Cheney Reportedly Interviewed in Leak of C.I.A. Officer's Name

[Snellius]

WASHINGTON, June 4 — Vice President Dick Cheney was recently interviewed by federal prosecutors who asked whether he knew of anyone at the White House who had improperly disclosed the identity of an undercover C.I.A. officer, people who have been involved in official discussions about the case said on Friday.

Mr. Cheney was also asked about conversations with senior aides, including his chief of staff, I. Lewis Libby, according to people officially informed about the case. In addition, those people said, Mr. Cheney was asked whether he knew of any concerted effort by White House aides to name the officer. It was not clear how Mr. Cheney responded to the prosecutors' questions.

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/05/politics/05LEAK.html?hp

[Eurobabe]

1. with all this stress, his stents should fail!!

and that's being generous.

[Gman]

4. Like Hannibal Lector the classic sociopath,

Cheney's blood pressure didn't go up one iota.

[DemoVet]

8. I think his heart is just one big stent....

either that or all of this business about heart trouble is just an elaborate hoax to make people think that Dickless actually has one.

[crossroads]

41. It is another lie! He ... has... no... heart!

:shrug:

[Media_Lies_Daily]

15. At least Lector is an honorable man despite his rather "unique" tastes.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

2. Poor guy!

[SayitAintSo]

3. Routine my hiney .... read this ....

Excerpt from John Dean's article on the subject .... Link below.


"On this subject, I spoke with an experienced former federal prosecutor who works in Washington, specializing in white collar criminal defense (but who does not know Sharp). That attorney told me that he is baffled by Bush's move - unless Bush has knowledge of the leak. "It would not seem that the President needs to consult personal counsel, thereby preserving the attorney-client privilege, if he has no knowledge about the leak," he told me.

What advice might Bush get from a private defense counsel? The lawyer I consulted opined that, "If he does have knowledge about the leak and does not plan to disclose it, the only good legaladvice would be to take the Fifth, rather than lie. The political fallout is a separate issue."

I raised the issue of whether the President might be able to invoke executive privilege as to this information. But the attorney I consulted - who is well versed in this area of law -- opined that "Neither 'outing' Plame, nor covering for the perpetrators would seem to fall within the scope of any executive privilege that I am aware of."

That may not stop Bush from trying to invoke executive privilege, however - or at least from talking to his attorney about the option. As I have discussed in one of my prior columns, Vice President Dick Cheney has tried to avoid invoking it in implausible circumstances - in the case that is now before the U.S .Supreme Court. Rather he claims he is beyond the need for the privilege, and simply cannot be sued.

Suffice it to say that whatever the meaning of Bush's decision to talk with private counsel about the Valerie Plame leak, the matter has taken a more ominous turn with Bush's action. It has only become more portentous because now Dick Cheney has also hired a lawyer for himself, suggesting both men may have known more than they let on. Clearly, the investigation is heading toward a culmination of some sort. And it should be interesting."



http://writ.news.findlaw.com/dean/20040604.html

[drfemoe]

6. cannot be sued?

cannot be held accountable...
Just Exactly How does one achieve that *status* in the scheme of things?

[MO_Dem]

19. Yeah! Remember

the repig mantra from '92 to '00 was that nobody is above the law, namely President Clinton?

[drfemoe]

27. but they's a whoe

bunch of 'em under it, ain't they?

[goforit]

10. Quite fascinating...........It would be interesting to see the two split.

I wonder if Bush and Cheney are trying to outdo each other.

[grytpype]

5. Holy shit on a shingle...

This thing is ready to explode. Any day now.

[Leilani]

11. Don t hold your breath!

How many things have they been held accountable for! Nada!

If the journalists don t talk, then how can they get the truth?

[struggle4progress]

26. Strict accountability is not critical for the political effect:

unanswered questions add up.

[mountainvue]

43. The full article

states that journalists have to testify before the Grand Jury.

[Hand]

7. I'm waiting...

to see Crashcart do the perp walk, cuffs and all. Ahhhhh, that would be sweet!

:evilgrin:

[DemoVet]

9. Hey, when they throw Cheney and Libby in jail,

I wonder which one will get "top bunk" in their cell? I can dream, can't I?

[goforit]

12. Maybe Martha Stewart can fix it all up for them.

Too funny.

[lanparty]

13. The ideal cell

It would be a large area with one toilet containing the following inmates.

* Manuel Noriega
* Augusto Pinochet
* Saddam Hussein
* Suharto
* George Herbert Walker Bush
* Dick Cheney
* "Scooter" Libbey
* Tom Delay
* John Negroponte
* Olliver North
* Ken Lay
* Slobidan Milosivech
* George W Bush

[burrowowl]

14. Add Kissinger!

Negroponte, Reich, Ken Lay, etc.

[lanparty]

17. I forgot Rumsfeld ..

Though the cell is getting kind of big. Maybe they need their own detention facility. We'll call it "Club Greedy Murderous Assholes". I hear there is space at Alcatraz Island.

[soothsayer]

25. Don't forget Sharon.(n/t)

[Just Me]

32. Add Cambone, Wolfowitz, Perle & Woosley, too. n/t

[WhiteTara]

35. Let's not forget Armitage and Negroponte!

[koopie57]

44. and for the guards

Miss England and her fiance *LOL*. I wonder how long Cheney's ticker would hold out if he had a sandbag over his head, butt naked and a big hungry old hound dog nipping at his pecker.

[Media_Lies_Daily]

18. They already have a place like that in every jail. It's called the...

..."drunk tank".

[mithnanthy]

39. Throw Condi in there too...

She can entertain them by playing the piano, among other things.

[librechik]

16. Good ol Friday Night News Dump!

it's better than going to the movies. I love this story. Hope it grows big long hairy legs.

[VolcanoJen]

20. This is HUGH!

Couldn't resist... }(

Ahh, the Long Knives cut off the head of the CIA, and the background emerges. I'm pretty sure most of us saw it coming.

[steely]

21. Kinda like watchin' Law and Order...

I think I just heard a klunk--klunk.

But seriously, it's a shame the assholes didn't consult a lawyer just a little bit earlier, like maybe on the subject of ethics - or even common effin sense?

[Sparky McGruff]

22. Did they tape it?

Are they going to play it on TV like Clinton's depositions?

[natrat]

23. i hope the bastard lives long

enough to see the inside of Leavenworth. Presidents get in trouble a little for lying about hummers. This guy could get , and , undoubtedly deserves life. Mr. Cheney how do you plead?

[grasswire]

24. wait....look at this...

"...but he was not questioned under oath"

GEEZ!

[VolcanoJen]

28. "It was not clear how Mr. Cheney responded."

But... it will be soon. I happen to think the "lawyering-up" was a good indicator.

[radfringe]

29. how long before bush*-cheney self-destructs?

If there's truth behind this article... won't be long before bush* self-destructs, just have to keep turning up the heat

meanwhile, I wonder if someone has told cheney that he needs to rein in his boy.....?

Bush Leagues
Bush's Erratic Behavior Worries White House Aides
http://www.capitolhillblue.com/artman/publish/printer_4636.shtml
By DOUG THOMPSON
Publisher, Capitol Hill Blue
Jun 4, 2004, 06:15

President George W. Bush’s increasingly erratic behavior and wide mood swings has the halls of the West Wing buzzing lately as aides privately express growing concern over their leader’s state of mind.

In meetings with top aides and administration officials, the President goes from quoting the Bible in one breath to obscene tantrums against the media, Democrats and others that he classifies as “enemies of the state.”

Worried White House aides paint a portrait of a man on the edge, increasingly wary of those who disagree with him and paranoid of a public that no longer trusts his policies in Iraq or at home.

“It reminds me of the Nixon days,” says a longtime GOP political consultant with contacts in the White House. “Everybody is an enemy; everybody is out to get him. That’s the mood over there.”

-------snip---------

Tenet wanted to quit last year but the President got his back up and wouldn't hear of it," says an aide. "That would have been the opportune time to make a change, not in the middle of an election campaign but when the director challenged the President during the meeting Wednesday, the President cut him off by saying 'that's it George. I cannot abide disloyalty. I want your resignation and I want it now."

Tenet was allowed to resign "voluntarily" and Bush informed his shocked staff of the decision Thursday morning. One aide says the President actually described the decision as "God's will."

God may also be the reason Attorney General John Ashcroft, the administration’s lightning rod because of his questionable actions that critics argue threatens freedoms granted by the Constitution, remains part of the power elite. West Wing staffers call Bush and Ashcroft “the Blues Brothers” because “they’re on a mission from God.”

“The Attorney General is tight with the President because of religion,” says one aide. “They both believe any action is justifiable in the name of God.”

[spotbird]

30. He was interviewed, but didn't testify.

Like the 9/11 commission, no threat of perjury.

Does anyone know whether if Cheney lied (if?) during his "interview" with the federal prosecutors could he be charged with obstruction of justice? Is obstruction as serious as perjury?

Why wouldn't he be required to testify anyway?

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

31. Oath or no, it's obstruction.

[Just Me]

33. And obstruction of justice is every bit as serious as perjury. n/t

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

34. And once that charge is sorted out, they can still go after him for

Treason.

[Just Me]

36. In addition to an assortment of war crimes and crimes against humanity.n/t

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

38. He could always whip this out!

[dusty64]

37. Someone mentioned yesterday

that crashcart also has retained a lawyer, is there any truth to this?

[skip fox]

40. Both Cheney and Bush probably knew and have obstructed justice

at least by omission and failing to comply with a Presidental order. That's why Bush went to an attorney last week. A full analysis, (with hot links) of WHO the leaker was (prob. Scooter Libby) is parked in DU's Editorial section. If it was Scooter, then both the VP and President implicated in possible obstruction charges (and up for impeachment?):

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=103x54603

[mountainvue]

42. Has Cheney

lawyered up yet?