21 Administration Officials Involved In Plame Leak

[paineinthearse]

Bookmark this link - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal - it is a most excellent compillation of major media articles detailing involvement of 21 WH officials.

=========================================================

21 Administration Officials Involved In Plame Leak
The cast of administration characters with known connections to the outing of an undercover CIA agent:

Karl Rove - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#rove
I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#libby
Condoleezza Rice - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#rice
Stephen Hadley - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#hadley
Andrew Card - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#card
Alberto Gonzales - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#gonzales
Mary Matalin - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#matalin
Ari Fleischer - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#fleischer
Susan Ralston - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#ralston
Israel Hernandez - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#hernandez
John Hannah - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#hannah
Scott McClellan - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#mcclellan
Dan Bartlett - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#bartlett
Claire Buchan - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#buchan
Catherine Martin - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#martin
Colin Powell - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#powell
Karen Hughes - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#hughes
Adam Levine - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#levine
Bob Joseph - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#joseph
Vice President Dick Cheney - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#cheney
President George W. Bush - http://www.thinkprogress.org/leak-scandal#bush

[Fire Walk With Me]

1. So to keep his "promise", does W have to fire himself?

[Imagevision]

5. Bush? residnation not accepted - Impeachment for War crimes.

this punk needs to be wrung thru the court system.

[thereismore]

2. looks like a few bad apples to me. Or, could it be conspiracy? nt

[Imagevision]

3. Well now, it's a safe bet to say odds of indictment look pretty strong

I expect Fitzgerald to have a field day when indictments are handed down. DSM should be linked to these people as well.

[skip fox]

4. Even the minimal numbers we know about imply multiple indictments.

I think, in fact, that Rove may receive at least 2 indictments and others will receive at least one apiece. The numbers of leakers (original sources) and officials needed for confirmation of the story MILITATES planning. We know that there were 6 reported contacts or original sources (John Dean says 6; we know of three: Rove, Libby, and Miller's source who will not specifically release her from her confidentiality agreement) and multiple (3-4) confirming sources, it becomes apparent what occurred. One administrative official discovered the Plame-Wilson-Niger relationship, took it to the White House Iraq Group, turned it over to Rove, who on the spot assigned tasks to different primary leakers/sources assuring no source called another source's contact (so as not to appear too eager), that no source's "pitch" was exactly the same but that their information was all given in an "off hand" manner (e.g., "Don't go too far out on this Wilson thing, I don't want you burnt").

To have 6 calls from 3 leakers is an indication of a coordinated endeavor. If there were the 6 leakers as Dean claims would make the case even more damning. But also consider the planning necessary to have enough confirming sources. Unsure of who the reporters may call to confirm, someone would have to make sure at least 2 other officials were ready and willing to confirm if called.

Therefore a master-mind would have been necessary to coordinate all these calls and confirmations (as many as 11 as was storied last week).

[longship]

7. Possible Charges

Perjury
Conspiracy to suborn perjury
Obstruction of justice
Conspiracy to obstruct justice
Violation of 1982 Security Act (I know that's not what it's called?)
Conspiracy to violate 1982 Security Act
Treason
Conspiracy to commit treason

Any others?

Don't forget multiple counts on some (many) of the lower charges. These guys have been stonewalling this for over two years. There's gonna be plenty of multiple count indictments.

[paineinthearse]

9. If I could expand the scope

to the chairs of the various House and Senate committees that have been stonewalling any investigation - conspiracy to obstruct justice, an impeachable offense.

[Peace Patriot]

18. Yeah, but I still think there's something to my theory--that the outing

was done in panic mode. I do think they had a long term plan to "get" Wilson and the CIA, but I think something triggered haste and foolish risks--for instance, involving at least 6 journalist witnesses to treason.

My guess: They got word from Tony Blair on July 7, 2003, that the Brits' chief WMD expert David Kelly, who had been whistleblowing on the "sexed up" intel docs, knew something far more damaging, and my best guess at what else he knew is that the Bush Cartel had tried to PLANT nukes or other WMDs in Iraq--for the enormous political gain to Bush/Blair when the WMDs were "found"--and that this dangerous, deceitful, rotten scheme had been foiled. Here's the time-line:

May 22, 2003: Kelly starts whistleblowing anonymously to the BBC, after the invasion, on the Brits' "sexed up" Iraq WMD intel docs.

July 6, 2003: Wilson publishes.

July 7, 2003: After Kelly is identified and interrogated, Blair is informed that Kelly "could say some uncomfortable things"--"COULD say," not HAD said. (Hutton report.) Spec: Blair calls Bush on AF-1, on the Africa trip, and warns him that Kelly knows about their plot; Plame memo may have already been in circulation in anticipation of Wilson's article (there is evidence that it was expected); but the warning from Blair triggers a panicky full-court press to get Plame outed immediately, with scattershot contact with multiple reporters, involving numerous top Bushite officials.

July 14, 2003: Plame outed (Novak takes the bait).

July 18, 2003: Kelly found dead, in highly suspicious circumstances; his office and computers are searched.

July 22, 2003: Second Plame outing (also by Novak) of the entire CIA weapons monitoring operation--Brewster Jennings--disabling all projects and putting all covert agents at great risk.

It's a pretty good theory to explain the utter foolishness and lack of caution of this conspiracy--that they were already guilty of something far worse than exaggerating their claims against Iraq; they were guilty of an attempted outright deception, not just in the words they'd said, the lies, but in the actual physical movement of nukes, or other WMDs, to Iraq. Which somebody foiled. Maybe Kelly himself (it fits his character). And maybe, when they got into his computers, they found connections to Brewster Jennings, directly or through its extensive network of covert eyes and ears on WMDs around the world--thus, the second, gratuitous outing of BJ, greatly increasing their risk of treason charges, and unnecessary as "punishment" of Wilson--or at least unnecessary in the way it was done, so blatantly.

One of Kelly's last emails was to Judith Miller--the one in which he warned of the "many dark actors playing games." She had cultivated him as a WMD expert, and had used him as a major quoted source in her book "Germs." (She fails to disclose either of these things in a news article she wrote about his death for the NYT, July 21--and I suspect she put words in Kelly's mouth in that article; she has him criticizing US troops for not looking hard enough for WMDs--doesn't suit his state of mind at the time--whistleblower; but it does serve her interests.)

I also have a suspicion that it was might have been Miller who outed Kelly to Brit intel, in late June. Somehow they found out it was him (he then admitted it), which started the whole train of events that led to his death--officially a suicide, but one that just about screams "assassination" when you review the details, and when you get a sense of Kelly's character--a legendary tough guy, and a brilliant scientist.

It was Judith Miller who was all primed to "find" WMDs in Iraq--running around Iraq with the US troops "hunting" for WMDs, on a special "embed" contract signed by Donald Rumsfeld. Are we to think that the Bushites--after all the prep they did of the public--were just sitting around, hoping she would find some? Not likely.

There were some reports in the Iranian and Pakistani press about covert US arms shipments at Basra, and a bungled plot to plant WMDs. Whatever the truth of this matter, I think the coincidence of dates of the Plame outing and Kelly's death are too much to ignore. And I think that the Bushites actions, in outing Plame, smell of haste and carelessness. I think that was not the way they had planned to do it.

[Quakerfriend]

20. Great summary, PeacePatriot.

I had begun to lose track of the scenario.

We are rooting for you< Fitz!!

[KoKo]

27. Good summery and interesting theory.

The timeline of when Kelly died is very interesting when one sees how it fits. So much has gone on it's hard to keep all the dates straight. It's helpful when DU'ers can put this together and repost.

Thanks :-)'s

[dalloway]

28. well written summary--you should make this its own thread

[elehhhhna]

6. 21? Blackjack!

It looks like the invitation list for Satan's Christmas party.

[GreenPartyVoter]

8. Come on, Fitzy. America and the world are counting on you!

[longship]

11. Counting on Fitz!

But can you imagine the difficulty of handing down such indictments in today's political environment? He has to know that Rove and Co will be wasting no time or expense to portray the whole investigation as a partisan political smear.

What's much worse is that the House and Senate won't be able to initiate hearings with all the Repugs standing firmly behind CuckooBananas and his minions.

I envy Fitz's intestinal fortitude, but I don't envy the position he is in. He's gotta be under incredible pressure, both professional and personal.

Could we see indictments on the last Friday of the current * vacation?

[Imagevision]

10. 21? I love when the laws of average on on my side and yours!

[Imagevision]

12. Must read - Excellant post-thanx!

[KansDem]

13. Hahaha! NOW I support building new prisons...!!!

At lest ONE more to hold these lying, traitorous scumbags...

On second thought--Reopen Alcatraz and put them there. No upgrading of facilities; no remodeling; no modernizing; no cleaning. Just put them there and drop them a food package once a week. No rules or regulations; just keep them on the island and let them "govern" themselves...

[Al-CIAda]

14. .

[calimary]

15. Kick - a STELLAR resource!

Worth noting!

[paineinthearse]

36. We all do our part

There is so much information I find it incomprehensible that the people are not in the street every day.

Perhaps Crawford today, this week's vigils and DC on September 24 will change that.

[Catrina]

16. Those are just administration officials

What about those in the press who helped them?

Robert Novak
Judith Miller
Jeff Gannon

And then there are:
Tenet
Colin Powell
Armitage
Bolton (I didn't see his name there).

I'm not sure how much of a role the first three played, but Bolton should be on that list, imo.

[dxstone]

17. Terrific resource, paine!

Will have to do some serious reading here!

SAY!!!... I know how they can get to the bottom of all this...

EVERYBODY GOES TO GITMO!
Bush Orders ALL Senior Administration Officials To Be Tortured!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x4329643

[paineinthearse]

19. .

:kick: to keep this alive

[Coexist]

21. kicking!

great stuff - any news on Fitzgerald and the investigation?
It's been all Cindy all the time (not that that's a bad thing, mind you!)

[Al-CIAda]

22. .

[gasperc]

23. nope, no organized effort there

eom

[ElsewheresDaughter]

24. THEY ARE WAR CRIMINALS ONE AND ALL!

[rman]

25. 21 Administration Officials involved in a coverup regarding forged

documents, that are the basis for the nuclear scare that got public opinion in favor of the war.


"Iraqi babies thrown out of incubators" was a lie,

"Saddam tried to buy uranium" is an even bigger lie.


While the Plame leak is very significant and people must be held accountable for it, it is not what started this thing, it is not the core of the issue.

[rman]

26. Am i right or am i right?

[rman]

29. kick

[Al-CIAda]

30. .

[Imagevision]

31. 21? - laws of averages look good!

[Al-CIAda]

32. .

[DELUSIONAL]

33. Kick

I had no idea that there were so many players -- everyone should read this!

[Skidmore]

34. So, were Little Boots and the Borg questioned under oath

by Fitzgerald or was this one of those handholding sessions where Caligula got to change his answers and use a cheat sheet?

[Al-CIAda]

35. .