In the News: What was Miller Protecting?

[nahirean]

Miller finally came out and admitted who she was protecting.

Story here:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...093000669.html

Interesting.. what do you guys think about this? I think it was horrible to leak the operatives name out.

[Garbarsardar]

I found a nice timeline from Newsday: It is evident that Dick Cheney's office purposfully leaked the name of a CIA operative in order to punish her husband for not finding the much desired WMD component...It is a shameful act, not the first of this administration.

* February 2002: Former Ambassador Joseph Wilson is asked by the Bush administration to travel to Niger to check out an intelligence report that Niger sold yellowcake uranium to Iraq in the late 1990s for use in nuclear weapons.

* Jan. 28, 2003: In the State of the Union address, President Bush states that "The British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa" but does not mention that U.S. agencies had questioned the validity of the British intelligence.

* July 6: In a New York Times op-ed piece, Wilson writes that he could not verify that Niger sold uranium yellowcake to Iraq.

* July 14: Columnist Robert Novak identifies Wilson's wife, Valerie Plame, as "a (CIA) operative on weapons of mass destruction." Novak cites "two senior administration officials" as his sources.

* July 17: Matthew Cooper writes on Time.com that government officials have told him Wilson's wife is a CIA official monitoring WMD. Another article appears in the magazine's July 21 print issue.

* Sept 29-30: The Justice Department informs then-White House counsel Alberto R. Gonzales that it has opened an investigation into possible unauthorized disclosures concerning the identity of an undercover CIA employee. Gonzales informs the president the next day. Bush tells reporters: "I don't know of anybody in my administration who leaked classified information. If somebody did leak classified information, I'd like to know it, and we'll take the appropriate action."

* Dec. 30: Chicago U.S. attorney Patrick J. Fitzgerald is named special counsel to investigate whether a crime was committed.

* May 21, 2004: A grand jury subpoenas Cooper and Time Inc., seeking testimony and documents. Time says it will fight subpoena.

* Aug 9: U.S. District Judge Thomas F. Hogan's rejects claims that the First Amendment protects Cooper from testifying and finds them in contempt of court. Time magazine appeals the ruling.

* Aug 12 and 14: The grand jury subpoenas New York Times reporter Judith Miller, who gathered material for a story but never wrote one. The New York Times says it will fight subpoena.

* Aug 24: Cooper agrees to give a deposition after Lewis "Scooter" Libby, Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff, personally releases Cooper from a promise of confidentiality.

* Sept 13: According to court documents, the grand jury issues a further subpoena to Cooper seeking additional information relating to the case. Cooper and Time move to quash the subpoena.

* Oct 7: Miller held in contempt.

* Oct. 13: Cooper and Time held in contempt.

* Feb. 15, 2005: Appeals court rules against Miller and Cooper. Both Time magazine and The New York Times appeal to the Supreme Court.

* June 27: The Supreme Court refuses to intervene.

* July 1: Time magazine agrees to comply with a court order to turn over Cooper's notes, e-mail and other documents. Cooper and Miller continue to refuse to divulge sources.

* July 6: U.S. District Judge Thomas Hogan sends Miller to jail for refusing to divulge her source. Cooper agrees to name his source after receiving permission from the source to do so.

* Sept. 29: After 85 days behind bars, Miller is released from the city jail in Alexandria, Va., after agreeing to testify before a grand jury. She says in a statement that her source has "voluntarily and personally released me from my promise of confidentiality."

* Sept. 30: Miller testifies at the federal courthouse in downtown Washington, ending her silence in the investigation

[nahirean]

Here's a link to the text of Miller's remarks:

http://www.newsday.com/news/nationwo...-top-headlines

[Big War Bird]

February 2002: Former Ambassador Joseph Wilson is asked by the Bush administration to travel to Niger to check out an intelligence report that Niger sold yellowcake uranium to Iraq in the late 1990s for use in nuclear weapons.

The Bush administration did not ask Wilson to go Niger. CIA Employee Valerie Plame recommended him and was sent by the CIA without the approval of the VP.

Jan. 28, 2003: In the State of the Union address, President Bush states that "The British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa" but does not mention that U.S. agencies had questioned the validity of the British intelligence.

That is factually accurate and was substantiated by Wilson himself IIRC. Iraq did attempt to source nuke material fom Niger.

July 6: In a New York Times op-ed piece, Wilson writes that he could not verify that Niger sold uranium yellowcake to Iraq.

That is also factually accurate and also completely beside the point. Iraq did not get the yellowcake but they had tried. Wilson intentionally distorted his NY Times article to to make it seem that the State of the Union Speech was false. Wilson was rebuked by a bipartisan investigation for intentionally distorting his report on Iraq's attempt to buy the nuke material.

Valerie Plame was a not a CIA operative as defined by the relevant laws. She had not be oversea for more than 5 years nor was the CIA actively protecting her identity making the divulging of her employment at the CIA as illegal as saying the sky is blue.

Those are the facts as we know them now.

[Count of Montesano]

Valerie Plame was a not a CIA operative as defined by the relevant laws. She had not be oversea for more than 5 years nor was the CIA actively protecting her identity making the divulging of her employment at the CIA as illegal as saying the sky is blue.


Big War Bird, that's not the point. Having worked in military intelligence, I can tell you a little personal story.

One afternoon while I was stationed with the 2nd Infantry Division north of Seoul, I'm sitting outside at a break area bench studying North Korean weapons and tactics. Mind you, I'm looking at a non-classified Jane's book and writing down weapon classifications for a briefing I had to deliver the next day. Even though all of the stuff I was looking at was completely open source, I still got REAMED when the Sergeant Major walked in and discovered I was doing any kind of research in an open breakroom.

He of course had a point. With the large number of Korean nationals working on base (barbers, cooks, janitors, etc), you could never be sure who was watching you unless you were in one of the secure buildings.

In other words, people with access to secret info are held to a vastly higher standard than the press or ordinary citizens. Releasing sensitive but not outright classified information about CIA operations is a serious offense and should be grounds for dismissal of Karl Rove.

[nahirean]

Valerie Plame was a not a CIA operative as defined by the relevant laws. She had not be oversea for more than 5 years nor was the CIA actively protecting her identity making the divulging of her employment at the CIA as illegal as saying the sky is blue.


Big War Bird, that's not the point. Having worked in military intelligence, I can tell you a little personal story.

One afternoon while I was stationed with the 2nd Infantry Division north of Seoul, I'm sitting outside at a break area bench studying North Korean weapons and tactics. Mind you, I'm looking at a non-classified Jane's book and writing down weapon classifications for a briefing I had to deliver the next day. Even though all of the stuff I was looking at was completely open source, I still got REAMED when the Sergeant Major walked in and discovered I was doing any kind of research in an open breakroom.

He of course had a point. With the large number of Korean nationals working on base (barbers, cooks, janitors, etc), you could never be sure who was watching you unless you were in one of the secure buildings.

In other words, people with access to secret info are held to a vastly higher standard than the press or ordinary citizens. Releasing sensitive but not outright classified information about CIA operations is a serious offense and should be grounds for dismissal of Karl Rove.

^^-- Yep. I was in Military Intelligence as well for the later part of my military career. He is absolutely correct.

*edit*

Hilarious that I cannot spell Intelligence

[Big War Bird]

The fact that Plame was a CIA employee was already known by Washisgton insiders. She had been given briefings to various individuals people for a while. Robert Novak got her name and the fact that she was married to Wilson out of a Who's Who book.

Karl Rove did not do anything illegal or dishonest, In fact he was trying to stop a juornalist from printing an innacurate story from some shady characters by the name of Wilson and Plame.

The real question is do want some mid level CIA employee and an obscure former ambassador distorting the facts of intelligence and national foreign policy to manipulate the american people to follow their political agenda?

[danzig]

First it was Karl Rove who purposely did it to get back at Plume's husband and now its Dick Cheney I swear some of you just want to find blame no matter what.

[Garbarsardar]

First it was Karl Rove who purposely did it to get back at Plume's husband and now its Dick Cheney I swear some of you just want to find blame no matter what.

Well, don't swear; it's not us that spilled the beens but them :laughing:

Cooper agrees to give a deposition after Lewis "Scooter" Libby, Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff, personally releases Cooper from a promise of confidentiality.