Jan 02 2007
The Plame Trial
One of the more interesting stories that will play out this month is the start of the Scooter Libby Trial, which will showcase much of the media propaganda effort that came to be known to many as “The Plame Game”. We know that VP Cheney is expected to be called to bear witness on what a marginal nutcase Joe Wilson was with his string of lies and unanswered questions. And we will see a string of journalists paraded to the witness stand as well. More on them in a moment.
For the record I hope someone asks Joe – in order to establish his credibility as a witness – how it is he was debunking forgeries in February 2002 that would not actually surface until October 2002, as was his claims in the articles he had written about him and he wrote. It was the claims, after all, which supposeldy caused all the concern at the WH and the alleged retribution. And I hope someone questions Joe Wilson’s accounts of the role of his wife – who, as lead of the IC-wide Iraq Task Force – was in a very powerful position to determine who would check out rumors of illicit nuclear trade with Iraq. These questions go directly at Wilson’s credibility as a witness, and would shed some much needed light on this issue. We may even learn how many times Wilson went to Niger and for what reasons did Valerie send him.
But the jounralists will be much more interesting and humorous. We can all watch as these reporters get grilled and must actually, for once in their lives, be publically honest about what they know. I suspect we will get confirmation that it was both Joe and Valerie as sources for the early stories by Kristof and Pincus. She seems to be the inside CIA source for most of these early stories. Judith Miller, Tim Russert and Mathew Cooper will expose journalism as the facade it is, as they blunder and stumble through their testimony and lack of recollections.
Armitage will be one of the most intriguing witnesses because he probably talked to a lot of reporters, or maybe it was his deputy Grossman. But someone I would wager was talking to Pincus and Miller who has yet to be named. And it will become clear Prosecutor Fitzgerald knew of these exculpatory events and hid them from Libby’s defense team, and the judge. Because what I truly hope comes from this is ethics charges against Fitzgerald for lying in his briefs to the US Court of Appeals and the US Supreme Court. Because Fitzgerald did lie to those courts. He claimed he needed to know who leaked the information about Plame to Novak, when he knew full well it was Armitage. He knew the day he took office. He went on a fishing expidition and made wild claims no less criminal than those made in the Duke rape case by another out of control prosecutor. If the lawyers would like to have the jokes stop, they should take this opportunity to start cleaning up their profession. Duke prosecutor Nifong is only one example of prosecutors running amok. But I am sure he took his cue from Fitzgerald and that buffoon Ronnie Earle in Texas who went after Tom Delay. That is why these mad prosecutors need to be charged and tried. They are setting a very, very dangerous precedence. I know a lot of good, honorable lawyers and prosecutors and they do not deserve to be associated with these clowns.
Ronnie Earle, poster boy for out of control prosecutors who think they can impose their personal political agenda on the American people.
Perhaps another question the defense would like to ask Mr. Joe is exactly what was his business in Niger and who were his clients?
Retire05,
Thanks for reminding me of Earle’s name.
Had Delay not been forced to resign by Earle’s ridiculous accusations, it’s doubtful the Dems would have regained the congress. It’s time that rogue prosecutors were themselves prosecuted.
Hate to burst all your bubble – but as I recall – Tom “The Bugman” DeLay is still under criminal indictment down in Tex-ass – so I wouldn’t be counting any chickens on that score just yet.
When I first read this blog – I couldn’t tell if Strata were stupid or merely a bad speller – there is no such word as esculpatory, for example – but the ridiculous assertion that Patrick Fitzgerald – a very careful man – will be charged with an ethical violation for his prosecution of the perjurious traitor Scooter Libby is so patently absurd that Strata has answered my question with the time-honored Certs reply: He’s both a moron AND a bad speller.
Robert,
I am a typo generator and many times don’t have time for the spell checker. Stupid is a word on stupid people use – don’t ya think?
Stupid is a word on stupid people use – don’t ya think?
Well – it’s possible – as you just used it twice in one sentence. Kind of a tautology, innit?
Robert,
Wow – you are an intellectual giant there kid. One and only warning, get over the insults or leave. I understand not everyone can have quality parents, but someone should have told you that it is impolite to come into someone else’s place and insult them. Sadly, all you did is make Ma and Pa Lewis look like abysmal failures there kid. Did they try to teach you manners?
Insult? Well, I guess if in this atmosphere pointing out that the insulting allegation that Patrick Fitzgerald has violated ethical canons in his prosecution of Libby is an insult, then I’m sorry that you do not understand the role of a US attorney.
Just so you know – United States Attorneys are not bound by the Canons of Ethics promulgated by the various state bars; they answer only to internal DoJ guidelines, and I can assure you that neither in his pleadings or his representations did Fitzgerald “lie” to the court.
If betting is permitted here in the Strata-sphere – I’ll bet you a steak dinner at the restaurant of your choice that your dire predictions of ethical mayhem shall come to naught.
Now Robbie,
Weren\’t you the insecure one who came onto this site slinging \”moron\” and \”stupid\”, illustrating the core of your familial upbringings? I do believe you were. You seem easily distracted and lost there Bob. Did you forget what fool you made of yourself in your introduction here?
And I know US Attorneys and prosecutors – and many agree what Fitzgerald filed were falsehoods. Read them and realize he knew who the leak was to Novak. Not to the media in general (where he may have had some covber), but who leaked to Novak himself. Now I am not a lawyer, but you sound like you might think you know some law. Are you going to claim that a US Attorney is allowed to knowingly file false statements to a Court? That he can claim he doesn\’t know something when in fact he does?
Now that would be an interesting concept. And you wonder why lawyers are the butt of so many jokes about credibility and honor? Too funny. You would want to make all those jokes a reality.
The irony of this trial is that a man who is being accused of lying when he says, “I don’t remember exactly what I said two years ago”, is going to have accusers and witnesses at his trial who are going to say, “I don’t remember exactly what I said two years ago.”
“Weren\’t you the insecure one ”
Uh, no, AJ, I’m not insecure on a website filled with the kind of puerile ignorant crap you dish out.
“Now I am not a lawyer”
Yeah, no fucking shit – cause you surely don’t know what you’re talking about legally. Whether Armitage was or wasn’t the first to leak does not materially alter whether or not there was a conscious effort on the part of Vice President Dick “Go Fuck Yourself” Cheney to punish Joseph Wilson; its also quite possible that there were multiple sources, and Fitzgerald was totally proper in asserting that his right to discover any and all possible leak sources, for purposes of impeachment if nothing else. Keep in mind that Libby’s first perjuries were made BEFORE Fitzgerald was assigned the case – that’s the problem for Libby – he lied oon the record thinking Ashcroft would sweep it all under the rug – and then – whoops! – Libby was unmasked when a real prosecutor got assigned the case; Libby was caught in material lies – to a grand jury no less.
” US Attorney . . . knowingly file false statements to a Court”
Identify the staements you claim are lies, crybaby. All of Fitzgerald’s filings are available as pdf. files. Quote those portions of his pleading you claim are ethically improper. Put up or shut up.
Mr Lewis, I am always amazed at how fast you devout leftist resort immediatley to the personal attack instead of responding to facts. You don’t even know AJ and already you’re spitting venom and four letter words! Musta hit a nerve. I don’t agree with the guy on everything either but his opinion is as important and valid as mine and there is never a reason to get personal with politics. It’s like arguing over who has the right color of car.
I have followed this case closely and I have a few questions. Was Valerie Plames identity as a CIA employee classified? I believe she was an analyst and not an operative. Analysts identities are not classified. So, what law was broke, (Hint, no charges have been filed against anyone for revealing her identy.)
Did she suggest sending her husband to Niger? Her own emails say she did. The reason this matters is that she and her husband were both involved in party politics. If they cooked this mission up just to take a political swipe at the president then they both could be in violation of the Hatch Act.
Did Joe Wilson lie in his NYT article about debunking bogus documents? Can’t deny that one, the document didn’t exist before he claimed he debunked it! As a matter of fact, that’s not the only little fib he’s been caught in.
Is it reasonable for the Vice Presidents chief of staff to be talking to many people about the mission report of a man who said he was sent by the VP’s office when they didn’t even know about it? I’m sure when that report came out, everyone wanted to know who the hell was Joe Wilson and what is up with this report. It would have been Libby’s job to find out who Wilson was and who sent him.
Did Joe Wilson have to sign a standard non-disclosure agreement with the CIA? If not, why not, these things are standard. Nepotism aside, there are many questions about why he would be sent on this mission.
Did the CIA agree with Joe Wilsons assessment of the information he returned with? No, they thought that he actually supported the idea that Iraq was trying to buy Yellowcake from Niger. That’s part of the reason it wasn’t logical to send him there to begin with.
Did Fitzgerald know that Novaks source was Armitage? Yes. Why did he tell Armitage to keep quite? That’s a real good one there. Why did he want to keep quite that at the very start of the investigation, he already knew who Novaks source was, because I can tell you, I read many of his statements and it sure sounds like he is either lying or Clintonspeaking when it comes to what he knew about the identity of Novaks source. Isn’t that what the whole investigation was all about?
So you think that Libby was trying to get back at Joe Wilson by outing his wife. Do you believe that the idea that a partisan hacks wife set him up on a fact finding trip for the CIA without signing a non-disclosure agreement and he happens to come back and call the President of the United States a liar is not something that is going to be discussed by everyone in Washington? What did you expect people to do, ignore that little nugget? The fact that she was the mans wife and was an analyst in the Non Proliferation office is extremely relevant.
One last question. Do you remeber every conversation you had two years ago? I don’t talk to over a hundred people a day like Scooter Libby did and I know damn well I can’t remember who I talked to about anything two years ago.
This whole case was a hatchet job from the very beginning and now Joe Wilson does not want to be put on the stand, how about that. He started the whole mess, now he wants to be left out of it. Is it because he knows that if he is put on the stand, he could perjure himself? Hmmmm. I am so looking forward to this trial. Sidebet, Libby comes out better than Fitz or the Wilsons!
Bikerdude: “I believe she was an analyst and not an operative.”
Funy thing is, it doesn’t matter what YOU think – the CIA – who filed the complaint with the Justice Department – and Patrick Fitzgerald – the Department of Justice employee assigned by the Attorney General to prosecute the case – maintain her identity WAS classified.
“Did she suggest sending her husband to Niger?”
Once again – it doesn’t matter what she SUGGESTED – the CIA – a part of the government last time I looked – DECIDED to send Joe Wilson. The decision to send Wilson was made above her pay grade.
The partisan hacks in this mess are Cheney, Libby, Rove and the other lying draft-dodging cowards populating the most incompetent aned corrupt administration in the history of the Republic – or do you LIKE how things have gone in Iraq?
Get over it, Biker, Libby is going to jail. He lied to a grand jury – he got caught. Case closed.
Lewsi,
Read the links – I point to all the false statements. And if you cannot act like an adult you will be treated like the child you are and sent to time out. Last warning. Grow up or leave.
AJ, ignore this person who posts as Robert Lewis.
He is typical of the leftist lurkers whose only forte is Bush bashing and four letter words. He was probably just taking a break from Puffington Post or DailyKos. Perhaps the class on profanity was out.
Dude – I read your links, and reviewed the excerpts, and absolutely nothing in them could be construed by anyone with any legal knowledge as a lie to the court.
With respect to the alleged lies, all I saw was you asking:
” if Armitage had admitted to the leak which exposed Valerie’s identity which was the focus of the investigation as defined in this submission, isn’t Fitzgerald guilty of lying?”
Answer is, NO.
Fitzgerald is under an obligation to perform due diligence in the investigation, which would include corroborating Armitage’s story to see ascertain if it was correct or not.
“Isn’t his investigation at this point marginal to the subject of the investigation? ”
Again, the answer is NO.
The investigation as chartered by the Department of Justice encompasses ancillary matters, including but not limited to perjury, lying to federal officials and obstruction of justice, all of which Libby is charged with.
You then state:
“I truly believe this deserves a professional and above board investigation. ”
Again, you can believe anything you want, including in the Tooth Fairy or the Easter Bunny, but that don’t make it so.
Clearly you are not interested in a dispassionate explication of the case; you are interested in tarring and feathering the prosecutor to try to rehabilitate the perjurious Libby and mitigate his lies.
For example with respect to the excerpt:
“The Special Counsel’s investigation concerns alleged leaks of purportedly classified information by one or more government officials to reporters in apparent retaliation for a former government official’s exercise of his First Amendment right to publicly criticize the government. During its investigation, the government has made narrow requests to a limited number of reporters for information crucial to the resolution of the investigation.”
You say: “We now know this entire claim is false. The apparent retaliation did not exist because Fitzgerald knew Armitage was the leaker of the Novak story – the incident which was claimed to be the retaliation itself.”
Reductio ad absurdum does not an argument make. Just because Armitage may have been the FIRST to leak does not obviate the possibility that there may have been a criminal conspiracy within Cheney’s office to UNLAWFULLY use public resources to infringe a citizen’s constitutional right to free speech.
What becomes appalling obvious is that your admitted lack of knowledge of legal matters does not inhibit you in the least from making ignorant and ill-advised attacks on a prosecutor appointed by a Republican attorney general to investigate the leaking of the identity of a covert CIA operative (again, as defined by the CIA and the DoJ, not some bloggerdude), something that even Dubbya’s dad, George Herbert Walker Bush, has decried.
Booby – See ya!
Poor Bobby has had to move on because he was incapable of disagreeing like an adult. His inability to state is case without insult is clearly the hallmark of a tried and true liberal. Liberals are welcomed here, but everyone needs to be respectful of each other. One thing really irks me is when I have to read a diatribe of insults from someone who just has a different point of view and is so insecure they cannot express themselves and deal with the fact they are not widely supported in their views.
In any event, I don’t pay for this site just to listen people rant.
Mr. Strata-
I don’t understand your last two posts – in which you apparently banned that Lewis guy – saying he was insulting, but his post immediately before that wasn’t at all insulting, it only pointed out that you had admitted earlier that you were no legal expert, and that your allegations of misconduct by Fitzgerald were unsubstantiated.
As for widely supported in his views, the recent elections and countless polls indicate that his veiwpoint is far more widely held than is yours – your slavish support of the Bush Administration is now held by less than 30% of the population – and indeed, Robert Novak says Bush’s new and improved plan for Iraq – Surge and Accelerate – is supported by no more than 12 Republican Senators.
I guess what you really meant to say was that you don’t pay for the site to allow anyone to best you in an argument, which seemed to be what was happening from my point of view. Whatever.
CONESPLIF,
He was not besting me. He laced his objections to my points with insults. his first post called me a moron and stupid. So he was on his last legs right then and there. If you think I care what Lewis thinks you are sadly mistaken. As I said, I have talked to real lawyers and prosecutors and Fitzgerald did not just fuzz the line. He claimed he had to find out who was behind the leak to Novak and if it was a vendetta. He knew the answer to both. Prosecutorial misconduct is a serious problem. The Plame case is all about nothing. Lewis was crying over Clinton or something – who knows and who cares. But I was clear and gave two more warnings than I planned for him to act mature. Clearly that was beyond his abilities – and now I don’t have to read is classless comments. Fair? I have over 1000 registered users here – and I have had to ban 3. He was just quicker at getting tossed than most.
I suggest you move onto some other topic. Lewis is history.