Lawyer Tells 'Wash Post' Rove Did Nothing Wrong

EditorandPublisher.com ^ | July 2, 2005 - 10PM | E&P Staff

[summer]

NEW YORK An attorney for Karl Rove, President Bush's chief political adviser, confirmed to the Washington Post on Saturday that his client did speak with Time magazine's Matthew Cooper in July 2003. But the lawyer said Rove never identified Valerie Plame as a CIA operative to Cooper in those conversations.

The attorney, Robert Luskin said that Patrick Fitzgerald, the special prosecutor in the Plame case, assured him in October and again last week that Rove is not a target of his investigation.

"Karl did nothing wrong. Karl didn't disclose Valerie Plame's identity to Mr. Cooper or anybody else," Luskin told the Post. Luskin said the question remains unanswered: "Who outed this woman? ... It wasn't Karl."

..."Cooper has said that more than one confidential source is identified in his e-mails and the notes of interviews he conducted in July 2003," the Post reported.

[summer]

In another article it said Karl Rove had previously "signed a waiver authorizing reporters to testify about their conversations with him," I am wondering what exactly then was the "big scoop" by Lawrence O'Donnell?

It seems to me that FR posters were correct - O'Donnell WAS full of it.

[L.N. Smithee]

Lawrence O'Donnell = CREEPY LIAR!

[af_vet_1981]

The attorney, Robert Luskin said that Patrick Fitzgerald, the special prosecutor in the Plame case, assured him in October and again last week that Rove is not a target of his investigation.

Cooper and Miller will be targets if they testify because they tried to frame Karl Rove and the SP knows it ...

That is why they can't testify before the Grand Jury

Perjury Trap ...

[Archon of the East]

Does the fact that Plame was not an undercover agent at the time have any bearing on the outcome. I believe it does. Just don't tell that to the DUmmies I visited them for the first time today and they are quite the hoot. As the saying goes you just can't make their stuff up, at least not without a drug induced paranoia

[South40]

I sure hope my lawyer would say I "didn't do it" too.

[summer]

In the 4th paragraph currently posted on this E&P article it states:

He [Rove's lawyer] noted that Rove had testified before the grand jury "two or three times" and signed a waiver authorizing reporters to testify about their conversations with him.

Why was that important info omitted by Lawrence O'Donnell in his "big scoop"?? I am guessing if it had been included, then O'Donnell's "big scoop" would have been a big nothing.

[summer]

Re your post #2 - I now agree. See my post above.

[summer]

I sure hope my lawyer would say I "didn't do it" too.

His lawyer needed to speak out ASAP, because another E&P article today implied that Rove had become the target of the investigation. So, the lawyer is clearing up that error, by saying NO, Rove is NOT the target of any investigation.

I think that is important to know, and the lawyer had a duty to say that. So, I disagree with your spin here.

[stinkerpot65]

All the Bush-haters will be suicidal when they see their last chance at a scandal go down the drain.

[DianeDePoitiers]

Lawrence O'Donnell was the person who kept shouting "liar" over and over again when he was in a joint interview with John O'Neill, to prevent O'Neill from speaking. I forget which show it was, but Pat Buchanan was filling in as the moderator and he couldn't get O'Donnell to stop shouting.

[summer]

I honestly feel a bit peeced that Lawrence O'Donnell and Matt Cooper did not imply in any way whatsoever that Matt Cooper already had permission from Rove to talk about whatever. O'Donnell, and Cooper, and Time made it sound like a huge secret, when in fact. Rove had already given a waiver as did the other person, Libby whatever. It's just a lot of smoke and mirrors there in the MSM.

[summer]

I honestly feel a bit peeved that Lawrence O'Donnell and Matt Cooper did not imply in any way whatsoever that Matt Cooper already had permission from Rove to talk about whatever. O'Donnell, and Cooper, and Time made it sound like a huge secret, when in fact. Rove had already given a waiver as did the other person, Libby whatever. It's just a lot of smoke and mirrors there in the MSM.

[rface]

I found an exceptional paragraph that I want to share:

Big deal. It appears Evil Karl, the demented genius of the Bush machine, is the leaker who outed Valerie Plame to Matt Cooper of Time Magazine, according to Greg Mitchell of Editor & Publisher. Karl, of course, wanted to burn Joe Wilson who came back from Niger saying Saddam wasn’t there picking up discounts of yellowcake uranium. So Karl outed Joe’s wife for payback. It is illegal under the Intelligence Identities Protection Act to reveal the identity of a CIA agent and a conviction can bring a maximum sentence of 10 years in the clink. Do you think Karl Rove will see the inside of a jail cell? Do you think he will actually be prosecuted? Judith Miller (the Mistress of Propaganda) may waste away in the jail because her employer refuses to spill the beans about her source to a grand jury, but chances are slim to none Evil Karl will ever have to watch the soap or wear an orange jumper. People like Karl Rove don’t go to jail, not unless they are caught red-handed killing six year olds and cannibalizing the remains. Rove may be forced to resign from the Bush administration and even if he is prosecuted the next president will pardon him just like Dubya’s daddy pardoned all those Iran-Contra criminals. Meanwhile, if you’re a black male in the Queens neighborhoods of Cambria Heights and Laurelton, you get racially profiled, dragneted, arrested, and interrogated because a cop was shot (or stabbed) in the leg while attempting to arrest somebody for smoking marijuana. I say it is high time we start profiling Bushcons, although long trials and convictions for crimes against humanity (a fantasy, I realize) and then inevitable pardons are too good for this lot. I believe a special (and remote) penal colony is in order, although I can imagine, left to their own devices, these guys would resort to something along the lines of William Golding’s Lord of the Flies in short order.

[fight_truth_decay]

MSNBC's O'Donnell first offered the Rove revelation Friday night on the syndicated McLaughlin Group political talk show. Today, he went beyond that, writing a brief entry at the Huffington Post blog:

"I revealed in yesterday's taping of the McLaughlin Group that Time magazine's e-mails will reveal that Karl Rove was Matt Cooper's source. I have known this for months but didn't want to say it at a time that would risk me getting dragged into the grand jury.

"McLaughlin is seen in some markets on Friday night, so some websites have picked it up, including Drudge, but I don't expect it to have much impact because McLaughlin is not considered a news show and it will be pre-empted in the big markets on Sunday because of tennis.

"Since I revealed the big scoop, I have had it reconfirmed by yet another highly authoritative source. Too many people know this. It should break wide open this week. I know Newsweek is working on an 'It's Rove!' story and will probably break it tomorrow."

Here is the text of what O'Donnell said on Friday:

"What we're going to go to now in the next stage, when Matt Cooper's e-mails, within Time Magazine, are handed over to the grand jury--the ultimate revelation, probably within the week of who his source is.

"I know I'm going to get pulled into the grand jury for saying this but the source of...for Matt Cooper was Karl Rove, and that will be revealed in this document dump that Time magazine's going to do with the grand jury."

Other McLaughlin Group panelists then joined in discussing whether, if true, this would suggest a perjury rap for Rove, if he told the grand jury he did not leak to Cooper.

Besides his career at a TV journalist, O'Donnell has served as a producer and writer for the series "The West Wing."

According to published reports, Patrick Fitzgerald, the special prosecutor in the case, has interviewed President Bush and Vice President Cheney and called Karl Rove, among others, to testify before the grand jury.

"The breadth of Fitzgerald's inquiry has led to speculation that it has evolved into an investigation of a conspiracy to leak Plame's identity," the Chicago Tribune observed on Friday, "or of an attempt to cover up White House involvement in the leak."

You can see the "unbiased" media doofuses foaming like rabid dogs.
Published: July 02, 2005 1:00 PM ET

[popdonnelly]

O'Donnell is one sick guy. He'd better stop talking about things he knows nothing about.

[cyncooper]

Thank you very much for the ping!

[fight_truth_decay]

Show Your Independence on the 4th -- Burn a Flag and other "anti-American" goodies are on the site you wish FReepers to link to. Thanks for sharing.

[South40]

I think that is important to know, and the lawyer had a duty to say that. So, I disagree with your spin here.

My spin? I basically said what you did (the lawyer had a duty to say that) so why is it spin if I say it?

[operation clinton cleanup]

"I know I'm going to get pulled into the grand jury for saying this but the source of...for Matt Cooper was Karl Rove, and that will be revealed in this document dump that Time magazine's going to do with the grand jury."

Larry knows he will never be called on this.. just using the same old Clinton tactics of the 90's... McLaughlin needs to quit inviting him on the show,

[BoBToMatoE]

Guys, here is a key quote from that story that should be our talking points, imo (out side of the fact that rove dropped his pants and has turned over everything, etc)."Cooper has said that more than one confidential source is identified in his e-mails and the notes of interviews he conducted in July 2003," the Post reported.

Rove answered questions under oath before a grand jury on Oct. 15. According to Luskin, the prosecutor said he believes Rove was candid about his contact with reporters. "I've been assured by the prosecutor they have no reason to doubt the honesty of anything he's said," Luskin said.