Bruce Ensor (CNN) doubts CIA probe of WH will have results.

[Flubadubya]

Bill Hemmer just interviewed this reporter who said that these CIA requests for the investigation of a leak are routine and happen all the time. When asked by Hemmer what were the chances the leaker would be identified he responded that they were practically nill.

He said that he and Dana Bashum (sp?) had recently been asked to give up a source and they did not. He emphasized the fact that giving up a source would end a journalist's career.

Hemmer asked him why this was just now getting attention as it had been known about since July. He said he really didn't know why, just that the media decided to jump on it for some reason. Not once did they discuss the real gravity and criminal ramifications of this charge. They just treated it as another ho-hum leak from the White House. If these "journalists" are right, there will be, again, no consequences to the Bushies, just as they appear to want it to be. :grr:

[nadinbrzezinski]

1. CONTACT Congress TODAY

Don't take the media's word, just CALL NOW, or email or send a letter... and then get ten of your friends to do likewise.

You need to feed and harrass your congress critters.

[DoYouEverWonder]

2. I do believe this is the first time

the CIA has ever requested an investigation of the WH. This is why suddenly the story is a big deal. Someone should tell Hemmer to buy a clue and to stop trying to cover up for these criminals with sorry excuses.

[nadinbrzezinski]

4. But he looks so cute

makes me wonder who wants to kill this, ROVE?

Ooops there goes the Lib'ral media myth

[Flying_Pig]

8. We can expect full scale damage control, and more threats,...

coming from this White House, and directed at their friends, allies, and enemies, in the media. PNAC has many allies in the press, as do PNAC's friends, AIPAC/JINSA/JDL/Likud. This bunch is going to do everything it can to derail and bury this story, so that PNAC/Likud can continue with "Plan-A", which is the domination of the Middle East, and its resources. With Iran and Syria next on Israel's, er, I mean PNAC's, list, as the next countries to invade, they will not be detered easily.

This entire affair will be an excellent example for us to gauge the power these people have over our media, and our government. If they are successful in killing this story, and any probable/possible investigation, we will then know, as we now suspect, that the entire bunch are rotten to the core, and that there is little hope for justice and change in this nation. It will also confirm that the fascist take-over of this country is complete.

Let's all hope this isn't true, and that enough of the press remains free to not only liberate this story, but to also demand justice loud enough, that it cannot be ignored.

[amber dog democrat]

3. The Watergate break in story started that way too

We have the CIA very upset with the cover blown on one of its own.
This may develope into a larger story - and the Chimp may have to toss some one to the wolves. As I understand it, there are no shield laws that protect journalists from having to divulge sources when legeally required to do so.

It all depends.

fingers crossed.

[matcom]

5. The Agency is PISSED!

this has legs folks. the Agency is bullshit with this admin and its time for a little payback.

you just don't make the CIA your scapegoat when you lie and expect no reprisals.

i really think this has traction

[amber dog democrat]

6. let sleeping spooks lie

or else

RIGHT ON

[Drifter]

7. I think the Agency ...

is tired of the ass reaming that it has received from the WH from day one. I think they will once again bring down a President (think JFK, think Nixon).

Cheers
Drifter

[Flubadubya]

9. I hope you are right Matcom, but...

it appears that the "liberal media" is going to do their "loyal and patriotic" part in trying to deep-six the story. Like Ensor said, he just couldn't imagine why this story was getting so much attention now... as though he had already deemed it meritless on its base.

It's certainly going to take MORE than just media attention to get this story's new legs walking, then running.

[matcom]

10. Dadcom says

there ain't no way you do what the Admin has done to this Agency and NOT pay a price. a HUGE price.

if those within the walls are pissed off enough (and they appear to be) expect much more where this came from.

what they did to Wilson's wife is a high crime. think of it this way:

they not only blew HER cover, but threatened national security by also putting all of her contacts/informants/agent contacts in jeprody. this is MUCH bigger than just her.

bank it.

[JHB]

11. Biting the hand...

Looks like *'s overzealous "play or pay" loyalty enforcement ("play my game or I'll make you pay") has stepped on the toes of a big chunk of Poppy's Golden Rolodex.

It's the CIA FAMILY FEUD! C'mon down!

[Flubadubya]

12. So this line about the CIA routinely requesting investigations of leaks...

just phony baloney, or is it that the case is so much more serious than routine leaks? He certainly seemed to want to play down the importance of the CIA asking for this investigation.

[Cocoa]

24. they tried ignoring the Niger uranium story

It was revealed in March that Bush lied in the SOTU, there's absolutely no reason it shouldn't have been a big story at that time.

And there's no reason the media shouldn't have examined the impeachment-worthiness of that lie, then or at any time.

[UTUSN]

13. "Case will FIZZLE" - Our Media to the Rescue

Another cable yakker on the IMUS show this A.M. said that this case would fizzle because "journalists can't give up their sources." Good grief!

[annagull]

14. Wonderful. Our fate in the hands of the Washington Press

Nevermind that at least 5 more know exactly who leaked the woman's name, and none of them reported on it. So do these sources count for a story they didn't report on? I guess it's all about their precious "access", they will sell our country down the river to get their talking points right from the boss's knee.

[FauxNewsBlues]

18. CNN is vapid

They don't want to burn their sources.

Remember CNN admitting that they censored themselves in Iraq, even after Saddam tortured one of their camera men, just so they would continue to get access?

They will allow Karl Rove to step on their balls if he will still give them background quotes.

They seem to forget that burying stories to create access for non stories makes them not a serious news gathering organization.

[annagull]

20. Not to mention covering for Novakula

When I just heard the story on CNN, Hemmer says it was WILSON who said "senior white house sources"--not Novakula! Hemmer looks like a dumb guy, but I think that little slip up was intentional.

[Flubadubya]

22. You bet it was intentional...

I have been watching this guy, and don't think he is in any way inexperienced. He is getting this propaganda thing down pat.

Just this a.m. he mentioned the Clark quote about Bush embarrasing this country. He played the quote, then quickly quipped "His words, not ours." Then, directly on to a sound bite from the Judy Woodruff interview of Lynn Cheney yesterday where she howled, wailed, and bemoaned the "awful language and rhetoric" that the democratic presidential candidates were using in the campaign this year and how she had never seen anything like it in her life.

Oh yes, Mr. Hemmer knows just how to juxtapose these sound bites to get the maximum impact, i.e. bash the Dems and prop up the Pretender. This country is going to Hell in a handbasket, hand steered by its own media.

[Eloriel]

31. That's what I heard from one of the MSNBC reporters

a few minutes ago too. Disgusting.

Re Hemmer -- of all the coverage on all the cable stations during FL 2000, I thought he was the best. Haven't seen much of him since.

Eloriel

[Flubadubya]

32. Better look at him again...

His cute, elfish grin may be deceiving... he has truly gone over to the dark side. He is becoming the consumate propagandist. I HAVE paid attention to him lately and I really don't like what I see.

[NicoleM]

15. it doesn't seem that hard to me

1. Find out which journalists were contacted by the WH about Plame. We already know Novak was.
2. Check phone records from shortly before Novak's article to see who in the WH called those journalists.
3. Interrogate those WH staffers who talked to those journalists around that time.

It seems to now be accepted as fact that SOMEBODY in the WH leaked this information. If you can narrow it down to a handful of people, at least they will be forced to scapegoat somebody.

[PATRICK]

16. Which CIA?

Not to mention the compartmentalization structure keeping the black ops from the intel processors. Tenet? A legal branch? The honest workers?

Just about all news is truncated these days. I am sure the answer is simple, but exactly what CIA authorities are requesting an investigation- or is this from anonymous sources too.

I was really frustrated with the (AP) John Solomon scoop(never identified as sole source scoop)about the AlQaeda mastermind repeated everywhere as if it had come froma WH briefing. Lots of details I would like to have seen, but it flashed by like a billboard, Solomon however made recent history by beinbg asked for sources, bugging his phone etc. It was quite a controversy and here he is again. The missing detail: what were the chief targets for 9/11?

[arwalden]

17. So It's Just A CIA "Formality"

"Was it you?"
"Nope."
"Do you know who it was?"
"Nope."
"Okay. Case closed. Unsolvable."

[Flubadubya]

19. Correction: DAVID Ensor...

and they had him back on CNN just awhile ago touting the same taling point. This case will go nowhere, the reporters will not reveal their sources, it's no big deal, blah, blah, blah... ad nauseum.

God I hope these Media Whores are completely off base on this one. Please, let it be so. :mad:

[Cocoa]

21. that reporter gave the White House spin

Condi said exactly the same thing, said that the CIA "had to" request the investigation, implying that it's somehow automatic and doesn't mean that the CIA has serious concerns.

Who was the CNN reporter?

Any mention of Judy Woodruff's involvement, or the fact that she never reported that the White House outed a CIA agent to her? Not newsworthy?

Edit: Woodruff was not one of the reporters that got the info.

[Flubadubya]

23. Was Judy W. one of the "reportees"?

No wonder. I watched her in Wolfie Blitzer's slot yesterday and remarked to my Dad how, even though she interviewed Colin Powell, and had many opportunities to discuss the White House leak story, she never once mentioned it in the entire two hours she was on.

Now I understand why... she would like to see this one die a quiet death herself.

God I hope this blows up in all their smug little faces!!!

[Cocoa]

25. oops, NOT Judy Woodruff

Andrea Mitchell of NBC, NOT Judy Woodruff.

I've mixed those two up before, I don't know why.

[Imajika]

26. Nothing will come of this story

CNN is reporting accurately. The CIA referring this matter to Justice is just not that big of a deal. There will be no special prosecutor, journalists are unlikely to give up their sources, Democrats have no subpoena power in Congress to do any real further investigation, there will probably be no charges filed of any kind... Further, even if Justice did manage to find out who did the leaking from the administration, it is very unlikely Rove himself would get the blame. Some low level staffers would fall on their swords as is typical of how White Houses work.

I'd bet the White House even signed off on Tenet sending the inquiry to the Justice Department. All this talk of treason charges is just plain silly.

People should stop overhyping news items and turning them into five alarm scandals until there really is some reason to believe they might be something significant. The DU echo chamber turns a story into a scandal, the "Bush is going down" and "this has legs" posts start flying, and then when in the end nothing comes of the entire story people get all depressed and upset.

What is good about this story, no matter how it ultimately plays out, is that the Bush administration has caught another couple days of bad press. Negative media coverage for Bush, no matter what the story, is good news for us.

Imajika

[Flubadubya]

27. You may be right, unfortunately, but...

things are leaked from the White House all the time... but how often are they of a criminal and treasonous nature as this? Does that not count?

To borrow a phrase, "Where's the outrage?"

[Cocoa]

30. what about the administration official who leaked this whole thing?

The fact that there is someone there that seems to know a whole lot of detail about it, and chose to leak it to NBC, tells me that this story may be different.

Remember, Wilson was anonymous at first, right, and then when the story didn't take off on its own he went public. Maybe that will happen this time

Even if it doesn't, it's good to know there's a disgruntled official out there, and it's probably unsettling for Rove.

Maybe this White House will crack under its own paranoia.

[Bozita]

28. Sen Schumer calls press conf for 3pm ET -- call for indy counsel

there's a thread now in LBN

edit:

Here's the link
http://democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=138269&mesg_id=138269

[Flubadubya]

29. Dana Bashum just reporting from the White House...

says that Resident Bush does not intend to have any sort of internal investigation. Well, I guess not. Who needs a stinknn' internal investigation when you already know "who dunnit"?! There will ne no :spank: for that bad boy, no siree!