Woodward Says His Plame Source Not Libby

AP on Yahoo ^ | 11/16/05 | AP

[NormsRevenge]

WASHINGTON - Vice President Cheney's former top aide, indicted last month on perjury and obstruction charges, reviewed documents Wednesday at a federal courthouse.

Accompanied by his legal team, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby walked into the courthouse without the crutches that he'd been using during a court appearance two weeks ago when he pleaded not guilty to charges stemming from the CIA leak investigation.

Libby's visit to the courthouse came hours after The Washington Post reported that at least one senior Bush administration official — who was not identified — told editor Bob Woodward about CIA operative Valerie Plame about a month before her identity was publicly exposed.

The newspaper reported that Woodward told Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald, who is investigating the leak of Plame's identity, that the official talked to him about Plame in mid-June 2003. Woodward and editors at the Post refused to identify the official to reporters other than to say it was not Libby.

Mark Corallo, a spokesman for Karl Rove's legal team, said Rove was not the official who talked to Woodward. Rove is a top deputy to President Bush and was referred to, but not by name, in Libby's indictment, as having discussed Plame's identity with reporters.

Libby was indicted last month on one charge of obstruction of justice and two counts each of false statement and perjury in connection with Fitzgerald's investigation.

Plame's husband, former U.S. Ambassador Joseph Wilson, had criticized U.S. intelligence efforts before the Iraq war. On June 23, Libby told New York Times reporter Judith Miller that Wilson's wife might work at the CIA. Robert Novak, in a column published July 14, identified Plame, as a CIA operative.

Woodward's testimony in a two-hour deposition Monday would mean that another White House official told a reporter about Plame before Libby revealed her identity to Miller. A spokesman for White House adviser Karl Rove told the Post that Rove did not discuss Plame with Woodward.

William Jeffress Jr., one of Libby's lawyers, told the Post that Woodward's testimony raises questions about his client's indictment. "Will Mr. Fitzgerald now say he was wrong to say on TV that Scooter Libby was the first official to give this information to a reporter?" Jeffress said.

Woodward, famous for his investigation with Carl Bernstein of the Watergate scandal during the Nixon administration, is now assistant managing editor of the Post. In October, he was dismissive of the outing of Plame, telling CNN's Larry King that the damage from her exposure was "quite minimal."

Meantime, The Associated Press on Wednesday joined other news organizations in asking U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton to deny a court motion by Fitzgerald for a blanket protective order keeping all pretrial evidence in Libby's case out of public view.

The special prosecutor is seeking a court order that would prohibit Libby and his legal team from publicly disclosing "all materials produced by the government."

[Mo1]

The special prosecutor is seeking a court order that would prohibit Libby and his legal team from publicly disclosing "all materials produced by the government."

Hmmmm .. Does Fitz have something to hide??

[cricket]

It is pathetic, indeed.... and when they try to fight back it's like a cat trying to get out of a paper sack.... a lot of noise and not much action.

LOL on the visual and substance and so true as wekk. . .and thanks for the heads up re DiGenova. ..listening now to him and his wife (Victoria Toensing). . .on Britt Hume/news rerun. . .

[NormsRevenge]

Does Fitz have something to hide??
----
2 years worth of expenses chasing fairies and wisps at adult clubs, at best..

a political agenda driven investigation/witchhunt, at worst..

or maybe he's just trying to cover-up rogue CIA involvement in both domestic and int'l affairs, time will tell, he has to pit or get off the shot eventually.

after today and Bob Woodward, he's about to fire the biggest dud in DOJ investigative history, that will make the Waco cover-up and 9/11 Commission work look almost semi-professional in comparison.

[Arizona Carolyn]

Speaking of Waco. Did I miss the special commission or prosecutor investigating that case???? /sarcasm

[jennyjenny]

It raises reasonable doubt. Libby was not the first to tell reporters about Plame. Woodward says he may have told Libby. Libby may have confused Woodward with Russert, or any number of reporters who we know already knew who Plame was. It's looking more and more like many reporters knew about Plame long before Libby ever did. Fitzgerald has to prove Libby intentionally deceived the GJ. This hurts Fitzgerald's case.

[Arizona Carolyn]

The VP was told by the CIA and Libby by the 'under' sec of State....hmmmmm...

This gets more and more interesting.. not sure the dems really want this uncovered.

[NEPA]

I agree with you except for point 3. Wilson went to Niger about a year prior to the State of the Union speech with the 16 words. Plame recommended him to disprove other evidence of yellowcake sales having nothing to do with the report which came out about Oct '02 (Wilson's trip was Feb '02).