Plamegate Blast from Past - Rove Smears Durbin, Outs Gay ABC reporter

[emulatorloo]

I was out googling on the internets when I came across this story from around the time of the plame leak. . .White House was going after Durbin for criticizing the 16 words:

http://www.independent-media.tv/itemprint.cfm?fmedia_id=1633&fcategory_desc=Under%20Reported

Senator Durbin denounces White House leaks, sees a campaign against him
By: Mike Dorning
Chicago Tribune

<snip>

WASHINGTON -- U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin on Tuesday accused the White House of trying to oust him from the Intelligence Committee and waging a campaign of intimidation against critics of the Bush administration's policies in Iraq.

<snip>

Bush press secretary Scott McClellan characterized as "absolute nonsense" Durbin's charge the White House is promoting stories that the senator is unfit for the intelligence panel or otherwise seeking to discredit critics with news leaks.

"That is not the way the White House operates. That is not the way the White House press office operates. That is not my style," McClellan added.

<snip>

Durbin accused the White House of spreading allegations--which the senator denied--that he disclosed classified information and should be ousted from the panel. Durbin said that on Friday that reporters began calling his office saying that an anonymous White House official had informed them that Durbin had disclosed classified information and, as a result, Republican senators were trying to remove him from the intelligence panel.

According to Durbin, the reporters said their White House source told them he had disclosed the name of the national security aide who was involved in the preparation of the speech. Durbin denied disclosing the name, although several news reports last week identified the staffer as Robert G. Joseph, a senior adviser on counter-proliferation issues. Also, according to Durbin, the reporters said they were told he included classified information in a Senate speech last week criticizing the administration's use of intelligence in making the case for war with Iraq. In the speech, he said U.S. intelligence had identified 550 sites it suspected may have been used for weapons of mass destruction.

But Durbin said the information had been declassified in June. His office produced copies of month- old public statements from the UN and from another senator that included the figure.

<snip>

Shoemaker said Durbin's concern also was driven by a report on the personal life of ABC News correspondent Jeffrey Kofman that surfaced after Kofman aired a piece describing low troop morale in Iraq. Soon afterward, the Internet's Drudge Report published a banner headline: "ABC News correspondent who filed troop complaints story is openly gay, Canadian." The site included a link to a profile of Kofman in the gay magazine The Advocate.

<snip>

McClellan said in press briefings this week that he does not believe the White House was the source for any of the stories.

<snip>

[shraby]

1. Looks to me like the White House leaked another

bit of classified info in order to tarnish Durbin.

[emulatorloo]

2. Durbin was very careful not to name names -- found previous story:

http://www.truthout.org/docs_03/printer_071803D.shtml

Tenet Says White House Official Insisted Questionable Information Be Included in Speech, Democrat Says
By Ken Guggenheim
The Associated Press

<snip>

Sen. Dick Durbin, who was present for a 4 1/2-hour appearance by Tenet behind closed doors with Intelligence Committee members Wednesday, said Tenet named the official. But the Illinois Democrat said that person's identity could not be revealed because of the confidentiality of the proceedings.

"He (Tenet) certainly told us who the person was who was insistent on putting this language in which the CIA knew to be incredible, this language about the uranium shipment from Africa," Durbin said on ABC's "Good Morning America."

<snip>