Slain CIA Agent's Dad Calls Leak Treason

[BurtWorm]

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-CIA-Leak-Spann.html

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Published: October 2, 2003


Filed at 11:11 a.m. ET

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The father of slain CIA agent Johnny ``Mike'' Spann said Thursday he believes an independent counsel should investigate allegations that someone in the Bush administration exposed a CIA agent's identity, calling such an act ``treason.''

Spann, the first American killed in Afghanistan, died in a prison uprising. His father, also named Johnny Spann, said he is still angry because he feels his son's identity and hometown were revealed before his son's family could be adequately protected.

Democrats in Congress, led by Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., are calling for a special counsel to be appointed to investigate who exposed a CIA operative who is married to former ambassador Joseph C. Wilson. Wilson had accused the Bush administration of manipulating intelligence to exaggerate the threat posed by Iraq.

``If someone in the Bush administration leaked this, they need to be punished, and they need to be made an example of, because that's not just a leak, that's treason,'' Spann, of Winfield, Ala., told The Associated Press. ``They should appoint an independent counsel so the American people can be sure, and let the chips fall where they may.''

[Beetwasher]

1. Treason! In the NYT!

Treason treason treason!!!!

[Pale Blue Dot]

2. Proof positive:

This is NOT going away.

[underpants]

3. Ruh-roh Shaggy

This is not good news for W.

[ixion]

4. in chimpy's own words....if he has nothing to hide

he shouldn't be worried. :evilgrin:

[jjsocrates]

5. Please

As IF this CIA leak issue ever should be elevated to the high crimes and misdemeanor level...like say a Blow Job.

[BurtWorm]

6. Good point.

;)

[jjsocrates]

9. Treason

Hey, I was being serious!!!

Do you know how many hundreds of innocent lives were lost when Clinton lied about sex!!!???

Um, well, none...but hey! He LIED ABOUT SEX!

[BurtWorm]

12. Onanism isn't a sin for nothing...

Think of all that wasted fertility!

[damnraddem]

39. Do you know how many millions of innocent sperm lives were lost?

Oh, wait -- that wasn't from the lie, was it? And besides, some WERE preserved (though dead) on that dress.

[UpInArms]

13. here is a LTTE that back you on that position

http://www.startribune.com/stories/563/4130792.html

Too easy on Clinton

How far left can the Star Tribune editorial board actually swing? The pendulum reached shocking new heights on Wednesday.

The editorial entitled "Scandal / Who outed CIA agent Plame?" downplays the scandals of the Clinton White House, saying, "It's not about cigars and blue dresses; it's about the security of this nation and the danger of revealing the identity of an undercover CIA operative. In a word, it is serious."

Making light of the Clinton administration's mistakes and blunders, not to mention President Bill Clinton's perjury, illustrates just how liberal our hometown newspaper has become.

isn't it amazing that there are such stupid people that can even find the words like that to type???

[fob]

19. That LTTE writer should look up the definition of perjury

nt

[Bandit]

27. , "not to mention President Bill Clinton's perjury,"

LIARS

[soleft]

7. ouch

It would behoove Bush to nail the leaker and do it quickly.

[ByeDick]

8. It Was CHENEY - He will be punished

It Was Dick Cheney!:

We need to realize that EVERYTHING Bush, Novak, and McClellan are SAYING is absolutely true. But everything they're TELLING US is a lie. We have to remember to listen carefully to the exact words.

Novak originally said that the information about Wilson's wife came from, "two senior administration officials." THIS IS TRUE.

Novak also says that, "Nobody in the Bush administration called me to leak this." THIS IS ALSO TRUE.

There is ONE MAN in the world who is BOTH a senior administration official, and does not release information from the administration (from the White House).

There is ONE MAN in the world who invested his reputation and resources to the Niger yellowcake story, more than any other.

There was ONE MAN in the world who knew of Wilson's trip to Niger as well as he knew about the identity of Wilson's wife.

THE MAN'S NAME IS **DICK CHENEY**.

The yellowcake story was Cheney's baby.

Joseph Wilson killed Dick Cheney's baby.

So, when Scott McClellan talks about how "ridiculous" it is that the leak could have come out of Karl Rove, it's because he knows this statement to be true. Rove IS NOT the one who ORIGINALLY released this information. There is no way this could have been the case because there's really no scenario that would explain how Rove could legitimately be in possession of this information. But Rove is a part of the conspiracy, all the same.

The plan was for Cheney & Novak to make the info about Wilson's wife "common knowledge around Washington." That was the first wave of the attack. The second wave was initiated when Cheney told Rove that he (Cheney or his office) had put Wilson's wife's identity in print, and that she, and her identity, were now, "FAIR GAME." The rest was left to Rove. Rove, or people working with Rove, then made the FAIR GAME phone calls to the media, knowing that Cheney & Novak had laid the groundwork to cover their asses (legally) by making the secret information, "common knowledge around Washington."

The White House is trying to convince us that the Novak disclosure and the "FAIR GAME" phone calls were taking place as one continuous event, but they were not. The Novak crimes (disclosures) were designed to set up the FAIR GAME phone calls from Rove. This was a two-point plan. Novak is working with the White House on this. He is knowingly trying to mislead any would-be investigations and may eventually go down for this obvious obstruction (at least).

Scott McClellan completed the second wave on Wednesday. When asked to make a distinction between disclosing the identity of a covert CIA operative and discussing it after it is published, McClellan said, ""That is such a broad question, about is it OK to discuss news articles," he said. "I mean, news articles are discussed all the time."

So, is there one top-level White House official whose email, phone records, etc. ARE NOT being protected by orders of the Justice Department? Is there one top-level White House official who does not work in the White House and whose staff is not under evidence protection orders or legal scrutiny? Is Cheney watching and laughing?

Cheney is the only top level White House official who DID NOT go before cameras this week to talk about everything he doesn't know. Dick Cheney won't be seen any time soon.

When they (McClellan & co.) say, "White House," they're actually saying, "THE PLACE WHERE CHENEY IS NOT." Notice how often they use the terminology "White House." And when Novak uses the word "identity," in talking about Valerie Plame, he's not talking about her job at the CIA, he's talking about her "identity" as Wilson's wife. It's a word game. The words are true; the message is a lie.

LISTEN TO THE WORDS THEY USE.

Sorry Dick

[jjsocrates]

11. Tricky Dick

If Cheney suddenly had health problems, I'm sure the WH wouldn't wait to pin this scandal on him.

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

44. Remember an anime called the Ace of Spades (Taro Kid)

Good guys fought a global Mafia. Whenever a henchman failed to accomplish an evil mission, Mafia headquarters would remotely "turn on" henchman's wristwatch (which could never be taken away, a la exploding collars in that Rutger Hauer movie), it would tick wildly a few seconds and them BOOM!

Dick should check that pacemaker.

[UpInArms]

14. Welcome to DU ByeDick!

nice post -

think dirty dickie's artificial ticker might be scheduled for maintenance soon?

[Jim Sagle]

15. Welcome to DU, ByeDick.

I think you have it nailed. I also think this thread needs to be bumped often and you need to send this post to other online venues to get it published before as many eyeballs as possible.

You have filled in all the gaps, I think, well before ANYONE else here or ANYWHERE. If this line of reasoning gets propagated, it could crack the Bush regime open.

You might want to make a separate thread out of this post in the General Discussion folder.

[ByeDick]

20. Re: "Welcome to DU, ByeDick."

This is the first discussioin board I've ever used and I don't know much about 'em.

I do know that I'm not allowed to start a new thread because I'm new.

Any suggestions welcomed.

[BurtWorm]

23. Submit this to DU as an article

E-mail it to [e-mail] with Article Submission in the subject line.

Welcome to DU!

:toast:

[UpInArms]

28. posted in General Discussion forum

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=454737

[ByeDick]

34. Thanks to UpInArms from ByeDick

Thanks UpInArms,

Please repost my letter as often as you wish.

[UpInArms]

37. ByeDick, you are welcome

I felt that it was a very good analysis of the situation and that it should be widely read :)

keep posting and we're glad to have you here!

[ima_sinnic]

35. you will soon be able to start threads

it only takes 5 or 6 posts before you can start a thread of your own
--great analysis!
--welcome to DU! :toast:

[ByeDick]

38. ima_sinnic

Thanks ima_sinnic,

Here's one more.

[ewagner]

49. Welcome

Your post was on the money.

Everything they say is true....it's just not the whole truth, or, for that matter, germaine to the subject.

You've got to listen closely to these guys (who are, incidentially the same guys who nailed Bill Clinton for "aprsing" his words) and sometimes you have to think very hard about what they didn't say.

Again welcome and.... :toast:

[Jeff in Cincinnati]

18. If I were a betting man...

I'd say your description is probably spot on.

And as the wags like to say, "If I were a hypocritical betting man, I'd be Bill Bennett."

Welcome to DU and thanks for your insight.

[HFishbine]

21. Spot On ByeDick

You've nailed it.

[Beetwasher]

24. Yup, you've got it!

Cheney's always been the mastermind...

[stevedeshazer]

31. Great post

A lot to think about here.

[baby_bear]

32. Send this to John Dion at DOJ

Seriously. Check out this article:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=544&ncid=718&e=1&u=/ap/20031002/ap_on_go_pr_wh/cia_leak
which names Dion as the head of the FBI investigation of the leak.

He might find your analysis interesting.

And a big welcome to DU, ByeDick!

s_m

[NoKingGeorge]

40. 6 charges of Treason, 2 perps,

Excellent post. Thank You.
But why would Cheney be laughing. There are 6 charges of Treason waiting for 2 traitors. Then there are the interstate phone calls in furthering a criminal enterprise. Then there are the others involved in a 3 month obstruction of justice.

[Warren Stuart]

45. Great Analysis!

This puts it all together.

[MnFats]

48. They have resurrected the 'non-denial denial!'

which became popular under Nixon!
many, many times reporters would ask somebody, like Colson, Mitchell, Haldeman or Erlichman about a key element of the Watergate story -- money to Mexican/Cuban burglars, hush money to defendants to be silent , take their sentences and sit out jail terms....

the standard response became: "Nothing like that ever crossed my desk."

OK. it's true. they'd never get or approve something like that at their own desk, through normal channels....but they DID OK some skullduggery/chicanery etc.

These people. The weight of incompetence is crushing...

[MaineDem]

10. THis is bad for BushCo

However, I fear that someone will become a scapegoat and the the rest of the Administration will skate through. The sheeple will prevail.

I hope to hell I'm wrong.

[Jeff in Cincinnati]

16. Treason? Hey!

Didn't Ann Coulter publish a book by the same name? How friggin' ironic, don't you think?

[Patriot_Spear]

30. LOL! How Ironic...

I hope a pundit uses this soon...

[0007]

17. .....and the cover-up began in July?

We all knew junior was dumb, but this is beyond the pale. The stupid jerk now has to stonewall it, while most everyone may know who the culprit may be!

[10digits]

22. Be very careful.

The NYT is a corp whore. Remember?

[Sideways]

36. You've been a bit all over the board carping on the media 10digits

I was just perusing a thread on Limp Balls where you called the source suspect and now this. Why is that?

Yes we at DU suspect the media and for good reason but when they begin to report a shred of the truth you seem to want to remind us they are whores. Why is that?

Yes we know they are whores but that does not discredit any feeble or noble attempt by the press to eradicate that opinion.

They are showing a bit of spine and good on them. Do we love them, NO. But your disingenuous attempt to parlay past feelings about the press on the current situations facing Rush and the WH are quite suspicious.

Do you catch my drift? Good I'm quite sure you do.

[Noordam]

25. Spann puts an all too human face on this and Dumbya

can not hide from it.

[ignatius]

29. I agree..I would love to see him on NBC,CBS,ABC,60 MInutes,

Fox and CNN telling his story and humanizing the CIA operatives. He would have so much credibility as he calls the outing "treason."

I remember when his son was killed, my sympathies to him.

[Cocoa]

26. Spann is a right-wing hero

And his parents were very public before, in pushing for John Walker Lindh's execution.

This could be very influential in freeperland, there may actually be some pressure for a special prosecutor after all...

[BurtWorm]

33. That struck me immediately.

I recall how he ingratiously refused the hand of Lindh's father, as though Lindh's father (or Lindh for that matter) had anything to do with his son's death. So it's very interesting that this type of person is making the treason charge. Of course this type of person may make treason charges every day, but I doubt they're usually against right wingers.

[joanski01]

41. Tom Harken said

on the Senate floor this morning that he was going to bring this subject up EVERY day. He said he would not let it die. Harken is calling for a special counsel, not an independent counsel. Apparently, that stup Norm Coleman made a speech before Harken's speech criticizing the Dems for asking for an "independent counsel". Because Harken said the Senator from Minnesota should get his facts straight before running off his mouth. Ha Ha Not in those words, of course. But they were biting words.

[Patriot_Spear]

43. Shades of Cato the Elder

Cathego Delendi Est = Carthage must be Destroyed

Cato repeated this phrase on the Roman senate floor everyday for 20 years until Rome built the fleet and Army which razed Carthage to the ground and sowed the ruins with salt.

[Unknown Known]

46. Love Tom Harken - in Wellstone's spirit!

O8)

[goforit]

42. You tell them Span!!!

These jerks are a disgrace and unpatriotic!!!!!!!

[w4rma]

47. Vicious. BushCo isn't slipping away from this one. (n/t)

[skip fox]

50. Novak's phone call revealed! The leaker identified (tentatively):

Immediately after Wilson's op-ed in the _Times_, he was known as the investigator sent to Niger on the behalf of the Vice-President. When Novak became interested to know how a Clinton appointee had be entrusted with such a mission, who would he have initally called?

Scooter Libbly, Cheney's Chief-of-Staff, or a staff member directly below Scooter. So he naturally calls Scooter, and Scooter was ready for him.

They talked about Wilson's editorial, why the State-of-the-Union Speech referred to Nigerian yellow-cake uranium and why Powell didn't mention it at the UN, and how Cheney had never heard of Wilson. Then Scooter explains, telling Novak that Cheney, the previous summer, had asked the CIA to look into the reports of uranium sales to Iraq from Niger and that it was the CIA who had sent Wilson. Then Scooter lets it drop, "Well, did you know Wilson's wife works at the Bureau? Let's see . . . yeah, right Valerie Plame. Word is that she was the one who had him sent to Niger." Novak's ears perk up (all he hears is "nepotism," missing the real insinuation: that Wilson put his wife up to having him sent because he had an anti-War agenda or because he was anti-administration and wanted to put the breaks on the rising crescendo of war rhetoric that fall). Novak checks spelling ("P-L-A-M-E"), thanks Scooter, hangs up. Checks second source, etc.

It's important to realize the purpose was to discredit Wilson as a maverick-with-an-agenda, getting his wife to send him on a mission the results of which would undercut Bush's bellicose rhetoric or make Bush pull back from his decision to invade Iraq.

Given the circumstance of the following summer (2003) when everyone was questioning the existence of WMD and then to have a key item in the President's State of the Union Speech undercut in a NY Times editorial-length letter, Scooter's plant was artful and effective, despite Novak's dull-witted interpretation (nepotism). I was clever without crushing anyone (Libby is more circumspect and pragmatic than Rove). The purpose was not primarily to inflict revenge upon Wilson, nor was it necessarily a warning to others who might take similar public stands, but to undercut an opponent who had momentarily risen in their midst. Bloodlessly, swiftly.


Coda: Wistful Thinking

I'm guessing Scooter Libby is spending the day with lawyers and staff, figuring out how to minimize legal and politial damage. Tomorrow he'll resign.