Breaking on MSNBC - Valerie Plame's lawsuit

[malaise]

dismissed by Federal judge.

[H2O Man]

1. Yep.

The only chance for justice comes from a congressional investigation.

[global1]

2. What A Bunch Of Crap - What Do We Know About This Judge? Is There .....

a possibility for appeal.

[CottonBear]

3. No way? Is this lawsuit against the Bush* administration? n/t

[malaise]

10. Yes. Details coming up on MSNBC n/t

[blondeatlast]

4. Say WHAT? Of course I believe you, but...

:wow:

Wonder who appointed that judge...?

Nah, couldn't be... :banghead:

[MissMillie]

5. well, we know who appointed that judge now... don't we

Why is America still asleep?

[H2O Man]

16. Judge Bates

is a poodle who has long found comfort nestled in the lap of conservative republicans. From 1995-97, he served as Deputy Independent Cousel to the Whitewater "investigations." In 2002, he dismissed the congressional General Accounting Office lawsuit seeking disclosure of the Vice President's Energy Task Force records.

[IChing]

25. thanks H2O Man...

What a bunch of crap.

[0007]

30. What a system these guys have!

Judge John D. Bates

[yardwork]

34. Hm. He looks like he might have a secret life....

Just sayin.

[RedStateShame]

37. Please, Larry Flynnt, please PLEASE tell you have some dirt on this guy!!

How sad that almost 10 years after the Big Lewinsky, the head of Hustler is working harder than most "journalists."

[Botany]

77. From Wiki

Appointed by W, worked with Ken Starr on Clinton, and picked by Rehnquist to be on the F.I.S.A. court

John D. Bates was appointed United States District Judge for the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia by President George W. Bush in December 2001. He graduated from Wesleyan University in 1968 and received a J.D. from the University of Maryland School of Law in 1976. From 1968 to 1971, he served in the United States Army, including a tour in Vietnam. Judge Bates clerked for Judge Roszel C. Thomsen of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland from 1976 to 1977 and was an associate at Steptoe & Johnson from 1977 to 1980. He served as an Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Columbia from 1980 to 1997, and was Chief of the Civil Division of the U.S. Attorney's Office from 1987 to 1997. Judge Bates was on detail as Deputy Independent Counsel for the Whitewater investigation from 1995 to mid-1997. In 1998, he joined the Washington law firm of Miller & Chevalier, where he was Chair of the Government Contracts/Litigation Department and a member of the Executive Committee. Judge Bates has served on the Advisory Committee for Procedures of the D.C. Circuit and on the Civil Justice Reform Committee for the District Court, and as Treasurer of the D.C. Bar, Chairman of the Publications Committee of the D.C. Bar, and Chairman of the Litigation Section of the Federal Bar Association. He was a member of the Board of Directors of the Washington Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs. In 2005, he was appointed by Chief Justice Rehnquist to serve on the U.S. Judicial Conference Committee on Court Administration and Case Management. In February 2006, he was appointed by Chief Justice Roberts to serve as a judge of the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. (Ed. Note - The preceding paragraph was copied from his official biography.)
As a District Court Judge, Bates dismissed the GAO's effort to learn with whom Cheney's energy task force conferred.
On July 19, 2007, he dismissed a lawsuit filed by Valerie Plame Wilson and her husband against Vice President Dick Cheney, White House political adviser Karl Rove, former White House aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby and former Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage. Plame's lawyers had said from the beginning of the lawsuit that it would be quite difficult to win, since public officials and servants are generally immune from such suits filed in connection with their jobs. Plame's identity as a CIA field operative was revealed in a syndicated newspaper column in 2003. This revelation coincided with (Plame's husband) Wilson's criticism of the Bush administration's policy in Iraq. Many opponents of the administration question the timing of the leak of Plame's identity, and assign blame of the leak to officials in the administration. Although several administration officials were questioned in an investigation of the leak, no formal charges were brought, and I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby was then found guilty of lying and obstruction of the investigation as a consequence of his lying.
Judge Bates spent two years working for Kenneth Starr and the Independent Counsel's office during the investigation into President Bill Clinton, specifically Deputy Independent Counsel under Ken Starr from September 1995 until leaving in March 1997.

[kestrel91316]

32. Bought and paid for.

[spanone]

45. a liitle more...

In 2005, he was appointed by Chief Justice Rehnquist to serve on the U.S. Judicial Conference Committee on Court Administration and Case Management. In February 2006, he was appointed by Chief Justice Roberts to serve as a judge of the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court.

[H2O Man]

49. Thank you.

Those behind the curtain do not want this scandal to be exposed.

[ronnykmarshall]

6. SHIT!

So the fuckers keep getting away with it.

[AspenRose]

7. I just heard it on the radio as well

:mad: :nuke:


(CNN radio news, top of the hour)

[Mandate My Ass]

8. OMG. You've got to be kidding

Oh please let her testify publicly in front on Congress what the true effects of her outing have been.

This is obscene.

[cureautismnow]

9. That's absolutely ridiculous!

Who the hell does this judge think he is? Can't this be appealed? Damn. :mad:

[DU9598]

36. Appeal

Yeah, you can appeal up to the Court of Appeals stocked full of conservatives and from there you can appeal up to the John Roberts Supreme Court. A regular crime syndicate if I ever saw one.

[Mandate My Ass]

40. Yup, the transformation is almost complete. Disgusting.

The dems should block every judicial nomination for the rest of these criminals' term.

[lovuian]

11. There is NO JUSTICE for these truthful Americans

God Bless them

Our system is UNJUST

[ThomCat]

12. What possible justification did he give?

x(

[dancingme]

13. Cheney gets off again!

we'll never see him under oath in a courtroom.

[Ganja Ninja]

14. Must be some kind of technicality.

They might have refile or appeal.

[malaise]

18. This is all they have so far

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/

[SoCalDem]

15. Bush Judicial Lackeys to Wilsons: Suck It!..n/t

[libnnc]

17. Well, now what?

Who calls the hearing?

[malaise]

21. See H2O Man's reply #1 n/t

[SoCalDem]

26. It's over for now. I wonder what the statute of limitation is.

They could wait until after these thugs are out of office, but I doubt even that would work.. These longterm/lifetime? appointments are sitting on judicial benches all over the country. Remember, MOST of Clinton's judges never even got a hearing, and after 12 consecutice Reagan-Bush, and now 8 of junior, the system is pretty well packed..

and we all know that whatever judgement that might have been made IN their favor, would have been appealed to the SCOTUS..

There is no justice in America, unless you are rich, white, republican or well connected..or all of the above.

[bdamomma]

19. justice means nothing anymore.

[0007]

20. Did junior pull it off again? Who was the judge?

[Pachamama]

22. Can Plame and Wilson just start spilling the beans now?

Or would they be declared enemy combatants, threats to national security and carted off to Gitmo or some undisclosed place????

Holy shit....now its official. King George really does have a kingdom he controls and is above the law....

I feel sick....

[blondeatlast]

23. From Time: "Does Plame lawsuit have a chance?"

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1214526,00.html

(more)

Which is not to say that the couple has no case. On several of their claims — that �vindictiveness and illegitimate animus� caused the Administration to treat them differently from others in similar positions, for example, or that the defendants wrongfully disclosed a private fact about Plame — there may be enough ambiguity about what really happened to propel them beyond a motion to dismiss and into discovery, a process that allows each side to demand piles of information from the other. That's a prospect an already shaky White House surely wants to avoid.

[AspenRose]

24. No doubt we'll be hearing from Ambassador Wilson soon

Can't wait to hear what he has to say about this travesty....don't give up, sir. Keep fighting.

[H2O Man]

27. Request:

If anyone finds a link to the judge's decision, please post it here. Let's keep this thread going.

Thanks,
Pat

[blondeatlast]

35. Post 33 nt

[H2O Man]

41. That is last

summer's filing by the Wilsons' attorneys. I'm looking for the judge's ruling from today. He reportedly dismissed the case without comment on the constitutional issues.

It is important that people read (or re-read) the original filing. Thanks for posting it.

[blondeatlast]

42. Sorry--caught up in the moment. nt

[H2O Man]

48. It's an important

link. I think DUers would do well to read that again. In fact, I happen to have several notebooks of filings, including that one, next to me desk this week.

[blondeatlast]

28. WaPo link, 13 mins. ago:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/19/AR2007071901395.html

[Mandate My Ass]

31. From the link. Dismissed on jurisdictional grounds? WTF?

U.S. District Judge John D. Bates dismissed the case on jurisdictional grounds and said he would not express an opinion on the constitutional arguments. Bates dismissed the case against all defendants: Cheney, White House political adviser Karl Rove and former White House aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby.

[blondeatlast]

38. Why would Rove and Libby be immune (I understand , but don't approve, of the grounds

against Cheney)?

[Mandate My Ass]

44. Clinton wasn't immune to Paula Jones

but these criminal bastards are? No wonder he wouldn't release an opinion. It would read: "IOKIYAR."

[mzmolly]

54. Does that mean the case can be tried in another jurisdiction?

I would think so?

[H2O Man]

58. It will be

interesting to read the judge's ruling. And to hear what the Wilson's legal team says.

[mzmolly]

63. Perhaps it's only a temporary disappointment?

*crossing my fingers*

[malaise]

47. Thanks for the link n/t

[cureautismnow]

64. Normal Duties?!!!!

From the link, "The judge said such efforts were certainly part of the officials' scope of normal duties." Outing CIA officers is part of normal duties?!!! :wtf:

This judge should be tried for aiding and abetting TREASON. :mad:

[blondeatlast]

67. It is if you're part of the Bush cabal. So is lying, cheating, conspiracy,

obfuscation, and serving the interests of the United Subsidiaries of Halliburton.

[blondeatlast]

29. Guess who appointed Judge Bates (as if you didn't know). Can't copy the text, link to his bio:

http://www.dcd.uscourts.gov/bates-bio.html

[blondeatlast]

33. LINK TO LAWSUIT FILING

http://hosted.ap.org/specials/interactives/wdc/documents/PlameLawsuit.pdf

[malaise]

70. Firedoglake link

http://firedoglake.com/
<snip>
. . . the Court finds that, under controlling Supreme Court precedent, special factors — particularly the remedial scheme established by Congress in the Privacy Act — counsel against the recognition of an implied damages remedy for plaintiffs’ constitutional claims. The Court also finds that it lacks subject-matter jurisdiction over the tort claim because plaintiffs have not exhausted their administrative remedies under the Federal Tort Claims Act, which is the proper, and exclusive, avenue for relief on such a claim.

[TwilightGardener]

39. There are no consequences to anything the WH does--it's that simple.

Why are we surprised?

[deminks]

43. SAME JUDGE WHO DISMISSED CHENEY'S ENERGY TASK FORCE RECORDS SUIT

http://thinkprogress.org/2007/07/19/breaking-judge-dismisses-plames-civil-suit/

[Dinger]

82. Damn, That Needs Its Own Thread?

Thanks for posting:)

[Frustratedlady]

46. I just heard the report on the radio and nearly wrecked my vehicle.

WHAT is going on? This is insane. Our justice system is dead, plain and simple. Added: Our justice system is dead, until THE ADMINISTRATION tries to put us in prison.

Anybody ever learn the actual location of the KBR prisons, or even if they were built? Too many things are falling into place to be a coincidence. We have 17 more months?

[Zodiak]

50. He is a Bush appointee.

"Judge Bates was appointed United States District Judge in December 2001. He graduated from Wesleyan University in 1968 and received a J.D."

December 2001 makes him a Bush lackey. See what happens when we keep our powder dry and do not do the hard work that confirmation requires? All this nicety and worry about how we are being seen has installed a legally immune group of criminals into our precious goverment.

I am disgusted, as I have been for a long time. I am disgusted with always being disgusted.

[cureautismnow]

65. Big-Time Conflict of Interest.

If the bastard had any shred of decency, he would have recused himself. :mad:

[Blue_In_AK]

51. With or without prejudice, does anyone know?

Can they refile in a different court?

[blondeatlast]

52. Searching for the decision, not on the 'nets yet that I can see. nt

[malaise]

53. Here

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/19/AR2007071901395.html

[Blue_In_AK]

59. Thanks

He must be basing this on the federal tort claims act?

[blondeatlast]

60. Still don't have the decision though.

I've got CNN, WaPo, and NYT and am refreshing as often as possible.

[H2O Man]

69. There is now

a link at Firedoglake.

Many thanks to DUer "Me" for providing the link in the thread "Can the Wilsons Appeal..."

[leftynyc]

57. Without prejudice

On jurisdictional grounds. Can be appealed and/or refiled.

[blondeatlast]

61. Thanks. nt

[cureautismnow]

55. Can Judge "RW Hack" Bates be Impeached? n/t

[Annces]

56. Holy _______

What a travesty.

[blondeatlast]

62. What you said. nt

[H2O Man]

66. Now

more than ever, we need to demand a serious congressional investigation.

[rudy23]

68. Before the '08 elections? Are you crazy? Think of what FOX news might say!

I hope I'm wrong.

[blondeatlast]

71. Wilson's lawyer's statement:

MELANIE SLOAN, LEGAL COUNSEL FOR JOE AND VALERIE WILSON, RESPONDS TO DISMISSAL OF CIVIL SUIT

Washington, DC -- Earlier today, District of Columbia District Court Judge John D. Bates dismissed Joe and Valerie Wilsons' civil suit against Vice President Dick Cheney, presidential aide Karl Rove, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby and Richard Armitage. While Judge Bates recognized that the Wilsons' claims "pose important questions relating to the propriety of actions undertaken by our highest government officials," he dismissed their suit on a threshold legal issue: that there is no constitutional remedy available to them.

While the Wilsons' lawyers are reviewing the decision, they anticipate filing an appeal. Melanie Sloan, executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington ("CREW"), one of the Wilsons' lawyers, said today, "While we are obviously very disappointed by today’s decision, we have always expected that this case would ultimately be decided by a higher court." Sloan continued, "We disagree with the court's holding and intend to pursue this case vigorously to protect all Americans from vindictive government officials who abuse their power for their own political ends."

http://www.wilsonsupport.org/

[Fleshdancer]

72. "no constitutional remedy available to them"???!?! WTF?

How often is this excuse used to dismiss a case?

[H2O Man]

75. It's a strange

ruling by the judge.

[Hubert Flottz]

73. Another brick in the wall crumbles into dust!

Welcome to the fourth reich...

[Tulum_Moon]

74. FUCK!!!!!

Stopped by walls thrown up at every turn.

[H2O Man]

76. Please consider

donating to the Wilson Legal Support Trust (POB 10918, Washington DC 20016-0918). A reading of Injustice Bates' ruling indicates the Wilson's lawyers can make a strong appeal of today's decision.

[spanone]

78. thanks.

[Rex]

79. And the band just keeps playing...

crimes should mean something to our judicial system, not cheap political points to be made. I gave up on this country on Dec 12th 2000, looks like this is more of the same criminal activity.

It is a crime to out a covert operative or it was until the WH did it.

Fuck Bush and his cronies, I hope they all rot in Hell.

[H2O Man]

80. I spent some

time reading Injustice Bates decision. It is worse than I anticipated. I think that the Wilsons' team can expose the flaws in it on appeal. However, republican lap dogs like Bates do not care about the rule of law. I think that people should consider supporting the Wilsons, and also focus much more attention on pressuring congress to investigate the Plame scandal.

[Rex]

83. I hope you're right, I can't believe the ruling.

Thanks for keeping us posted! :yourock:

[bleever]

85. I'm halfway through this stinking pile of sophistry

and just have to say that I agree about Bates. He turns the rule of law into the law of the rulers.

For example, he states that Mrs. Wilson suffered "no adverse employment actions" by her employer. Apparently the loss of her covert status had merely coincidental effect on her ability to be a covert officer.

Or in the words of Elvis Costello's Tramp Down the Dirt, "...You've only got the symptoms/You haven't got the whole disease".

This is far, far from over.

[Dave From Canada]

81. All of you sound just like Bill O'Reilly when ever there's a decision by a judge that he doesn't

agree with.

[Rex]

84. Thanks for the joke!

I really needed that! :rofl:

[blondeatlast]

87. Beauty, eh?

:rofl:

[Dave From Canada]

88. Unfortunately it's no joke. It's gotta suck to be just like Bill'O. The truth hurts sometimes.

[Canuckistanian]

86. Yeah, these "liberal activist" judges are a bitch, eh?

Welcome to DU.

Stick around, read a few posts, do some research.

Then you'll see what people are so upset about.

[Dave From Canada]

89. Who said anything about "liberal activist" judges? I sure didn't. I'm just observing

that it seems like whenever a judge hands down a decision people don't like, it leads to attacks and some kind of action to remove the judge. I think it's a dangerous trend.