Libby: Bush Outed Valerie Plame (from John Conyers)

Thursday, April 6th, 2006

Libby: Bush Outed Valerie Plame

According to documents submitted in his defense, Scooter Libby alleges that President Bush provided the authorization to leak Valerie Plame's identity and destroy her career as an intelligence agent. So why is everyone reporting this story by explaining that the President declassified the National Intelligence Estimate? This is true, but the real story here is not the President leaking, or declassifying, the NIE. If what Libby alleges is true, the story is about the President telling the world that he would fire anyone who leaked the identity of Valerie Plame when he knew it was himself. In fact, the President said:

Q Given -- given recent developments in the CIA leak case, particularly Vice President Cheney's discussions with the investigators, do you still stand by what you said several months ago, a suggestion that it might be difficult to identify anybody who leaked the agent's name?

THE PRESIDENT: That's up to --

Q And, and, do you stand by your pledge to fire anyone found to have done so?

THE PRESIDENT: Yes. And that's up to the U.S. Attorney to find the facts.

Q My final point would be -- or question would be, has Vice President Cheney assured you --

THE PRESIDENT: It's up to the --

Q -- subsequent to his conversations with them, that nobody --

THE PRESIDENT: I haven't talked to the Vice President about this matter, and I suggest -- recently -- and I suggest you talk to the U.S. Attorney about that.

Well, not only had he spoken to the VP about this, according to Libby, but he expressly directed Cheney to use this sensitive information against Plame.

Very clearly, the story here is did the President tell the truth to the American people about the leak and who is going to get fired?

MediaMatters.org has extensive coverage of the reporting on Libby's statement.

http://www.conyersblog.us/archives/00000420.htm