WHouse rejects independent counsel / Columnist refuses to reveal source

[NNN0LHI]

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N29216159.htm

White House rejects independent counsel for leak

WASHINGTON, Sept 29 (Reuters) - The White House on Monday rejected Democratic demands that an independent counsel be appointed to find out who leaked secret information apparently aimed at discrediting a vocal critic of prewar intelligence on Iraq.

The sudden squall over the leak that blew the cover of an undercover CIA operative energized Democratic presidential candidates and deepened tension over the administration's failure to find promised weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.

Officials said the Justice Department began a preliminary inquiry to determine if there should be a full-blown probe based on a memo from the CIA stating a leak had occurred.

An official said one thrust of the inquiry would be to determine whether the leak violated the law or national security, or caused any damage.

more

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N29238075.htm

Columnist refuses to reveal source of Iraq report

WASHINGTON, Sept 29 (Reuters) - Columnist Robert Novak said on Monday he would not reveal who leaked to him secret information about an Iraq war critic's wife and suggested the flap was all politics.

"What's the fuss about?" asked Novak, a Chicago Sun-Times columnist who is also a conservative commentator on CNN.

"There is no great crime involved here... The fuss is made on this because it involves (Republican President George W.) Bush," he said on CNN. "I do not reveal confidential sources."

The Justice Department is considering starting a full investigation into the leak. A leak of classified information is a federal crime punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

more

[tabasco]

1. CNN should fire Novak

It was very irresponsible to reveal this information. There was no purpose served that can justify Novak's action. CNN should do the right thing and fire this bag of air. Even if the law can't reach him, his employer should. Of course, I'm sure they would hire some more ignorant and radical POS conservative.

[David Zephyr]

5. CNN Should Indeed Fire Bob Novak

as CNN is now liable for any threat or damage done to Wilson's family.

I'm with Gsh999 here.

THIS IS SOMETHING DU'ERS CAN FINALLY DO.

DEMAND THAT CNN FIRE NOVAK IMMEDIATELY FOR ENDANGERING THE AMERICAN PEOPLE BY COMPROMISING THE CIA AND BY ENDANGERING THE LIVES OF WILSON'S FAMILY.

FIRE NOVAK.

[opihimoimoi]

20. Fire the Asshole, I agree....

He fucking knew this was a BAD.

[schrodinger_I]

2. What an ass!

Maybe they should send Novak to Gitmo for a few days... He will talk...

[Divernan]

3. There is no "great" crime here ? ! ? ! ? ! ?

So revealing to the entire world the name of a secret agent who has spent years establishing and cultivating a group of informants in one or more foreign countries, and thereby placing in jeopardy those informants and their families, is no great crime?
Novak is arrogant enough to be in Bush's cabinet! So now there is "crime" and there is "great crime" - well, duh, yes, that's why we have degrees of felonies and misdemeanors and murder. The Congress has passed laws, including the penalties for breaking said laws, and what that Benedict Arnold, aka Novak did has been judged worth up to ten years in a federal penitentiary and a significant fine (which I can't recall at the moment).

[NIGHT TRIPPER]

10. Yes "great" CRIME here

(from another D U thread)

Violation Of 50 U.S.C. Section 421 =10 Year Prison Sentence

Sec. 421:
Protection of identities of certain United States undercover intelligence officers, agents, informants, and sources
(a) Disclosure of information by persons having or having had access to classified information that identifies covert agent
Whoever, having or having had authorized access to classified information that identifies a covert agent, intentionally discloses any information identifying such covert agent to any individual not authorized to receive classified information, knowing that the information disclosed so identifies such covert agent and that the United States is taking affirmative measures to conceal such covert agent's intelligence relationship to the United States, shall be fined under title 18 or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both.

[Catherine Vincent]

4. There is no great crime here??

There's crime and great crimes? LOL! I think Clinton's crime (lying about his affair) would be an itty bitty crime.

[Options Remain]

6. I need a copy of the origonal article

before it is poofed. Can someone acquire it?

TearForger

[DoYouEverWonder]

9. Here, spread it around

http://www.townhall.com/columnists/robertnovak/printrn20030714.shtml

Mission to Niger
Robert Novak (back to web version)

July 14, 2003

WASHINGTON -- The CIA's decision to send retired diplomat Joseph C. Wilson to Africa in February 2002 to investigate possible Iraqi purchases of uranium was made routinely at a low level without Director George Tenet's knowledge. Remarkably, this produced a political firestorm that has not yet subsided.

Wilson's report that an Iraqi purchase of uranium yellowcake from Niger was highly unlikely was regarded by the CIA as less than definitive, and it is doubtful Tenet ever saw it. Certainly, President Bush did not, prior to his 2003 State of the Union address, when he attributed reports of attempted uranium purchases to the British government. That the British relied on forged documents made Wilson's mission, nearly a year earlier, the basis of furious Democratic accusations of burying intelligence though the report was forgotten by the time the president spoke.

<snip>

Wilson never worked for the CIA, but his wife, Valerie Plame, is an Agency operative on weapons of mass destruction. Two senior administration officials told me Wilson's wife suggested sending him to Niger to investigate the Italian report. The CIA says its counter-proliferation officials selected Wilson and asked his wife to contact him. "I will not answer any question about my wife," Wilson told me.

<snip>

After the White House admitted error, Wilson declined all television and radio interviews. "The story was never me," he told me, "it was always the statement in (Bush's) speech." The story, actually, is whether the administration deliberately ignored Wilson's advice, and that requires scrutinizing the CIA summary of what their envoy reported. The Agency never before has declassified that kind of information, but the White House would like it to do just that now -- in its and in the public's interest.

[papau]

16. Here is Reuter's original "White House Rejects Independent Counsel "

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/news/news-iraq-bush.html

White House Rejects Independent Counsel for Leak
By REUTERS


Filed at 6:49 p.m. ET
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House on Monday rejected Democratic demands that an independent counsel be appointed to find out who leaked secret information apparently aimed at discrediting a vocal critic of prewar intelligence on Iraq.The sudden squall over the leak that blew the cover of an undercover CIA operative energized Democratic presidential candidates and deepened tension over the administration's failure to find promised weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.Officials said the Justice Department began a preliminary inquiry to determine if there should be a full-blown probe based on a memo from the CIA stating a leak had occurred.
An official said one thrust of the inquiry would be to determine whether the leak violated the law or national security, or caused any damage.White House spokesman Scott McClellan, during a lively news briefing, said no internal investigation was planned."At this point, I think the Department of Justice would be the appropriate one to look into a matter like this ... There are a lot of career professionals at the Department of Justice that address matters like this." <snip>

..(disclosed).Valerie Plame -- the wife of Joseph Wilson, a former U.S. ambassador to Gabon -- was an undercover CIA operative specializing in weapons of mass destruction -Retired Gen. Wesley Clark... said an independent commission was needed."This administration has played politics with national security for a long time, but this is going too far,".... Howard Dean called for a thorough investigation free from political pressure. He suggested it be carried out by the independent Justice Department inspector general.... Lieberman...urged the White House to maintain all phone logs, e-mails, correspondence "and anything else that may relate to these events, and make clear that anyone destroying or otherwise tampering with these records will be fired."

<snip>

[Gato Moteado]

25. i'd be more worried about novak getting poofed.....

....i'm wondering if the white house might "baxterize" him if they think he might talk.

[BeFree]

7. Novak does better than the WH

At least he won't reveal secrets..... not so for the WH. Someone in the WH let loose a state secret. There is no telling how many spies have been 'liquidated' because of the blowing of that agent's cover.

Still, Novak must be squirming a bit ... remember that reporter in Houston who spent some time in the pokie for not revealing her sources? I'll bet Novak does squeal. I'll bet he rolls over when he realizes how much more famous he'll be if he just says who. Why he'd be another Woodward and Bernstien, all by hisself!

[against all enemies]

8. Benedict Bob - Traitor

CNN should fire that traitor. BOB NOVAK TRAITOR

[newyawker99]

24. Hi istherehope!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[peacetalksforall]

11. Here's the clue....

"There is no great crime involved here... The fuss is made on this because it involves (Republican President George W.) Bush," he said on CNN. "I do not reveal confidential sources."

In this sentence, my friends, is the core of the legal case that will probably be led by Theodore Olson, Solictor General in the cabal's defense of Rove (if it's him) and ???. Keep in mind that it would seem that the crime is weighted towards the leaker. So, they will probably have Baker or a biggie lawyer for CNN support Nocack. In any case, they are going to change the rules right under our nose - they are going to say there is no crime. Observe.

[Walt Starr]

12. As far as I'm concerned, that's an admission of guilt

We should bombard out Senators and representatives DEMANDING a special prosecutor. When we do, claim that the refusal to refer the case to a special prosecuter shows the White House has something to hide.

After all, if they didn't do anything wrong, they shouldn't be afraid of a Special Prosecuter.

[calimary]

17. Once again, those TOLL FREE Capitol Hill Switchboard numbers:

1 (800) 839 - 5276

1 (800) 648 - 3516

They'll connect you to ANYBODY'S office on the Hill, just for the asking!

Also, www.congress.org has a directory section that will give you phone numbers to the local AND Washington offices of anybody on the Hill. PLUS their email and fax numbers!

I suggest it's DEFINITELY nagging time!

[Sal316]

13. My LTTE on this subject.

When Bush was installed in office, he promised to restore 'honor and dignity' to the Presidency. In the 33 months he has been in office, he has done nothing of the sort.

Today we saw another example in the rejection of an independent counsel to investigate the leak of Ambassador Wilson's wife's name to the press. Amb. Wilson was sent to investigate the claim Iraq was buying uranium from Niger, a claim which we now know was false. In retribution for an op-ed piece he wrote, someone within the Bush administration leaked his wife's name to the press. His wife just happened to be an undercover analyst for the CIA who has spent her entire career investigating networks where terrorists can obtain WMD's.

While the leak itself is illegal, the bigger part of the story is that the Bush administration was willing to risk national security and compromise the 'War on Terror' to save political face.

If they really wanted to restore 'honor and dignity' the White House would be leading the charge to find the leak and punish those responsible. Then again, one only has to look to his resistance to the 9/11 investigation to see Bush has no desire to expose the truth.

[prolesunited]

22. Good letter!

They should offer you a column. :hi:

[newyorican]

14. Time for some demonstrations at CNN HQ

time for some street pressure...

[Corgigal]

15. And along that line of thinking

Even people who were on the fence about 9/11 have to think that Bush would allow others to be hurt/killed if it served his policial purpose.

This is just the one we possibly have a snowballs chance of discovery.

[calimary]

18. Truly! I mean, just what IS he trying to hide??????????

[opihimoimoi]

19. LEAK GATE ***** LEAKGATE!!!!!

The WH Stonewalls, OMG, just like WaterGate. Don't these PUBs EVER Learn???

[MO_Dem]

27. I agree with you and Walt Starr

If nobody did anything wrong, why don't they want an independent investigation to prove it? They sound guilty, IMHO.

[Spider Jerusalem]

21. No independent counsel, eh?

So we're to have an Executive Department investigation into Executive Department wrongdoing. Which means that authority for the investigation and its results will be in the hands of the very person or persons who authorised the leak of information, nothing will be done, and at best we can expect a show trial with some lower-level functionary acting as scapegoat and taking a five-year jolt in a Federal penetentiary and receiving a deferred sentence or Presedential pardon.

And of course, true to form, the uninformed, ignorant, sheeplike mass of the American public will see nothing wrong...that's right, folks, nothing to see here, just move along.

And people thought the Nixon administration was bad.

[prolesunited]

23. There is a precedent for locking people, even journalists, in jail

when they won't cooperate with the court system.

Susan McDougal
Ken Starr's Legal Shock Troops didn't care about slashing through people's lives or using intolerable prison conditions to try and get Susan McDougal to lie. They engaged in unethical, immoral conduct, all the while thinking that they were on a mission from God (to unseat a democratically elected president) and could do no wrong. They tried to break Susan McDougal's soul, but they didn't succeed because she held the higher moral ground: she told the truth, while Ken Starr and his minions wallowed in the sleazy underworld of prosecutors without a conscience, who particularly liked to legally beat up on women.
http://www.buzzflash.com/interviews/03/02/14_McDougal.html

Vanessa Leggett
For the past five years, Vanessa Leggett has been working on a non-fiction book about the killing of Houston socialite Doris Angleton, who was found shot to death in April 1997. Mrs. Angleton's millionaire husband, Robert, was accused of paying his brother, Roger, to kill his wife. Both brothers were charged with capital murder. In the course of her research, Leggett conducted a series of prison interviews with Roger Angleton, who subsequently committed suicide. She turned over tapes of those interviews to a grand jury. But after Robert Angleton was acquitted in state court, a federal investigation into his activities was launched, and a federal grand jury subpoenaed all of Leggett's tape-recorded conversations with anyone she had interviewed about the Angleton case. She refused, arguing that a reporter's privilege protected her from being forced to disclose confidential sources. On July 6, U.S. District Judge Melinda Harmon ruled that the Fifth Circuit "does not recognize such a privilege as protecting a journalist from divulging confidential or nonconfidential information in a criminal case." Leggett was ruled in contempt and on July 20 was ordered imprisoned without bail for 18 months or until termination of the grand jury.
http://www.freeexpression.org/newswire/0411_2002.htm

[CounterCoulter]

26. Does that last phrase bother anyone?

"Or Caused any damage."

Hmmm...Could the Limbaugh message to sheeple be: Leak did no damage, therefore, no issue.

I'm sure to all conservatives, Clinton getting head is much worse than breaches in national security for political purposes...