re: Wilson outed his wife to Novak?? Has that been confirmed? In understood her name was mentioned not to out her, but to legitimately question the source of the report.
Since we now all know that a memo exists from Valerie Plame recommending her husband for the assignment, and Novak's column referred to a Bush Administration official as the source of her name, I'm wondering if it isn't possible that someone at the CIA outted her to Novak. The CIA was being fingered for alot of intelligence failures. This was just another one. But perhaps someone at the CIA was a little tired of the organization being the scapegoat, and decided to advance the tidbit that eventually brought Wilson down.
That is one source that Novak would not protect. It is much more likely that a low-level functionary in the administration -- maybe even a non-political appointee let Washington's worst-kept secret slip.