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THE STATE DEPARTMENT PLOT THICKENS (Podhoretz on new Time article)
NRO Corner ^ | 7/31/05 | John Podhoretz

Posted on 07/31/2005 8:49:58 AM PDT by 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


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Government; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: armitage; calabresi; carlford; cialeak; colinpowell; dickarmitage; ford; grossman; judithmiller; kristof; marcgrossman; massimocalabresi; miller; pincus; podhoretz; powell; richardarmitage; richarmitage; valerieplame; walterpincus
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To: csmusaret
That in turn could lead to clues about who she is protecting.

Which is why she is sitting in jail instead of telling the truth

As for what she was writing about .. we know she wrote many articles with regards to WMD

61 posted on 07/31/2005 10:42:38 AM PDT by Mo1
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To: Lancey Howard

I'm leaning in that direction of thinking also


62 posted on 07/31/2005 10:43:57 AM PDT by Mo1
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To: Alia
bookmark

Do you have as many as I do now? :-)

63 posted on 07/31/2005 10:44:06 AM PDT by Howlin
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To: Lancey Howard; Mo1

This is one "issue" where I wish we were all in a huge classroom with walls and walls of blackboards so we could "draw" this story out so I can just LOOK at it till it all snaps into place.


64 posted on 07/31/2005 10:45:40 AM PDT by Howlin
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To: Howlin
lol..! It just grows 'n grows, doesn't it. This story is like Pinnochio's nose... And the more we discover about it; the more that danged nose becomes apparent. No wonder that "hopeful" spin in Times -- it smacks of "please don't hurt us too baaaaddd..
65 posted on 07/31/2005 10:46:18 AM PDT by Alia
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To: Howlin

... and we haven't even gotten to the famous "Gorelick" memo and its links to this story. Yet.


66 posted on 07/31/2005 10:48:03 AM PDT by Alia
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To: Howlin

*L* .. I'm with you on that .. we need a chart of some sort

Well .. I gotta do family time .. if anything big happens, please ping me

Thanks


67 posted on 07/31/2005 10:49:22 AM PDT by Mo1
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To: Republican Red

I'm getting the same feeling from the dems and MSM as I did when, just as the DeLay non-story was overheating, it was revealed that many democrats had spent funds as DeLay supposedly had. That story vanished in three days.


68 posted on 07/31/2005 10:52:13 AM PDT by Dr.Hilarious ("My wife was not a clandestine officer the day that Bob Novak blew her identity."-Joe W)
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To: Howlin
Nah, Powell is obviously the other source for Novak's piece (no partisan gunslinger) but the leak is Plame herself. She is who Miller is protecting.

The SP is pursuing more than who was Novaks sources, he's tracing down the leakers in CIA/State who have been leaking the kind of information that allowed Miller to inform the targets of the impending raid.

69 posted on 07/31/2005 10:55:16 AM PDT by McGavin999
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To: Mo1

3M makes those giant sticky notes that you can attach to walls. I'm picturing us all on our computers with those giant sticky notes all over the walls :o)


70 posted on 07/31/2005 10:57:53 AM PDT by McGavin999
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To: Republican Red
Bull S--t is what it is no matter how you spin it.

Enough is enough

When the investigation is over,let me know the facts,not some wannabees theory

71 posted on 07/31/2005 10:58:59 AM PDT by jos65
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To: freekitty

Do you not think that the Head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff have a secret or two to protect? Powell, as JCS, cannot be held responsible for the Clintons. Blame Perot for that debacle, but not Powell.


72 posted on 07/31/2005 10:59:15 AM PDT by DustyMoment (FloriDUH - proud inventors of pregnant/hanging chads and judicide!!)
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To: Republican Red

Judith Miller's name keeps coming up .....

Her source?

Hillary? (Or via Hillary's staff, as a way to get to Rowe?)


73 posted on 07/31/2005 11:04:48 AM PDT by Robert A Cook PE (-I contribute to FR monthly, but ABBCNNBCBS supports Hillary's Secular Sexual Socialism every day.)
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To: Howlin
This is one "issue" where I wish we were all in a huge classroom with walls and walls of blackboards so we could "draw" this story out so I can just LOOK at it till it all snaps into place.

You know what, Howlin? One of the good guys IS doing exactly what you describe. His name is Patrick Fitzgerald and he WILL get to the bottom of the whole thing. Since he has already told Luskin that his client, Karl Rove, is NOT a target, I think I might be a little bit nervous right now if I was a scumbag Democrat or one of their newsroom allies.

Regards
LH

74 posted on 07/31/2005 11:05:23 AM PDT by Lancey Howard
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To: csmusaret
Again the finger points at Colin Powell.

Methinks you are right on the mark.

Didn't Novak refer to his other source as someone who was not highly partisan? That would certainly fit Powell to a tee. The Dems love the guy and that is why they are not probing in his direction. Same goes for our Marxist State Department.

75 posted on 07/31/2005 11:06:50 AM PDT by InterceptPoint
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To: DustyMoment
See, this is where I'm at odds with a number of Freepers -- over Colin Powell. I don't think he's the leaker of this "plame/wilson" scenario. Sure, I've seen him say other things, but his focus is predominantly (even yet) military. He's obviously well informed on intel/counter-intel procedures and "bylaws". It is such a rule of thumb in military circles to not *out* recon, intel, counter operations -- this is why I don't think he's the specific leaker on this. I do think, however, he has a *really* solid understanding of WHO may be the "leak" source.

Colin Powell spent more time fighting the State Department libs WHILE doing work in Iraq/Afghanistan. He was outright livid and as furious as I've ever read him being over leaks coming out of the "State" Dept.

76 posted on 07/31/2005 11:06:58 AM PDT by Alia
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To: Robert A. Cook, PE

77 posted on 07/31/2005 11:08:34 AM PDT by Lancey Howard
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To: InterceptPoint

I disagree: The DEMS do not love Colin Powell: They've always sought to "use" him, however.


78 posted on 07/31/2005 11:08:42 AM PDT by Alia
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To: InterceptPoint
Powell could very well have been Novak's "gunslinger" source. But whoever the "gunslinger" was/is, Novak has disclosed that to the SP. Novak is not in jail for contempt. Miller is.

Miller's non-disclosed source is not necessarily Novak's "gunslinger". Powell could have talked to Novak, and Plame could have leaked her own identity to Miller.

79 posted on 07/31/2005 11:20:08 AM PDT by leftcoaster
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To: InterceptPoint
I'm open to the possibility of it being Colin Powell. And, it would fit perfectly with the President's "recent": I'll fire anyone in my admin found guilty of leaking. I mean, Colin Powell is no longer in the admin.

Again, tho', my own thinking has me seeing beyond Powell, and more of an incestuous "indwelling" between pro-dem-CIA partisans and those who uphold themselves as "non-partisan".

Around the time the "leak" story broke, there were numerous "former" high mucka military doing plenty of ANTI-BUSH, ANTI-WOT bashing in print and via other media.

I haven't heard or even begun to look into "leak sources" like Al Jazeera as the prime leakers, yet. Thus far, the investigation has only focused on THE US. Miller is in jail. We've long since known of the "comrade in arms" relationship between the Liberal MSM (domestically) and the BBC, and other MSM in other countries.

Karl Rove says he heard it (plame stuff) from journalistic sources. "Journalistic sources" is pretty broad...

80 posted on 07/31/2005 11:21:07 AM PDT by Alia
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