FITZ Reveals ARI FLEISHER GAMBLE: "I Didn't Want To Give Him Immunity-I Was Buying A PIG IN A POKE"

[kpete]

Fitzgerald Reveals Gamble in CIA Leak Ca

WASHINGTON - Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald took a gamble three years ago that White House press secretary Ari Fleischer might break open his leak investigation.

As Fitzgerald's inquiry was heating up into who revealed CIA operative Valerie Plame's name to reporters, Fleischer stepped forward with an offer: Give me immunity from prosecution and I'll give you information that might help your case.

What prosecutors didn't know was that Fleischer was one of the leakers. And without immunity, he refused to talk. Not even a hint.

...............

"I didn't want to give him immunity. I did so reluctantly," Fitzgerald said in court. "I was buying a pig in a poke."

more at:
http://www.examiner.com/a-530035%7EFitzgerald_Reveals_Gamble_in_CIA_Leak_Ca.html

[janx]

1. Saw that yesterday via FDL.

What was that about?

[gkhouston]

4. Ari is potentially a very damaging witness. My guess is that the defense

has been hoping to lessen the impact of Ari's testimony by implying that he cut a deal before getting immunity -- i.e., he offered to say specific things in exchange for immunity. That's not what happened. He got blind immunity, so Fitz didn't know what Ari was going to give him, which makes it harder for the defense to claim that Ari's story is coached or coerced as part of the immunity deal.

[hippiechick]

2. Squeal like the corrupt little pig you are, Ari !!!

oink oink!!

[Marie26]

3. This is a bombshell, no?

"Once the deal was struck in February 2004, Fleischer revealed that he had discussed Plame with reporters in July 2003, days before leaving his job at the White House.

Fleischer, who made a brief appearance at the courthouse on Thursday, is expected to testify early next week that he learned that the wife of Bush administration critic Joseph Wilson worked for the CIA from I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, a former top aide to Vice President Dick Cheney."

Libby tells the Press Secretary classified information about a CIA agent? Why would he ever do that - unless he wanted Ari to spread the rumor to the White House corps.

[soothsayer]

8. Got immunity AND pleading the fifth, thus giving no info at all?

despite his immunity?

[DoYouEverWonder]

9. No, he pleaded the 5th first

Then he asked for immunity before he would go any further.

[soothsayer]

10. oh, thank you! I've been totally puzzled by that

[RaleighNCDUer]

13. I've always wondered how Plame figured into Fleischer's

leaving the WH.

[Garbo 2004]

19. Ari announced in May 2003 that he was leaving the WH that summer. He already was a short timer

before he got involved in the Plame thing.

[GOTV]

5. I don't know if I get this...

So Ari asked for immunity in exchange for info.
Fitz gave him that immunity
The info was "I'm guilty"
And now guilty Ari walks?

So this is bad, right?

[yodermon]

11. well now, who knows what "the info" was?

Maybe the info he gave fitz was "there was a coordinated effort on the part of the white house iraq group to leak the identity of valerie plame wilson to the press"?

Conspiracy charges for all! yay! ('cept old ari, of course)

[GOTV]

12. I was just going off this line in the OP...

> What prosecutors didn't know was that Fleischer was one of the leakers.

I guess it's possible that he gave Fitz additional info as well.

I hate to see a guilty man walk but I suppose if he helped get the "deciders" then it's worth it.

[Garbo 2004]

21. What Ari told Fitz was that Libby told him about Valerie Wilson's CIA employment right

around the time Libby claims he forgot that he knew about her. We know Ari says that on July 7, 2003 Libby told him that Wilson's wife worked for the CIA.

Libby, however, told the grand jury that he couldn't have possibly told Judy Miller on July 8 that Wilson's wife worked at the CIA as Judy testified because by then he'd forgotten he knew about her CIA employment. Ari provides another nail in Scooter's coffin.

[Robbien]

6. Which means Fitz had nothing. If he didn't know what Ari was doing

Fitz had no real evidence up until then. Saying Buying a pig in a poke means he was acting blind.

[gkhouston]

14. There was probably a gap between what he "knew" and what he could "prove".

Here's hoping that Ari filled that gap for him. :toast:

[Annces]

7. pig in a poke

This is the first I had heard that phrase.

from Wikipedia
""A common colloquial expression in the English language, to "buy a pig in a poke" is to make a risky purchase by not inspecting an item beforehand.""

[Igel]

15. I can't help but wonder if it's more common

in areas where the word 'poke' is available as a common noun, not just part of an idiom.

In the piddling little neighborhood I grew up 'pig in a poke' was used for anything risky and unseen in a deal, even if you were just trading baseball cards. But 'poke' was a fairly common word for 'burlap bag', used by a few older people for any sort of cloth bag.

[Annces]

17. Did you grow up in a strongly ethnic neighborhood

Italian, Irish with recent immigrants?

[Catherine Vincent]

16. In other words, he was taking a chance?

Hopefully come Monday, Fleischer will give Fitzgerald some info he could use against Libby/Cheney and possibly Bush.

[kimmerspixelated]

18. Yes,yes,yes!

[mzmolly]

20. Interesting once again, as many of us speculated that he rolled.

Yes indeedy them "pigs" squeal when they are cornered.