The following is from a Oct 29, 2003 Transcript of Chat with Ambassador Joe Wilson as it appeared on the old "Restore Honesty" web site:
Chatmaster2 (Oct 29, 2003 10:56:59 AM)
Ambassador Wilson, my sister and I are ardent fans of yours and wish you’d throw your hat into the ring. My questions, all related, are: how do we get a special prosecutor involved in the case involving your wife? Obviously, Ashcroft can’t be allowed to investigate—talk about the fox guarding the henhouse!! Is bush’s statement that he doesn’t know whether the “leaker” will ever be found the end of the issue? Does anyone here believe that if he really wanted to find who leaked your wife’s name, he couldn’t? A crime has been committed—in the name of revenge and intimidation! Is nothing going to happen? HELP!!!!
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 10:57:41 AM)
Thanks very much. For right now, I am most interested in seeing that we get John Kerry elected as the next President so we can get our destiny back on track.
manyrivers (Oct 29, 2003 10:57:50 AM)
I want to personally thank you for your integrity Ambassador Wilson
Chatmaster3 (Oct 29, 2003 10:58:01 AM)
John from Florida asks: Why do you think it took the mainstream media so long to pick up on the uranium story?
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 10:58:54 AM)
I don't know but it generally takes awhile for the press to get on to a story. There is also the fact that until now the press has been cowed by the White House on a lot of this stuff
Chatmaster2 (Oct 29, 2003 10:59:12 AM)
Manyrivers writes: admire your honest stand and your service for our nation. It is refreshing to even hear the word "honesty" in today's political circus. Please then, answer honestly one question. In your opinion, is this war in Iraq about the oil and gas reserves?
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:00:04 AM)
Initially, I think the war was about redrawing the political map of the Middle East. That said, with each passing day it becomes about vested interests, of which oil is a big one
~ snip ~
RonH (Oct 29, 2003 11:03:22 AM)
Ambassador, what was it about Kerry that made you decide to support his candidacy over let's say some of the other 'antiwar' candidates?
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:04:20 AM)
Kerry faced down the Senate over the Vietnam war in a key statement when he said who is going to send the last man to die for a mistake. What I did was easy by comparison.
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:05:06 AM)
Let me add that I was and am not anti war per se. I am and John is anti stupid war. Invasion-conquest-occupation unilaterally is a classic example of stupid war
Chatmaster2 (Oct 29, 2003 11:05:21 AM)
Joseph writes: Ambassador: First, let me express my gratitude for your courageous actions in exposing the lies of the Bush administration as to the Niger incident. My question is, how great a threat is this incident to national security? How possible is it that by revealing your wife's identity as a CIA operative will result in yet another deadly terrorist attack during the Bush administration's watch? Thank you again. Sincerely, Joseph V.
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:07:28 AM)
This was a crime against the national security of my country, the security of which to which both my wife and I many years ago dedicated ourselves. Somebody, to protect their political agenda took a national security asset off the table. That somebody is still in the Administration and might leak again. Do you sleep better at night knowing that? I don't. And it impacts directly on WMD and terrorism
Guest (Oct 29, 2003 11:07:37 AM)
At what point did you lose faith in the Bush Administration and why exactly do you fell that John Kerry is the best candidate?
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:09:25 AM)
When Bush the candidate went to South Carolina and ran a subrosa campaign against McCain accusing his wife of being a drug addict and his kids of not being white (as if that mattered). That is not the change of tone I was looking for. When the neoconservatives got control of our national security policy, I knew we needed to mobilize to fight
Fe (Oct 29, 2003 11:09:37 AM)
Ambassador, do you think Senator Kerry's plan for Iraq peace is viable for the situation and the region? Fe
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:10:56 AM)
It sure is. Take a look at it and you will see that slowly the administration is seeing the wisdom of his ideas. Internationalize, turn over sovereignty, make it a reconstruction rather than an occupation. All that is key to success
Chatmaster2 (Oct 29, 2003 11:11:10 AM)
Dear Ambassador Wilson, On 'Meet The Press' Vicepresident Cheney says that he never met you, and didn't know who you were until you 'outed' the fact that you had been sent by CIA to investigate the supposed sale of yellow cake to Saddam by Niger. Is this true? Do you believe he didn't know who you were? Eugenio
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:12:21 AM)
Cheney was secretary of defense when I was in charge of the embassy in Baghdad. He was an addressee on cables I sent from there. I am sorry his memory is so bad but, frankly, I am not too sorry never to have shaken his hand. I take it as a badge of honor that I don't know him.
~ snip ~
riverrat (Oct 29, 2003 11:17:37 AM)
The leak about your wife was a clear violation of a specific law about exposing the identity of CIA agents. But most leaks don't violate this particular law, although they often involve the release of other kinds of classified information that is illegal under other statutes. Can we really expect to have a government that doesn't leak? Don't people in the executive branch often use classification to hide policies from the public they think would be unpopular?
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:17:50 AM)
That does indeed occur.
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:17:57 AM)
But there are legitimate reasons to classify information.
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:18:16 AM)
The problem in my case was that what was leaked was the name of a national security asset, my wife, which is unprecedented
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:18:40 AM)
not for the purpose of protecting a policy, but for the purpose of protecting a person with a specific political agenda at the expense of the national security of our country
Knight_of_the_Star (Oct 29, 2003 11:18:57 AM)
Ambassador Wilson, what was your initial reaction when you found out that your wife's identity as a CIA operative was leaked to the press?
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:19:07 AM)
My initial reaction was unprintable
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:19:11 AM)
but it starts with an F
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:19:18 AM)
But then I asked myself 2 questions:
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:19:26 AM)
-what did my wife's name add to the article
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:19:29 AM)
nothing
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:19:48 AM)
-and what part of no didn't Bob Novak understand when the CIA told him not to use it
~ snip ~
Guest (Oct 29, 2003 11:25:36 AM)
Mr. Ambassador--if the policy is Iraq is such a failure, and the administration is so nefarious in its handling of the truth, why then is the US public not in a frenzy against Bush et al. What is your take on that?
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:25:57 AM)
It takes time, and effort to educate Americans as to the consequences of some of the actions being taken on their behalf
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:26:15 AM)
remember that during the Vietnam era, it was only 6 or 7 years after Americans were dying there that we realized
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:26:22 AM)
the consequences.
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:26:43 AM)
It was John Kerry, who took that message most directly to the seat of power when he appeared before the Senate. That, by the way
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:27:06 AM)
is the act as distinguished from mere words, that for me makes him the candidate I enthusiastically support
florida (Oct 29, 2003 11:27:12 AM)
can we expose the leaker and nail this administration for once. they have gotten away with so much thus far.
~ snip ~
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:34:12 AM)
John Kerry's personal courage in Vietnam and in front of Congress at a young age
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:34:21 AM) as well as his professional experience have convinced me
*** Joe Wilson (Oct 29, 2003 11:34:29 AM)
that he is best suited to be President of the United States
Great stuff. It goes all the way back to Vietnam for this POS.