Valerie Plame to Testify (Waxman Committee - Friday, March 16th)

[sabra]

http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalradar/2007/03/valerie_plame_t.html

Valerie Plame to Testify

ABC News' Tom Shine Reports: Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., has announced that Valerie Plame Wilson will testify before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform on Friday, March 16th.

Other witnesses are also expected to appear but their names have not yet been released.

:nuke:

more:

http://oversight.house.gov/story.asp?ID=1205

Committee Will Hold Hearing on Disclosure of CIA Agent Valerie Plame Wilson's Identity

Chairman Henry A. Waxman announced a hearing on whether White House officials followed appropriate procedures for safeguarding the identity of CIA agent Valerie Plame Wilson. At the hearing, the Committee will receive testimony from Ms. Wilson and other experts regarding the disclosure and internal White House security procedures for protecting her identity from disclosure and responding to the leak after it occurred. The hearing is scheduled for Friday, March 16.

In addition, the Committee today sent a letter to Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald commending him for his investigation and requesting a meeting to discuss testimony by Mr. Fitzgerald before the Committee.

[DeepModem Mom]

1. OMG -- I'm trembling here. nt

[Tuesday_Morning]

2. Wow!

:woohoo:

[mikelgb]

3. kick 4

5 in 3....2......

[aquart]

4. Okaaay. Now I feel a wee bit giddy.

[mikelgb]

5. Talk about must see teevee

[sabra]

8. "what do you mean C-SPAN won't be showing it?"

:sarcasm:

[april]

39. You can View it at

The Oversight Committee will webcast the hearing live at www.oversight.house.gov.

too Good !!!!

[ClayZ]

6. Whooot! K and R

Oh My!

[maddezmom]

7. this should be interesting

:D thank you Henry Waxman and Valerie Plame for standing up to these criminals.

[Sapere aude]

9. It's those Dems trying to hurt our vice president who is only trying to keep us safe!

I can hear it now. "Waxman holds politically motivated hearing which will be a hatchet job on the vice president."

[Tansy_Gold]

18. ". . . . a hatchet job on the vice president"

We should be so lucky. . . . . . .

[SlowDownFast]

28. Or, "Vice President Dick Cheney Shoots Self In Foot"

[jmowreader]

58. I don't think it's going to be a hatchet job

They're going to use a MUCH bigger axe.

[Marie26]

10. Cool! nt

[rudy23]

11. Beware the Ides of March

I'm sure the corporate media will have something bright and shiny to distract us on or around the date of Mar. 16. Or maybe I should say blonde and shiny. Whatever it is, I'm sure everyone will find something else to preoccupy America with, they've done it for this long.

[Raksha]

47. Ummmm...Valerie Plame Wilson is blonde and shiny,

so that little gimmick isn't gonna work this time.

[sce56]

54. How about red and dripping like the BLOOD of Iranians to distract from the white house woes!

Wag the Dog will be Nuclear!

[Kikosexy2]

64. Just make...

sure Britney is locked up in rehab and Paris is well...in Paris..

[demnan]

12. A very Merry Fitzmas

and a Waxman New Year!!!! :bounce:

[Stinky The Clown]

13. Even as this is being announced, you can bet your sweet ass the rebuttals are ....

.... being penned and faxed, to be held for future release as ordered.

The crux of her testimony will no doubt be to establish the fact she was a NOC and not some 'desk jockey', as the Great Wurlitzer has been alleging all along. The secondary part will be to demonstrate how Joe Wilson came to be sent ..... and that it was not her who 'ordered' it.

I can only imagine the howls that will be rising up en masse from the Right.

[Garbo 2004]

19. Ironically, Valerie Wilson may not be able to discuss her former status since it's still classified

info.

The CIA's been holding up her book so we'll see how forthcoming they are or allow her to be.

[PhilipShore]

14. Why is this not all over the MSM?

I am not a lawyer, but this seems to be - impeachment investigation proceedings.

[jobycom]

20. A few sobering points on that (though I think the media will pick it up eventually):

First, Waxman investigates everything, but rarely is able to make much happen because of his investigations. Not saying they are ineffective--Waxman does a great job, and he's long been one of my favorite Congresscritters. But he's been investigating Bush on everything from the 2000 election in Florida to whatever he had for lunch yesterday, so this isn't too unusual.

Second, the article says they are investigating whether Bush/Cheny did everything they could to safeguard her identity. That's a bit different than investigating to see if Cheney leaked the info himself, though one could lead to the other. Still, part of Waxman's job is to make sure procedure is followed, and that's how he's explaining this investigation, at least in the OP article.

Third, Fitzgerald investigated for three years, and could get no conclusive evidence. They've had time to coordiante their stories, pour over everything Fitzgerald found, destroy any evidence they could find that wasn't uncovered by Fitzgerald--in other words, they've had three years to cover their tracks, and Fitzgerald's investigation and the subsequent trial has shown them what few tracks remain to be explained away. There may be nothing left to find.

Now, the positive points: Someone is at least looking, and that damages Bush. People in the Bush camp are nervous, and nervous people make mistakes and may get scared and turn evidence. And with Bush's popularity so low, even finding a strong suggestion that Cheney or Bush committed crimes can put a ton of pressure on them to resign, or more likely, on the Republicans in Congress to dump the president. The good thing about a Republican scared for his or her job is that they are likely to become the most vocal critics of Bush, to try to save their necks.

And best of all, it puts Valerie Plame primetime, which might make more people aware of the crimes committed. And that can only hurt Bush and everything he is trying to do to this country.

So I like this. I'm just keeping my expectations a bit low, and my hopes sky high.

Disclaimer: Sorry I write too much. :) And I'm probably wrong about everything, anyway. Usually am.

[Kagemusha]

31. It's different when you're the committee chairman.

It's A LOT different, in terms of the power to investigate. Little thing called subpoenas.

[jobycom]

41. Fitzgerald had subpoena power

[Kagemusha]

42. Your point?...

Fitzgerald was a US Attorney/ Special Prosecutor. Waxman is a congressman. You're trying to equate apples and oranges. I hope Waxman gets a lot of the materials that Fitzgerald isn't allowed to volunteer to the public for his investigation because of the importance to the public and to the national security of the United States. Waxman is in a VERY different position now that he can get subpoena power through his committee.

Edit: Doesn't mean he'll succeed either but, he has a different tool set than Fitzgerald.

[jobycom]

44. Same as it was in the first post.

Waxman is not likely to find out anything Fitzgerald didn't.

[Kagemusha]

56. Given much of what Fitzgerald found is still sealed under GJ secrecy

I think finding out what Fitz did, but more publicly, may be an improvement at least.

No, I'm not getting my hopes up either, but he has the power now, might as well use it.

[MUAD_DIB]

59. The MSM hardly reports the news any longer.

Now back to that missing girl in Aruba...

[Uncle Joe]

66. Because the people that own the mass corporate media don't care. n/t

[Kingshakabobo]

15. I wonder if they can make Libby talk?......and/or can they grant him partial immunity?...

.....to make him squeal. Or will he be able to take the 5th?

[DU9598]

21. Pleading the 5th

I think he could still plead the 5th until the conclusion of his appeal or until Bush pardons him. Only at those points would he no longer be in legal jeopardy ... unless, of course, he committed additional crimes for which Congress would require him to answer.

[ItsTheMediaStupid]

16. Cool. Maybe they'll talk with Sibel Edmonds as well.

It's about time the curtains were pulled back at the White House.

[mod mom]

17. I hope there are a few repukes to have problems sleeping.

TRAITORS IN THE WH!

[EFerrari]

22. Karma.

:kick:

[Catherine Vincent]

23. Can't wait 'til this is aired on CSPAN!

I'll have to take that day off!

[kestrel91316]

24. Won't the CIA just tell her she CAN'T talk about it???

[Rosa Luxemburg]

34. how will they stop her?

[kestrel91316]

35. Uh, court injunction, then throw her a-- in jail for spilling

classified info that she still has knowledge of.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

61. there would be an uproar!

she must have the knowledge of the corruption?

[laststeamtrain]

25. Here's a list of some potential invitees.

WHIG Members

* Karl Rove
* Karen Hughes
* Mary Matalin
* James R. Wilkinson
* Nicholas E. Calio
* Condoleezza Rice
* Stephen Hadley
* I. Lewis (Scooter) Libby

[Virginia Dare]

26. Hopefully after her testimony...

the Washington Post Editorial Board and the other media corporate lapdogs will STFU about this being a mountain out of a molehill. The WAPO repeated the false meme yesterday that Ms. Plame's covert position at the CIA was overstated.

[maddezmom]

27. CIA leak case moves on to civil court

CIA leak case moves on to civil court

WASHINGTON - The CIA leak saga did not end with I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby's conviction this week. On top of his lengthy appeals, he and senior Bush administration officials face a lawsuit for their role in the exposure of a former CIA operative.

Valerie Plame believes the administration violated her constitutional rights by leaking her identity to reporters in 2003, and she is demanding compensation. Her attorneys believe the case could reveal more about the inner workings of the Bush White House than surfaced during Libby's monthlong trial.

Libby, Vice President Dick Cheney, White House political adviser Karl Rove and former State Department Deputy Secretary Richard Armitage are named in the case. So far, it has been a matter of dueling legal briefs. Lawyers are due in court this May for a hearing on whether it should be thrown out.

Plame's attorney acknowledges he has to clear some tall hurdles to persuade a judge that she and her husband, former Ambassador Joseph Wilson, had their free speech, due process and privacy rights violated.

Several Bush administration officials leaked Plame's identity to reporters after Wilson began criticizing prewar intelligence on Iraq. Nobody was charged with the leak, which would have been a crime only if someone had knowingly given out classified information. Libby was convicted Tuesday of obstructing the leak investigation and lying about how he learned about Plame.

moew:http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070308/ap_on_go_pr_wh/cia_leak_wilson_lawsuit;_ylt=AkPlcXG2cduv4Xczez4XuXGs0NUE

[Monkeyman]

29. K&R

[myrna minx]

30. This is just breathtaking.

Really. I can't believe they're high crimes and misdemeanors are finally being exposed. :bounce:

[L. Coyote]

32. Will this Fitzmas Story be webcast? n/t

[DemReadingDU]

36. Yes!

The Oversight Committee will webcast the hearing live at www.oversight.house.gov.


http://www.oversight.house.gov/story.asp?ID=1205

[april]

40. yes

The Oversight Committee will webcast the hearing live at www.oversight.house.gov.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

33. Things are really starting to move!!!!!

poor baby Bush and Cheney will be needing incontinence pads!

[Dr Fate]

37. Cool- It's telling that she is willing to be fully questioned. Bush? Cheney? Rove?

!!!

[lonestarnot]

38. Woot! A day in Court!

[burrowowl]

43. Go Waxman!

He is a bulldog, he never lets go!

[NastyRiffraff]

45. Plus Waxman has taken up Fitz's hints

that he'd provide Congress with materials and/or info, if asked. Well, Waxman has asked: ;http://oversight.house.gov/Documents/20070308134201-02108.pdf

[truthisfreedom]

52. Jeepers, that made me smile.

Everyone here should read it.

[creeksneakers2]

46. Will they get to ask her

about her department's assessment of the Niger story from the beginning? I'm convinced that no honest person in her department ever believed the story. Was sending Joe part of a serious inquiry, or was Joe sent there for a CYA for WMD analysts being pressured to lie by Cheney?

According to his debriefers, when Wilson returned his report didn't cause any alarm because he offered nothing new. Since Wilson reported that there was no attempt by Iraq to buy uranium from Niger, and that was nothing new, then everybody involved must have known all along there was nothing to the Niger story.

Wilson's assignment was hatched when Cheney asked his CIA briefers for a second look at the Niger story. That fits in with the pattern of Cheney's inquiries before the war, repeated requests for reassessments. Cheney's requested reassessments were an attempt to pressure analysts to change their reports to something more useful for Cheney's propaganda. I believe Plame's associates saw the Niger request as an attempt to pressure them, and decided to send Wilson to Niger because an outsider could tell the truth about the whole bogus story without fear of having his career ruined by Cheney. With the outsiders report, the analysts could respond to further pressure from Cheney by saying they'd double checked the Niger story.

This scenario fits well with later testimony that news of Wilson's trip was never directly brought up with Cheney.

For the committee to ever get the truth out about the whole Niger affair, they'll have to first establish that no honest analyst believed the story, then establish Cheney pressured wherever he could to change the story into a lie, and then establish where exactly the false story reappeared and why. I'd like to see the committee hunt where the goods are.

[Raksha]

49. I have always believed that Valerie Plame was one of the analysts

Dick Cheney was pressuring about those Niger documents. And that he knew she worked for the CIA and in exactly what capacity because he had personal interactions with her.

Re >>I believe Plame's associates saw the Niger request as an attempt to pressure them, and decided to send Wilson to Niger because an outsider could tell the truth about the whole bogus story without fear of having his career ruined by Cheney.<<

Not only "Plame's associates" but Plame herself as well? Maybe she suggested the Niger trip because she wanted to get Cheney off her back? Hell, I wouldn't want Darth Cheney breathing down my neck either!

I have no reason to believe this; it just seems like a logical conclusion based on what we already know about how the intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy.

[newscott]

48. Friday? Why not on a Tuesday?

Friday is the worst day of the week for bombshell news.

[Major Hogwash]

50. Because Monday is the 4th anniversary of the start of the Iraq War.

And there is going to be a large demonstration during that weekend in DC.

[orleans]

51. a total k&r!! i heard randi rhodes announce this today on her show

it had just come over the wire.

she was so giddy & excited--she said something to the effect: "i'm so excited! what am i going to wear?!"

i admit i was pretty excited about it too. i immediately called home to share the great news!

[truthisfreedom]

53. You tell me they're not going to put this face on the MSM once she starts testifying.

She's going to make news, you betcha. America loves beautiful blondes, especially when they're covert spies working counter-terrorism.

[Contrite]

55. And Keith will interview her on Saturday night!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x320359

Happy St. Patrick's day!

[Pachamama]

57. A perfect way to mark the 4th anniversary of the invasion & occupation of Iraq....

I'd like to see how the media will spin this one....here it is, the 4th anniversary since we sent our troops in on a lie and then there is the woman testifying that she was outed by the same lying bastards who lied us into the war. Maybe Britney will go in and out of rehab or shave again. Or maybe 5 more men step forward as being the possible father of Anna Nicole Smiths' baby - oh the media will just have to focus on these stories and not the outing of a CIA agent and starting a war based on lies.....

[Toots]

60. Will this also put a halt to the Wilson's Civil suit?

I suppose they can wait a bit longer if necessary for some more of the truth to be exposed but I do so much want to see some true justice come about..

[SharonRB]

62. WOW!!!

This is great news. I missed this until today -- I was away from my computer last night. Go, Waxman, go.

:woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo:

On edit:

And, perfect timing! Forget Fitzmas -- It's St. Patrick's Day!!!!!!!!

[elias7]

63. maybe the MSM will start talking about the real crime committed here

Joseph Wilson merely provided the opportunity to out Brewster Jennings, counting on the MSM to stick with the sensationalism of personal attacks and failing to engage in any critical thought. Why would you retaliate in such manner as to harm yourself? Destroying the career of a man's wife as payback is the motive that plays, but makes no sense if in the process you roll up your Iraq-Iran-Pakistan counter terrorism intelligence network in the process.

The crime, as here have pointed out, is treason- the lives of dozens if not hundreds of agents were placed immediately at risk by the outing of Plame and BJ. Why commit treason in retaliation for an op-ed that would recede like everything else (Downing Street memo, PDB briefing, Scott Ritter, PNAC position papers,etc.) into the oblivion of the collective public mental recesses? The answer is that you wouldn't. Unless, of course, you wanted to get rid of the intelligence network in the first place. The only question left is why that would be?

[Uncle Joe]

65. Well this is will be exciting!

Kicked and recommended

Thanks for the thread sabra

[stonebone]

67. kick

[upi402]

68. kick

:kick: