Statement Of Joseph Wilson "OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE IS ONGOING & President Is Its Greatest Protector"

[kpete]

Statement of Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson, IV (ret.)

To the House Committee on the Judiciary

July 11, 2007

Mr. Chairman, Mr. Ranking member, members of the Committee,

Thank you for the invitation to appear before you at this hearing on the possible abuse of Presidential authority in the commutation of I. Lewis Libby, convicted on four counts of lying to federal investigators, perjury and obstruction of justice.

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

Make no mistake, the President’s actions last week cast a pall of suspicion over his office and Vice President Cheney. Mr. Libby was convicted of, among other crimes, obstruction of justice – a legal term used to describe a cover-up. The Justice Department’s Special Counsel, Patrick Fitzgerald, has said repeatedly that Mr. Libby’s blatant lying had been the equivalent of “throwing sand in the eyes of the umpire”, thereby ensuring that the umpire, the system of justice, cannot ascertain the whole truth. As a result, Fitzgerald has said, “a cloud remains over the Vice President.” In commuting Mr. Libby’s sentence, the President has removed any incentive for Mr. Libby to cooperate with the prosecutor. The obstruction of justice is ongoing and now the President has emerged as its greatest protector. The President’s explanation for his commutation that Mr. Libby’s sentence was excessive turns out to be yet another falsehood because the sentence was quite normal, as Special Counsel Fitzgerald noted. The President, at the very least, owes the American people a full and honest explanation of his actions and those of other senior administration officials in this matter, including, but not limited to the Vice President.

In closing, let me address the question of the underlying crime. Mr. Libby’s attorneys and his apologists have tried to downplay his conviction on the grounds that nobody was actually indicted for the leak of Valerie’s status as a covert CIA officer. Libby’s propaganda is an effort to distract from his crime – his obstruction of justice, his cover up. Who is he protecting?

I would like the committee members and all Americans to think about this matter in this way: If senior American officials take time from their busy schedules to meet with a foreign military attaché for the purpose of compromising the identity of a CIA covert officer, what would we call that? Although that scenario is hypothetical, the end result is no different from what happened in this case – the betrayal of our national security.

I look forward to answering any and all legitimate questions.

more at:
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/7/11/1235/79988

[Robbien]

1. The one to impeach is Gonzales

Without access to a Justice System, American taxpayers cannot get justice on this and all other WH crimes.

Gonzales still has his stooge Taylor sitting in the interim position as head of the DC DoJ. If Congress takes the WH to court Taylor will be the one in charge of the case.

[havocmom]

2. Every time a neocon spinner says there were no indictments so no crime

bust his/her chops with this: There were no other indictments BECAUSE Libby lied, perjured and obstructed justice. The very crimes HE was CONVICTED of were done exactly to subvert the Grand Jury investigation and ASSURE they could not indict anyone for the outing of a valuable CIA covert asset.

THAT is why perjury, lying to officers of the court and obstruction of justice ARE criminal matters, THEY SUBVERT JUSTICE.

Beat them up with it EVERY fucking time they open their mouths about no crimes/no indictments in Plame case.

[havocmom]

3. dupe

[BuyingThyme]

4. Is he on right now?

[ProgressiveEconomist]

5. k&r