THE STATE DEPARTMENT PLOT THICKENS (Podhoretz on new Time article)

NRO Corner ^ | 7/31/05 | John Podhoretz

[Republican Red]

THE STATE DEPARTMENT PLOT THICKENS [John Podhoretz] Time Magazine has a new story about the revelation of Valerie Plame's name -- a story that, despite Time's own bizarre spin, reinforces the claim that Karl Rove and others learned that Joseph Wilson was married to a CIA operative from the media.

"As the investigation tightens into the leak of the identity of covert CIA operative Valerie Plame, sources tell TIME some White House officials may have learned she was married to former ambassador Joseph Wilson weeks before his July 6, 2003, Op-Ed piece criticizing the Administration," writes Massimo Calabresi.

Later, he writes: "The previously undisclosed fact gathering began in the first week of June 2003 at the CIA, when its public-affairs office received an inquiry about Wilson's trip to Africa from veteran Washington Post reporter Walter Pincus....The same week, Under Secretary of State Marc Grossman asked for and received a memo on the Wilson trip...Sources familiar with the memo, which disclosed Plame's relationship to Wilson, say Secretary of State Colin Powell read it in mid-June. Deputy Secretary Richard Armitage may have received a copy then too."

According to Calabresi, "A source familiar with the memo says neither Powell nor Armitage spoke to the White House about it until after July 6."

So what does this tell you?

It tells you that the State Department, which leaks like a sieve, knew about Joe Wilson and Valerie Plame in June. It also tells you that neither Powell nor Armitage talked to anybody in the White House about it until after Joseph Wilson published his New York Times op-ed on July 6 -- though he had clearly been the anonymous source for a piece by Pincus and an op-ed by the Times' own Nick Kristof back in early June.

So for those who think something very bad happened here, why isn't attention now circling around the State Department, whose two top guys at the time -- Colin Powell and Richard Armitage -- leaked like sieves to the media?

Instead of asking that question, Time's Calabresi instead suggests that this "increases the chances that White House official Karl Rove and others learned about Plame from within the Administration rather than from media contacts. Rove has told investigators he believes he learned of her directly or indirectly from reporters, according to his lawyer."

That doesn't follow at all. Doesn't this tale "increase the chances" that Rove and others are simply telling the truth? It seems a bunch of people knew a bunch about this in June, and their names are Walter Pincus of the WaPo, Kristof and evidently Judith Miller of the Times, not to mention Colin Powell and Rich Armitage at State (not to mention State's Marc Grossman and Carl Ford, who generated the memo). Their names are not Karl Rove and Scooter Libby.

Reporters and State Department people were in the know here. Which makes the idea that White House people found out about Wilson's marriage to a CIA operative who got him the gig in Niger from reporters even more plausible

[Republican Red]

Time magazine piece:

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1088666,00.html

I didn't even waste time reading the Time article spin. I'd rather read Podhoretz take on the "new information". He tends to be logical, smart and imo, dead-on with the facts.

[Republican Red]

Workable link to the Time article "When They Knew":

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1088666,00.html

[csmusaret]

Again the finger points at Colin Powell.

[BonnieJ]

Would anyone in the media go to jail to protect Colin Powell?

[Rokke]

Let's think about that for a second...would the media rather protect Powell...or Rove? Hmmm.

[ncountylee]

Yes there are a few.

[kcvl]

So for those who think something very bad happened here, why isn't attention now circling around the State Department , whose two top guys at the time -- Colin Powell and Richard Armitage -- leaked like sieves to the media?

[ncountylee]

Looks like Powell helped the anti Bolton groups.

[Republican Red]

Time tries to paint this as bad for Rove but I think just the opposite. It points the finger away from White House and right at the State Department.

The State Department was no friend to the Bush White House.

[sandydipper]

Valarie Phlame and Joe Wilson are suck a$$ demos who clamor for attention because their work product never amounted to crap. Neither has ever had a real job.

[Txsleuth]

Towards the last few years that Powell was in the Administration, the media too a decided "liking" to him, after basically portraying him as an "house slave" and Condi Rice as an "Aunt Jemima"....

I am thinking that the change just may have occured around the time that all of this was getting started...

SO, obviously the media would/will/is covering for Powell, where they wouldn't for Rove or Libby.

[Mike Darancette]

why isn't attention now circling around the State Department, whose two top guys at the time -- Colin Powell and Richard Armitage -- leaked like sieves to the media?

Bwaaa, Haaa, Haaa - I'll bet Fitzgerald is.

[Ditter]

I can't remember the last time one of my friends and I talked about Wilson and Phlame. The reason is that we have NEVER talked about this non story. I wish the media would SHUT UP!

[Armigerous]

This would seem to jive with the comment made some time ago- that his source was an 'administration official' who was 'no partisan gunslinger'

[Wuli]

I have been pointing to Colin Powell as the leaker since July 13th.

He is a darling of the MSM and my belief is that Judith Miller is trying to (1)protect Colin Powell and all her other State dept leakers and (2)help her bosses keep the story from moving on to........the truth.

So, is Colin going to step forward as a Repblican or remain undercover as a "moderate"?

[Republican Red]

I actually think the Wilson-Plame story is just getting interesting. The Democrats and their media have been making such a big deal out of a non-story that when the facts actually start to come out it looks like it will bite them all in their collective butts.

On Meet The Press this morning the the story was being talked about by reporters with more "we really don't know yet" comments. That is far different from Rove outed a covert agent.

[Mike Darancette]

'administration official'

I'm not sure that State Department personnel are considered "administration officials". I don't think that the blanket disclosure waiver issued by the White House applies to the State Department.

So Miller rots in jail to protect Foggy Bottom.

[God luvs America]

I caught the very end of MTP this morning when, during a round table discussion they brought up the Plamegate investigation....of course they went to a pair of CoPost journalists first but a women reporter from National Review went last and contended that the leak came from a place other then the WH...the insinuation was it came from the media...they others were aghast!!!! Amazing they NEVER ask what Miller/NY Slimes are hiding and always run to their defense.

[jimboster]

For the sake of argument, let's say Powell is Judith Miller's source. But everyone thinks it's Rove. So everyone believes Rove is a scumbag for leaking the name. Powell, along with Rove and Libby, has signed a blanket waiver releasing all reporters from any confidentiality agreement. Is it ethical for Miller to keep her mouth shut if it unfairly impugns the integrity of both Rove and the White House?

[Brilliant]

Ah... The story that won't go away even though no one outside the media gives a rip.