we?

In 3 plus years of investigation, Fitzgerald has managed to indict one 2d tier Bush aide, actually a Cheney aide. Conviction is only about a 50-50 shot with a real certainty of a Last day Pardon.
This turns out to have been the biggest waste of time of any investigation of any in recent memory, or at least in terms of impact.
Glad I didn't rename my holidays after him like many did

[The Doctor.]

40. LOL!!! Really?

It was nothing short of absolutely necessary.

This investigation was crucial to putting these assholes in check. The crime was nothing short of treason, and even though he may not be able to prove that, he brought the cabal to the realization that they were not invulnerable.

They put our national security at risk, compromised our intelligence, and put the lives of many NOC operatives in jeopardy.

Are you saying that there should not have been an investigation?

-Because that's what it sounds like.

Oh, and here's something to chew on;

[Joe Chi Minh]

41. What would you know about the price of fish and chips!

Not very smart to jump the gun like that. Time will tell, and you could end up deeply humiliated for your arrogant presumption.

Has it not occurred to you that it would have taken Fitzgerald 3 plus years, precisely because he is thorough, and won't go to battle as ill-equipped as the US and British troops in Iraq? No... of course, not. Why would it have occurred to you, with your tagline that might have been written for you by the NRA?

[Tin Man]

3. Wow, you gotta read the whole article - great timeline of the Cheney-Plame affair

K&R

[midnight]

20. I'm not able to open the article because my computer is

saying that a new pop up blocker is preventing it from opening. I had one opportunity to accept the pop ups but I declined. So now I can't read the article. Google updated my tool bar with this new feature. But I have been following this story, and I'm always happy to see any thing about this case.

[DoYouEverWonder]

23. You might try

a different browser.

Firefox is a good one.

[midnight]

25. If you have the patience of a saint and want to explain that

little bit of info. on changing browsers , I can look into it. Sorry I'm slow to the table with all this tech talk. Please excuse.

[DoYouEverWonder]

26. No problem

Go to this site and click on 'Download Firefox free' -

http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/

Once you install it on your computer, there will be a shortcut key on your desktop.

Continue to connect to your Internet provider like you normally do but once your online just open up Firefox and you're good to go.

[druidity33]

4. fantastic article...

It's a great Primer for folks who don't know a lot about the "Plame Affair" so to speak. The Waas-man has just got a sense of how to tie things together.

K&R

[Rex]

5. Up to his eyeballs in high crimes.

Cheney should be in a lot of hot water. Should be.

[leveymg]

6. What's the new info in there?

Haven't had a chance to read it, but will. Can someone tell us? Thanks!

[bleever]

17. A wee peek

at the prosecutor's strategy.

You'll enjoy it.

[McCamy Taylor]

7. Kick

[porphyrian]

8. It may be easier to count how many members of this administration don't qualify for impeachment. n/t

[Me.]

9. Something To Consider

"The vice president had apparently first learned in June 2003, according to the indictment, that Wilson's wife was a CIA officer"

The work-up on Wilson had been ordered by Cheney approx. 3 months earlier in, March 2003. The veep is not a patient man and I don't think he waited months for the info he was seeking. All he had to do was walk over to the CIA, which he did frequently. This doesn't change what happened later, but it adds to the premeditative value of what was going on for I think Cheney had the info sooner than most think.

[DoYouEverWonder]

24. He seems pretty obsessed

with Plame.

He'd probably knew exactly who she was before her husband started causing trouble. She may have even briefed him at one time or another.

[Me.]

31. Hadn't Considered The Briefing Angle

Interesting. But I'd bet dollar to doughnuts that he's known Wilson from way back even though he claimed not to know him. They were both old state department hands and who in the government didn't know about Wilson's handling of Sadaam during Gulf I?

[Nickster]

32. Cheney was SecDef during Desert Storm and Wilson was the acting ambassador in Baghdad

basically the last man in Iraq before we invaded. What are the chances that the SecDef didn't get a briefing on Wilson's findings during the lead up to the invasion? Poppy and his war council got plenty of inside info from Amb Wilson during that time, Dick couldn't have possibly not known who Joe Wilson was.

[robertpaulsen]

49. "Either the first or second person to tell him that Plame was a CIA officer"

Or to put it crudely, the real question is, "Which Dick?"


The reason was that Libby's failure to mention the March 2002 debriefing was one more piece of an ever increasing body of circumstantial evidence that led prosecutors to believe that Libby had devised a cover story to protect himself, and perhaps even the Vice President, to conceal the fact that his agenda was to leak information about Plame from the very start.

During one of his initial interviews with the FBI, Libby was shown copies of his own notes showing that as early as June 11 or June 12, 2003, Vice President Cheney was either the first or second person to tell him that Plame was a CIA officer and might have also played a role in sending her husband to Niger. At the time, Wilson had not yet written his New York Times op-ed or put a public face to his allegations, but press reports had already aired Wilson's account of his trip to Niger without naming him.

Waas really illuminates why and how the prosecution will really be going after Cheney. As a friend of ours is fond of saying, things are good!

[janx]

59. Ostensibly they'll be going after Libby for perjury.

It's the REASON for the perjury that will come out and that will point to Cheney. It's inevitable.

[lovuian]

11. Cheney is the puppet master pulling the strings

Fitzgerald is going to expose that Hopefully if not others will

[bleever]

12. Little details coming into focus.

What Miller herself did not know during her grand jury testimony was that a key issue for federal investigators was whether she would testify as to whether Libby had attempted to leak her anything about the CIA debriefing report of Wilson after his Niger trip. Prosecutors believed that Miller was perhaps attempting to protect Libby in her testimony.

/snip/

Prosecutors did not want to tip Miller as to why it was so crucial to them to learn whether Libby had ever mentioned the March 2002 Wilson debriefing report to her or Cooper shortly after he disembarked Air Force Two.

The reason was that Libby's failure to mention the March 2002 debriefing was one more piece of an ever increasing body of circumstantial evidence that led prosecutors to believe that Libby had devised a cover story to protect himself, and perhaps even the Vice President, to conceal the fact that his agenda was to leak information about Plame from the very start.

And a rare look into what was on the prosecutors' minds:

While questioning Libby during grand jury testimony, prosecutors were incredulous regarding Libby's claims that he and Cheney had not discussed Plame's CIA employment during the critical July 6 to July 14 period. They also expressed skepticism that Libby had supposedly forgotten -- even though Libby's own written notes indicated otherwise -- that Cheney had told him that Plame worked for the CIA much earlier, on either June 11 or June 12. They were also disbelieving of Libby's claims that even though Libby and Cheney met several times every day after Wilson's July 6 column appeared, the two men did not discuss Plame during the subsequent eight days, not until Novak's column appeared. And finally, prosecutors were disbelieving when Libby claimed that he was simply passing on a rumor to Cheney that he had purportedly learned from Tim Russert that Plame was a CIA officer.

Let the endgame commence.

[Libby2]

13. Great article....thanks n/t

[Patsy Stone]

14. So, if I've got this right

Judy's June 8th meeting (the one she forgot), was where Libby told her about the March 2002 CIA briefing/Plame? This is where he actually disclosed the info and leaked the original leak that they can't prove?

Since they were trying to get Judy to roll over on Libby, they must know that this actual leak, and not the First Amendment, is the reason one of the Aspens had to go cool her Jimmy Choo's in the Big House, right?

Murray? :loveya:

[bleever]

15. Looking more and more like Little Miss Run Amuck isn't the only one

looking at a visit to...The Big House!

Fascinating to actually get a look at the strategic thinking of white in this chess game.

Methinks that the Black Queen is in some serious jeopardy, and that the Black King has sacrificed all his pawns, both bishops, and is within just a few moves of checkmate.

More than we had hoped for, even.

[Patsy Stone]

18. Knight jumps queen!

Bishop jumps queen! Pawns jump queen! Gangbang!

[MelissaB]

22. .

:spray:

[Beetwasher]

51. "You Look Like the Piss Boy!"

:rofl:

[Garbo 2004]

16. Thanks for posting kpete! n/t

[bobthedrummer]

19. K&R

[trumad]

21. Funny---but not one word about Rove...

You'd think if he was indicted that Waas would have mentioned it?

[DoYouEverWonder]

27. Rove made a deal

to save his own ass.

That doesn't mean that Rove and Dimson are in the clear yet. I bet Fitzgerald has at least a couple of more aces up his sleeve.

[trumad]

28. Why didn't Waas mention that?

[DoYouEverWonder]

30. Because the focus is directly on Cheney

It seems Fitzgerald has proof that both Libby and Cheney lied to the Grand Jury.

The focus at this point is on the office of the VP, not the office of the President. Rove did not play a primary role in outing Valerie Plame.

Apparently, Cheney, Libby and Cathie Martin (who the heck is she?) were the key conspirators.

[Me.]

36. Spokeswoman For Cheney

She was on that infamous AF2 ride with Libby & Cheney.

[DoYouEverWonder]

45. Thanks Me., seems Ms Cathie is in this up to her ears

Then there is Sy Hersh's Stovepiping article in the New Yorker:

“The Vice-President saw a piece of intelligence reporting that Niger was attempting to buy uranium,” Cathie Martin, the spokeswoman for Cheney, told me. Sometime after he first saw it, Cheney brought it up at his regularly scheduled daily briefing from the C.I.A., Martin said. “He asked the briefer a question. The briefer came back a day or two later and said, ‘We do have a report, but there’s a lack of details.’ ” The Vice-President was further told that it was known that Iraq had acquired uranium ore from Niger in the early nineteen-eighties but that that material had been placed in secure storage by the I.A.E.A., which was monitoring it. “End of story,” Martin added. “That’s all we know.” According to a former high-level C.I.A. official, however, Cheney was dissatisfied with the initial response, and asked the agency to review the matter once again. It was the beginning of what turned out to be a year-long tug-of-war between the C.I.A. and the Vice-President’s office.

Hersh moves on to Wilson's trip:

....Wilson returned to Washington and made his report. It was circulated, he said, but “I heard nothing about what the Vice-President’s office thought about it.” (In response, Cathie Martin said, “The Vice-President doesn’t know Joe Wilson and did not know about his trip until he read about it in the press.” The first press accounts appeared fifteen months after Wilson’s trip.)

This June 11, 2003 UPI article states that the report of Wilson's trip did make it to the White House - and that Cheney decided to ignore the findings.

(Meant to reply to post #36)

http://www.talkleft.com/story/2005/10/30/417/38297

[bobthedrummer]

39. Rove uses stealth and layers of insulation-that's a common criminal

strategy. The BFEE is full of evil and totally corrupted superior range criminals like him.

So let's analyze some of our open-source history together looking at Rove's failed "cloak of invisibility" in the area of crimes-including the exposure of a NOC CIA agent (and that agent's networks and assets) for political reasons.

The White House Iraq Group/WHIG was formed by Andy Card in 2002-yet Mr. Rove's "fingerprints" (as well as Mr. Cheney's, Mr. Libby's et al) are all over that operation. WHIG used perception management to "convince" the world of the "reasons" for US military action against Iraq, even though the reasons were lies (later cited as "an intelligence failure"-another big lie).

Another function of WHIG, and this is where Mr. Rove's role needs scrutiny, was to thwart and silence any opposition to the agenda of regime change in Iraq. Valerie Plame Wilson was part of that.

The Democratic Party has a good timeline on WHIG.
http://www.democrats.org/a/2005/10/timeline_activi.php

Maybe someone else can offer more on Mr. Rove in regards to this.

[Marie26]

56. Honestly, it doesn't seen

like Rove was very involved at all. Rove is Bush's guy, not Cheney's. From the testimony, this obsession w/hurting Wilson was totally coming from the VP's office. It sounds like Rove just jumped on the bandwagon later & starting spreading rumors as part of his normal asshole MO. Cheney is Fitzgerald's ultimate target here - though it doesn't look like he'll actually suceed in indicting him.

[malaise]

29. Should they have said large numbers?

"Americans had no idea that the war in Iraq, then not even four months old, would take a turn for the worse, that more than 3,000 American servicemen would die in the line of duty; that "liberated" Iraq would spiral down into sectarian violence; and that the war would not only divide the Iraqi nation but the American one as well."

I knew and so did thousands of others.

Great article otherwise.

Add.

[WiseButAngrySara]

33. Tres Interesting! k(pete)nr! ....n/t

[LizW]

34. Fascinating. A MUST READ!

The part near the end where Libby is tap-dancing in the grand jury under Fitzgerald's questioning is awesome!

Like a bug on a pin!

I can't wait until Cheney testifies. The old bionic heart will get a work-out that day!

[rosesaylavee]

35. Looking forward to the grilling

that will start on Tuesday... :bounce:

Go Fitzgerald Go!

[Me.]

37. You Might Have To Wait A Bit Longer For The BBQ

I believe jury selection starts on Tues.

[rosesaylavee]

44. Works for me - I was going

to have cable installed prior to the 16th. Jury selection gives a little more time to get ready and popcorn popped.

:popcorn:

[seesdifferent]

42. Niger suing US over Bush's 16 words in 2003 SOTUS

http://seesdifferent.wordpress.com/2007/01/13/niger-sues-us-over-2003-bush-statements-re-uranium-sales-to-saddam/

[Joanne98]

43. Welcome to DU!

[durrrty libby]

46. Kicked for time

[Kurovski]

47. K&R(nt)

[bobthedrummer]

48. kick

[bobthedrummer]

50. Today Cheney characterized Libby as one of the most "honest"

people he knows.

"Truth lies dead in the streets..."

[Patsy Stone]

52. Consider the frame of reference we're dealing with.

In Cheney-speak that probably means Libby has never killed anyone with his bare hands.

[bobthedrummer]

53. In context, Patsy Stone, entire networks were exposed worldwide

and set events into motion that have escalated since.

It is reasonable to state that while as Libby et al didn't kill with his "bare hands" a lot of people came to harm-and the repercussions continue today.

Valerie Plame was most likely involved as a NOC agent running networks involved with nuclear related issues.

[Patsy Stone]

55. I know

and that's why I qualified it with regard to an act Libby has not personally done. Libby, Cheney, none of them, are in the least honest. Of course people were harmed and possibly killed as a result of his actions at his bosses behest. My point was that maybe Cheney wasn't lying when he said this about Libby because he knows people who have done worse things. He could really be one of the most honest men Cheney knows. Frightening.

[slowry]

54. Pubic affairs :o n/t

[David Zephyr]

57. Kicking it up again.

:kick:

[janx]

58. This is one of the most comprehensive accounts

of the CIA leak investigation so far! Excellent.