Armitage falls on his sword for BushCo.

[DoYouEverWonder]

Armitage Says He Was the Source in C.I.A. Leak

September 7, 2006

WASHINGTON, Sept. 7 — Expressing regret for his actions and apologies to his administration colleagues, Richard L. Armitage, the former deputy secretary of state, confirmed today that he was the source who first told a columnist about the intelligence officer at the center of the C.I.A. leak case.

“It was a terrible error on my part,” Mr. Armitage said in an interview. He added, “ There wasn’t a day when I didn’t feel like I had let down the President, the Secretary of State, my colleagues, my family and the Wilsons. I value my ability to keep state secrets. This was bad and I really felt badly about this.”

Mr. Armitage also confirmed that he was the anonymous government official who talked to Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward in June 2003 about Valerie Plame Wilson, the C.I.A. officer, in what is the first known conversation between an administration official and a journalist concerning her.

Mr. Armitage, who has been criticized for keeping his silence for nearly three years, said he had wanted to disclose his role as soon as he realized that he was the main source for Robert D. Novak’s column, published on July 14, 2003, which identified Ms. Wilson as a C.I.A. intelligence officer.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/07/washington/07cnd-armitage.html?hp&ex=1157688000&en=bba0b7a224a2ab60&ei=5094&partner=homepage


Thanks for the apology, Dick. Now what about the rest of the criminals in this misadministration who were involved in this scandal? When are they going to come out and tell the truth?

[H2O Man]

1. Interesting.

In the article, Mr. Armitage says he wanted to go public as soon as he realized he was Novak's source, but that Patrick Fitzgerald asked him not to. That was in October 2003. As DUers know, Mr. Fitzgerald had no association with the case at that time.

[dogday]

4. Doesn't that make him a liar?---------gasp.....?

Or am I missing something here?

[DoYouEverWonder]

7. Oops

Seems he a little too enthusiastic to confess.

Nice catch.

[JimDandy]

40. Enthusiastic? Good grief he was falling all over himself

to "confess his sin." If he did, in fact, 'out' Plame, then fessing up this late in the game just makes him an almighty coward. He's in good company -- cowardice is pervasive within the B*** administration.

edit to add phrase.

[stop the bleeding]

13. I got some dumb questions

1. Why was Armitage walking around DC in June and July talking about Valerie Plame - just seems kinda of sudden.

2. What was the motive/energy/motivation/players behind Novak writing the article? - Slow week at the office? No, needed the money? no, was part of something bigger sinister. maybe.

3. Why has Libby put himself into the pickle has is in knowing what he knows from his law background along with who he is up against(Fitz).

4. Why would Fitz still be investigating this/indict Libby last year when according to the article the Justice Dept knew from the get go.

Good catch H2O and my questions are more rhetorical than real questions, the bottom line is nothing about this "mea culpa" fits correctly in the overall actions of other players involved in this saga.

take a deep breath everyone cause this stinks

[yojon]

20. I smell something stinky...

[RC]

2. Sure! Anything you say.

Why do I doubt this guy leaked Plame? We'll start with his lips were moving...

[WinkyDink]

3. Frankie Pentangeli.

[Annces]

15. Meaning Armitage has done so much bad stuff himself

that he can be blackmailed at any time?

[johnnypneumatic]

5. fine, arrest him for treason

isn't that what ghwb said it was?

[Annces]

6. I smell a skunk

Armitage is trying to draw the hound dogs away from the real trail. I think the Wilsons should draw and quarter him.

[SmokingJacket]

8. "richard" armitage?

I thought his first name was "Patsy."

[Imagevision]

9. Robert Novak said only that it was two "senior administration officials

so who is the S-E-C-O-N-D person??

[blogslut]

10. We had a saying

when I waited tables: "If you want to spread news, tell a waitress and then tell her to keep it a secret."

So big mouth Richy just happened to see the memo about Plame on Mark Grossman's desk...a memo that came from who again?

[liberal N proud]

11. I think he is falling on his sword for KKKarl Rove.

Maybe Dicky but probably KKKarl.

[Imagevision]

12. Armitage was one, who was the second person, according to Novak...

[BuyingThyme]

14. Armitage had nothing to do with it.

And why is he apologizing to Bush while Bush says he approved the leak?

Get the story straight, you fucking retarded Nazis.

[H2O Man]

16. "....Bush says he approved the leak?"

When?

[BuyingThyme]

17. Where have you been?

http://zfacts.com/metaPage/lib/NYT-Bush-approved-Libby-leak.pdf

[Annces]

18. Bush approved leak of intelligence on Iraq, not Plame

It says that in your link too.

[BuyingThyme]

19. Nice try, but wrong.

The article and the pertinent leaks are about Plame, in particular about Libby leaking to Miller. You're going to have to read more than just one line.

[H2O Man]

23. Speaking of

"get the story straight," perhaps you should .... because that information is ONLY about Bush okaying Libby's telling Miller about parts of the classified NIE. It does not indicate that Bush okayed exposing Plame.

[BuyingThyme]

26. That's the whole point.

They want to make Libby look like he was doing what he believed the President wanted.

Maybe you should do a little more reading and a little less writing.

[H2O Man]

27. You are a clown.

But you aren't funny.

[BuyingThyme]

30. Look, don't be so embarrassed. By attempting to attack me you have exposed

the fact that you have absolutely no idea what you're talking about. That, of course, has nothing to do with me, so please focus the rage of your embarrassment elsewhere. No biggie.

How about you just say, "Oh, yeah. I totally forgot about that." It will be much more believable.

[H2O Man]

31. Clown!

You made a silly claim that about Bush. It's not true. It shows you don't have an understanding of what has been reported.

[BuyingThyme]

33. But you've already admitted it's true. Now you're fighting with yourself.

Do you think you might win?

Or do you think people here are so stupid that they might read what you've written and decide to ignore all of the articles which show that Bush approved the leaks in order to go after Plame? Is that what you want?

I don't think that's a good strategy for you because people just might side with reality. Maybe we can come up with something else.

[H2O Man]

35. Funny.

Find a single example. Clown.

[BuyingThyme]

37. I don't understand what you're asking for.

Do you want more articles about Bush approving leaks to go after Plame and Wilson? We can do that if you want, but, again, not a good strategy for you.

[Annces]

42. I thought I was helping out in clarifying a point,

but in this case, I made a mistake.

[H2O Man]

25. Right.

The information in question, as you know, was part of the NIE. Mr. Fitzgerald's court filing made reference to Libby's grand jury testimony about Bush and Cheney having "ordered Libby to disclose details of a previously classified intelligence report as part of an effort to rebut criticism by .... Joseph C. Wilson IV. This disclosure provoked speculation that Bush or Cheney had instructed Libby to disclose Plame's identity." ("Libby Wasn't Ordered to Leak Name, Papers Say"; WashPost; 4-13-06) Those who have read the court documents, and have the capacity to comprehend them, know that these documents do not indicate that Bush okayed leaking Plame's identity.

[BuyingThyme]

29. Libby wasn't "ordered" to leak anything.

He was given permission to use classified information to go after Plame.

You might as well say, "Libby has never been ordered to show up for work."

[H2O Man]

32. Silly.

You should take the time to learn about the case.

[BuyingThyme]

36. I clearly know more about the case than you, or you wouldn't have

gotten yourself into this mess.

How about you come up with a story about how Fitzgerald might be working on two different projects in the same file. You can claim that he's collecting information about the President's activities in relation to Libby not for the Plame case, but for a book about male bondage. That would explain how you got this so wrong.

[Imagevision]

28. So it was Bush and Armitage, the two Novak was refering to

[H2O Man]

34. No.

As as been reported numerous times, Novak's sources were Rove and Armitage. The person who said Bush okayed Libby revealing Plame's identity is a clown.

[BuyingThyme]

38. Don't mind the name calling. People do things like that out of horrible

embarrassment.

Some people even try to mislead other posters about the content of the very thread in which they're posting. But all one has to do is to review the thread to see why the name callers do what they do.

But there's always hope. A name-caller just might do the right thing, and actually take a moment to learn something.

[Catherine Vincent]

21. I was wondering where this thread was.

This thing with Armitage doesn't make sense.

[DoYouEverWonder]

22. Does anything make sense anymore?

I think the WH is heading for a meltdown and they're flinging spaghetti in every direction.

That little revolt over in England against Blair should be making Bush & Co a little nervous to say the least.

If one of the big ones falls, the rest will soon follow.

[gkhouston]

41. no, it doesn't. Smells like a distraction rather than a revelation.

So, how many firewalls are left, and can Fitzgerald find the means to break through them?

[Chimichurri]

24. I wonder what he gets in exchange for selling his soul to the devil.

[KamaAina]

39. There goes the last one of the whole lot for whom I had a shred of respect

he has to go and pull a stunt like this.

Now they're all nothing but a bunch of, as Hunter S. Thomposn would say, "cheapjack punks and liars". :grr: