CHENEY AUTHORIZED LEAK OF CIA REPORT-LIBBY TO GRAND JURY (New Murray WAAS)

[kpete]

ADMINISTRATION
Cheney Authorized Leak Of CIA Report, Libby Says
By Murray Waas, National Journal
© National Journal Group Inc.
Friday, April 14, 2006

Vice President Dick Cheney directed his then-chief of staff, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, on July 12, 2003 to leak to the media portions of a then-highly classified CIA report that Cheney hoped would undermine the credibility of former Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson, a critic of the Bush administration's Iraq policy, according to Libby's grand jury testimony in the CIA leak case and sources who have read the classified report.

There is a growing body of information showing that at the time Plame was outed the vice president was deeply involved in the effort to undermine her husband.

The March 2002 intelligence report was a debriefing of Wilson by the CIA's Directorate of Operations after Wilson returned from a CIA-sponsored mission to Niger to investigate claims, later proved to be unfounded, that Saddam Hussein had attempted to procure uranium from the African nation, according to government records.

The debriefing report made no mention of Wilson's wife, Valerie Plame, then a covert CIA officer, or any role she may have played in her husband's selection by the CIA to go to Niger, according to two people who have read the report.

The previously unreported grand jury testimony is significant because only hours after Cheney reportedly instructed Libby to disclose information from the CIA report, Libby divulged to then-New York Times reporter Judith Miller and Time magazine correspondent Matthew Cooper that Plame was a CIA officer, and that she been involved in selecting her husband for the Niger mission.

MUCH-MUCH-MUCH-MUCH more at:
http://news.nationaljournal.com/articles/0414nj3.htm

[Rex]

1. Wow, Libby must be smoking crack and squealing his guts out!

First it is Cheney, then Bush directly, now back to Cheney. Feels like a tennis match. :eyes:

[MADem]

2. I wonder what this woman will say -or has said-on the stand???

Could she be the weakest link?

During the flight either to or from Norfolk, Cheney, Libby, and Cathie Martin, then-assistant to the vice president for public affairs, discussed how they might rebut Wilson's charges and discredit him, according to federal court records, and interviews with people with first-hand knowledge of accounts that all three provided to federal investigators.

[Emit]

3. Hhmmmm, maybe.

Ironic statment from Libby?

"For over a year, Cathie has played an enormously important role in our office and a key role in the White House. She will be ready from day one to take on the duties of Assistant to the Vice President for Public Affairs," said Mr. Libby.

http://72.14.203.104/search?q=cache:1dEF_OCYEHQJ:www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/12/20021213-5.html+Cathie+Martin&hl=en&gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=5

[seemslikeadream]

4. Catherine Martin and Scooter Libby

http://www.talkleft.com/new_archives/012939.html

First, the Cheney flight. It was from Washington to Norfolk, VA where he gave the keynote speech at the commissioning of the USS Reagan. On board were press aide Catherine Martin and Scooter Libby.

The night before, July 11, George Tenet had issued his statement on the erroneous 16 word statement in the State of the Union Address.

On July 12, while on his trip to Africa, Bush praised Tenet and Fleischer bashed Wilson in his press gaggle. It was this "complete press gaggle" that was subpoenaed by Fitzgerald. Here is the version now on the White House site.

[seafan]

6. Catherine J. Martin, wife of Kevin Martin of the FCC. Well, well, well.

Prior to working for Vice President Cheney, Ms. Martin worked for Secretary of Commerce Don Evans as Deputy Chief of Staff and White House Liaison. From 2000-2001, Martin served as Policy Director to former Texas Attorney General John Cornyn, who was recently elected to the United States Senate. From 1994-2000, Ms. Martin practiced law at the Washington, D.C. law firm of Steptoe & Johnson, LLP.

Ms. Martin received her J.D. from Harvard Law School in 1993 and her B.A. from the University of Texas at Austin in 1990. Ms. Martin is married to Kevin Martin, Commissioner on the Federal Communications Commission, and they reside in Washington, D.C.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/12/20021213-5.html

[Emit]

9. Kevin Martin

Before becoming a commissioner Martin was a special assistant to the President for Economic Policy. He has also served on the Bush-Cheney election team in Florida and the transition team.

Prior to becoming part of the Bush campaign, he was an advisor to FCC Commissioner Harold Furchtgott-Roth. He also worked in the Office of the Independent Counsel.

Martin worked several years for Wiley, Rein, and Fielding, "Rated Top Telecommunications Lobbyists" according to an article on their website. The firm represents the Bells as well as Viacom/CBS, Gannett, Belo, Emmis, Gray Television, and Motorola.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Martin_%28FCC%29

It's all in the family.

[LuckyLib]

32. Yes, it is all in the family. And if you look at any federal department

or agency, you find the same thing. They are filled with Texans and Floridians who have given $$$ to the Bushies. Background in Food and Drug? Doesn't matter. Gave bucks. Interior experience? Doesn't matter. Background in education that might lead one to believe they had some experience in the area? Nada. The whole place stinks to high heaven with inbred Republican donors who have been rewarded. We need a clean sweep!

[xxqqqzme]

34. boy, oh, boy the members of the florida 2000 'election' team

have certainly reaped benefits from their laying the foundation for stealing the first election.

[Roland99]

8. Wasn't Catherine Martin the victim found alive in Silence of the Lambs?

:)

[Emit]

13. LOL.

:spank: You bad!

[Roland99]

16. "It puts the lotion on its skin or else it gets the hose again!"

[Emit]

17. Yes Precious, it gets the hose...

[Scout1071]

5. One Rockette's style kick!

Great find, as usual.

[Garbo 2004]

7. Need to look not only at what Libby told grand jury but what he actually

did, which often differs from his testimony. One can't take Libby's GJ testimony as unalloyed truth. Remember, Libby denied in his testimony that he told anyone about Plame.

Libby first mentioned Wilson's wife and her connection to CIA to Judy Miller on June 23.

Furthermore, Libby discussed the CIA Niger report with Miller at a July 8 meeting (per Miller and also Fitz as I recall). The whole recent media dustup was because Libby testified that he was authorized to leak info specifically to Miller at that July 8 meeting. At that July 8 meeting he tells Miller that Wilson's wife works with WINPAC in CIA. (But of course he denied disclosing anything about Plame to Miller.)

July 12 is an important date for a number of reasons as I recall, but don't forget the efforts to shop Plame's CIA identity around were underway and active before then.

[understandinglife]

10. When this is fully exposed I remain convinced, as I have posted ...

... here at DU before, that Cheney knew ValerieP because of interactions with her at CIA HQ, and perhaps elsewhere. Her expertise on Central Asia, Mid-East, etc. WMD proliferation intelligence makes it highly likely.

I am also convinced that even as big an arrogant jerk as Cheney is, he would not have outed her without Bush's explicit approval.

These are big crimes.


George W. Bush willfully violated National Security to cover-up his willful launch of a war of aggression and illegal occupation of Iraq.

[Disturbed]

11. Cheney claimed that he can declassify whatever he felt like.

Exposing a covert CIA Operative and her covert Operation Brewster Jennings is treason in my view.

[Swamp Rat]

12. Treason n/t

[understandinglife]

15. Agree. nt

Peace.

[calimary]

23. Remember, also, that both cheney AND libby personally went

over to CIA headquarters to lean on the operatives there for the kind of info they wanted to hear to bolster their case for war. Wonder how many trips over there the two of them made. I remember, in addition, how this was described in press reports as "unprecedented" - that a sitting vice president would personally visit the CIA to pressure anybody. And if ever asked and cheney says he never talked to anybody or inter-acted with anybody or put any pressure on them, take it to the bank that this is completely BOGUS. Even if all he did was stand there against the far wall and say nothing, his VERY PRESENCE would be intimidating enough for most of the people in the room that they'd snap to, with tightened sphincter muscles. ("JEEZ! That's cheney!!!! YIKES!!!) He wouldn't have to say or do anything, per se. His very presence in the room would be enough to sway opinions, at least temporarily. Nobody wants THAT kind of trouble, especially back then, when it was far more likely people would still be capitulating as a matter of course. September 11th wasn't that far back in the memory, and people were still inclined to push their trepidations aside and give bushco the benefit of the doubt. That's not the complexion of the times now.

So I suspect that cheney and libby going over there, physically, for however many visits they made, they'd have run into Valerie Plame Wilson. And note this, too: She's quite easy on the eyes. A slim, attractive blonde with a dazzling smile. Who wouldn't notice that? I'd bet you one or both of them spotted her in a hallway or through an open office door, and asked who she was. My dad fancied himself quite the ladies' man long after he didn't deserve it anymore, and that is ALWAYS what he did whenever he saw some comely young woman. Looked her over and then asked - "whozzat?" And he never failed to notice a blonde.

[BuyingThyme]

14. Mark my words: This will come down to Bob Woodward.

Woodward will conveniently explain how Valerie's name came into the mix.

As you all know, Bob Woodward is a spook, and only came into the mix after the fact, in order to steer the cover-up. He will provide the key piece of "evidence" which will clear Bush and Cheney on the outing issue.

[Me.]

18. Looks Like The Bull's Eye Is Finally on Cheney

and he's about to get a face full of shot.

[leftchick]

19. lol!

he certainly deserves more than a face full. What is the punishment for treason anyway? A life sentence of Hard labor?

[stop the bleeding]

20. I am reading this first, then

Leopold's article then Firedog, followed by the leftcoaster ending with understandinglife's thread that has all of these put together.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=933046&mesg_id=934154



I am only away for about 3 hours and sorts of news comes out

;)

[Initech]

21. I am confused - who really authorized the leak?

Yesterday, Libby said it was Bush. Today it's Cheney. Did Cheney authorize the leak and Bush signed the autorization? Or was it the other way around?

[Torn_Scorned_Ignored]

25. NIE Leak and CIA Report on Wilson

2 different stories here.
As for the National Intelligence Estimate that Libby revealed Bush/Cheney authorized, I remember reading...
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/?q=node/9978
Defendant testified that he thought he brought a brief abstract of the NIE's key judgments to the meeting with Miller on July 8. Defendant understood that he was to tell Miller, among other things, that a key judgment of the NIE held that Iraq was 'vigorously trying to procure' uranium.

So, how is it that this is also true?
http://www.fas.org/irp/news/2003/07/wh071803.html
QUESTION: Second question. The information about Africa did not rise to the level of a key judgment, it is not listed as one. The NIE is not meant to come out of the President's mouth -- at best, key judgments are. So why was the information, if it did not rise to the level of a key judgment, why was the information put in the President's speech?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, you made an assertion inside your question, where you're saying that the President is not supposed to cite the NIE. There are ways in which the President can assert the NIE if it's cleared through the process.

QUESTION: But the other things the President asserts are key judgments. The Africa stuff, the uranium stuff did not rise to that level.

And finally, the Key Judgements:
http://www.fas.org/irp/cia/product/iraq-wmd.html
or
http://www.fas.org/irp/congress/2003_cr/h072103.html

[bobbieinok]

22. is this on TV, in major newspapers, any newspapers?? or once again

is this just know to internet community????/

if it's not in M$M, very few who need to know this will find out about it

[calimary]

24. Keith Olbermann seems to be keeping up with this. n/t

[stop the bleeding]

26. LIBBY FILES REQUEST TO EXTEND EXPARTE DECLARATION to 04/28/06

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x934690

[Sarah Ibarruri]

27. Did Cheney authorize the leaking of Plame's identity or not?

That's all I want to know. Is Libby covering up for him?

[bdamomma]

28. Cheney

thinks he is infallible and his ignorance and arrogance is so evident. Cheney really thinks he is above the law, like the rest of his cabal.

[NewJeffCT]

29. well, they've gotten away with a lot these past 5 1/2 years

so, why shouldn't they be arrogant? Even if the lot of them get indicted, they probably think they'll get pardoned.

[madrchsod]

30. ?

bush declassified the information,to me it doesn`t matter about the "he said,she said" bullshit because they were all involved in an organized conspiracy to commit a crime. fitzgerald biggest problem is what to charge each of the co-conspirators with. much to do about something really big...

[BR_Parkway]

35. Wonder how we, the taxpayers those folks are supposed to represent

could file a civil RICO suit against them

[Imagevision]

31. Fitzgerald needs to get Cheney on the stand or indict him without Scalia

coming to his rescue this time!

[Bob K]

33. How deep.....

.... will Fitz have to dig to get to the bottom of this vein of evil ore? I'm for giving Fitz a medal once this whole disgustingly filthy regime is outed! :kick: