IS IT NOW TIME TO BRING FORMAL CHARGES AGAINST CHENEY for the Outing of Valerie Plame?

[symbolman]

Based on another thread posted by our own GREAT Kpete, I'm forced to wonder,

IS IT NOW TIME TO BRING FORMAL CHARGES AGAINST CHENEY for the Outing of Valerie Plame?

It sure looks to me like Fitz has all he needs to implement the original charges being bandied about AGAINST CHENEY.

Anyone see him on the Wolfie Interview on CNN about a week ago? Wolfie wasn't the only one Pissing his pants in that interview, you can SMELL the FEAR Emanating from Cheney.

I predict he will step down due to health problems, hopefully one of them will be an enlarged anus, one you can throw a CAT through, due to his new room mate, and over sexed hairy backed man, named Mario, who doesn't take NO for an answer :)

*********************

Fitzgerald Targets Cheney in Libby Tapes
Monday February 5, 2007 11:01 PM

By MATT APUZZO
Associated Press Writer


Almost immediately after that, however, Fitzgerald steered the discussion toward Cheney and how his office responded to the growing criticism from former Ambassador Joseph Wilson, who claimed to have led a fact-finding mission that refuted some prewar intelligence on Iraq.

Libby said Cheney mentioned in an offhand way in June of 2003 that Wilson's wife, Valerie Plame, worked for the CIA. Fitzgerald asked whether Cheney was upset by the apparent ``nepotism'' in the fact Plame may have arranged the trip. Libby said he did not recall.

Fitzgerald also asked whether Cheney expected Libby to share that with reporters, specifically Walter Pincus of the Washington Post. Libby said he did not.
Fitzgerald asked four times and in four different ways whether Libby could be absolutely sure he did not disclose the information to Pincus. Pincus never revealed Plame's identity.

``The vice president obviously thought it was important enough to share with you or interesting enough to color the background, correct?'' Fitzgerald said.

``Yes,'' Libby replied.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070206/ap_on_go_pr_wh/cia_leak_trial

[Kagemusha]

1. First, Congress would have to impeach him.

Second, it's likely that Cheney will argue that the Plame info was declassified so that it could be leaked, without informing Plame of her vulnerability, and that this was done in the name of the greater national security - reinforcing the march to a necessary and just armed conflict with Iraq.

So what law he would be charged under would be a serious question here. But at any rate, he couldn't be criminally prosecuted prior to impeachment and removal.

[symbolman]

3. How about TREASON?

Works for me.

And I don't believe he has to be Impeached, the Clinton witchhunt created precendents that could come back and Bite Cheney's waffle Butt :)

[knight_of_the_star]

8. I don't think he needs to be impeached to be charged

All is says about impeachment is that is what you need to remove someone from office, I don't think it says anywhere that gov't officials in the executive branch are immune to prosecution while in office if they haven't been impeached yet.

[Kagemusha]

13. If by "it" you mean the Constitution, technically not

but there is a strong body of legal argument claiming that this is indeed the case and that it is the logic of the Constitution.

...Totally besides the fact that Bush can simply remove Fitzgerald at any time and ensure that there is no one willing or able to prosecute him. The Attorney General and all power deriving thereof is power delegated by the President himself.

[madrchsod]

5. cheney declassified information so it could be leaked

and destroy brewster jennings along with plame.....fitzgerald would have a field day with that! i think the law is the law daddy bush passed...

[Kagemusha]

11. And if Bush said Cheney could declassify it, how do you prosecute him?

Mind you, I wish we could, because I'm a national interests kind of guy, but I do not think it's the cakewalk people like to believe. And I don't think that Fitzgerald has a great deal of power to bring such a prosecution when push comes to shove.

[DearAbby]

9. What would be his reasons for declassifying

Brewster Jennings? There was a two-fer here. Plame was not the only top secret to be suddenly declassified without notification. The people involved with this cover company had no notice to pull people, who may be in danger out of harm's way.

Cheney is up to his neck in this, up to his pointed bald head in this.

[Kagemusha]

16. It depends on the importance one places on the information.

To a twisted man, sacrificing Brewster Jennings and silencing the entire active serving intelligence community might be like a pawn sacrifice to check a king. It all depends on who is weighing what constitutes the nation's interests. Ultimately, that determination is made by the President, with Congress there to remove him if the President acts egregiously against the national interests in an absolute worst case political scenario.

And that's why Fitz is not the last word in this.

[symbolman]

32. If so

he 'sacrificed' MANY PAWNS.

God only knows how many people were tortured, killed, maimed, useless as agents after what he did, could be that hundreds died over this Illegal action, and one that Bush Senior himself found repulsive.

He destroyed a huge Net, and in an area of expertise we so sorely needed, and btw, she was looking into the SAUDIS as well, so I have no doubt that the Bush's were involved in this in some fashion.

They don't just hold the Saudis hands and kiss their asses, what we have in the White House is an arm of the House of Saudi, and THAT should be considered treason as well. Our troops are nothing more than oil mercenaries for Bush's Saudi pals, while they send suitcases full of money to terrorists in Iraq so they can buy Stinger Missles, shoulder mounted that are shooting down all the American Choppers.

All those choppers going down, one reason the Russians left Afghanistan, once Stingers come into play, it's OVER.

[madrchsod]

2. that`s how he got ryan in illinois

and destroyed the republican party in illinois....is`t it wonderful!

[symbolman]

4. Yes, it IS wonderful

I researched all this for a year, and didn't see this coming, thought Fitz had decided to take the easy way out and grill one of the DOGS in the admin, but NOW, OH BABY!! :)

Talk about boiling the FROG MARCH :)

[mmonk]

10. Frog March. I'm with that.

Through all the frustration I feel, thanks symbolman for that image.

[madrchsod]

14. i watched the ryan case for years now

and i`m still amazed at Fitzgerald's relentless quest to get to the man responsible. fitzgerald strategy was to convict ryan on the theory that he created a "climate of corruption" and 12 jurors agreed

[mmonk]

18. That's what I'm counting on and hoping for.

Squeezing the people at the edges to produce what he needs to show it.

[symbolman]

19. Jesus

that would be like Convicting the Bush admin for Opening their mouths, talk about a Climate of Corruption, the Bush folks make Nixon look like an Alter Boy :)

Climate of Corruption, amazing!

[cap]

30. Fitz's doing that here..

So many of the witnesses are pleading that they cant remember correctly, that I'm sure that Fitz is leading to a conviction on "creating a climate of corruption"

[Buck Laser]

23. The problem in IL was bigger than the republican party.

It was endemic corruption within the state's political system. I watched the antics of various secretaries of state in IL from 1973 to 2003, and regardless of whether the secy of state was republican or democrat, the same patronage power was there.

The Plame case is a different matter altogether: it's always had to do with the abuse of executive power to achieve illicit goals. I really don't suspect much "minor" corruption from this administration. It's all big stuff. When the shit hits the fan, it will be a perfect storm, not just a sliced turd flying around.

[Annces]

6. Fitzgerald always gets his man - just ask Governor Ryan

From The Prosecutor
"Ryan is charged with betraying the citizens of Illinois for over a decade on state business, both large and small. By giving friends free rein over state employees and state business to make profits-and by steering those profits to his friends and, at times, his family-defendant Ryan sold his office."

US Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald of Chicago on 17 December 2003, the date of Ryan's indictment.


Start of case 1998
End of case 2006

[symbolman]

12. Beautiful!

Thanks for sharing, always loved a good set of MUGSHOTS..

The man is a PitBull, and hopefully he has other aces up the sleeve as well.. I'm hearing rumblings of BUSH KNEW in all this testimony as well..

Maybe the teflon is wearing thin, add enough HEAT and it boils off :)

[goforit]

7. I need to see it before I believe it. I ain't counting my chickens!

[symbolman]

15. How about

counting CHICKENHAWKS? :)

I agree, I'll keep the champagne chilled for now, but I'm going to take the window out with the cork at home, when I open the damn thing, as Cheney drops dead from a heart attack before entering the Courthouse to testify.

[BeHereNow]

17. Why yes, it is!

"one of them will be an enlarged anus, one you can throw a CAT through,"

Can we make that a LARGE cat?
A lion perhaps?

Nothing against cats...

BHN

[symbolman]

20. I should have said

a SASQUATCH, my mistake :)

A Hummer would be VERY Appropriate :)

[BeHereNow]

27. Would that be a Hummer with or without protective armor?

I vote for armored, but then again, Halliburton
probably spent that money elsewhere...eh?
Just WHERE DID THAT NINE billion go under Bremer?

BHN

[symbolman]

31. LOL, I believe he has many mattresses

somewhere in the Turks & Caicos Islands :)

The Hummer would have to be armored of course, as Cheney is a BORG and they might run into deathrays, microwaves and all other high tech defense gear inside there :)

[madrchsod]

21. oh yes

he would love to have miss judy miller indicted also but she`s to well protected by the whitehouse..but who knows maybe he`ll get her yet..

[Catherine Vincent]

22. I'm game.

Although we could have done without your little "enlarged anus" joke. Rape is not funny.

[symbolman]

33. The troops are being raped as we speak

and to be honest, if I stood in the same room while Cheney was being violated I would LAUGH.

Of course no one condones rape, how about a Pineapple instead? :)

[Duer 157099]

24. Questions I still have:

1) what is the status of the "declassifying" issue? Last I recall, Bush (and by extension, Cheney) had the authority to willy-nilly declassify whatever the hell they wanted, at their discretion (whim), pre- or post-, whatever was necessary (to them). If that's the case, how could there ever be hope for anyone ever getting in trouble over this (except Libby, for lying).

2) why doesn't Armitage figure into this more heavily, since he apparently was the actual first leaker? Or, was the info already "declassified" at that time, or did Armitage truly not know Plame's status (unlikely)?

[madrchsod]

26. the guys claim she was no longer an agent

so "outing" her was a mute point..that is the problem they have is -was she or was`t she- and what about brewster jennings?. bush`s dad passed that law that these guys could be charged with if it can be proven that plame was still under cover....why do you think bush/cheney purged the cia?

[Duer 157099]

28. I hope that's their defense (because they are wrong)

The only angle I worry about is the "declassifying" one, because imho everything else is pretty cut-n-dried

[symbolman]

34. This is why SUDDENLY

Cheney claimed about a year ago that HE had the Perogative as VEEP to DeClassify, just like the Prez, well, as far as I know HE DOESN'T..

Just one more example of him pushing for Executive priviledge where it doesn't exist.

Of course they could say that BUSH declassified it, but what do you think Fitz will say then?

"Oh, gee, so Mr BUSH is INVOLVED, eh?"

Now THAT I want to see too :)

[Initech]

25. It's past time. Way, way, way past time.

[C_U_L8R]

29. By the time Fitz is through..

Cheney will be begging for an indictment.

We are watching a grand slo-mo 3-d chess showdown...
and Fitz is playing like a master