Posted on 10/17/2005 7:25:22 PM PDT by blogblogginaway
Despite claims to the contrary, the Identity Protection Act spells trouble for White House officials. Republican talking points have achieved some success in muddying the waters by insisting that Robert Novak's outing of CIA clandestine officer, Valerie Plame, was not a violation of the law. The typical presentation of this red herring was bandied about most recently in an October 10, 2005 article by Washington Times reporter, Joseph Curl. Curl wrote:
But lawyers familiar with the probe say special prosecutor Patrick J. Fitzgerald appears to be changing the grand jury's initial focus in part because the law protecting covert CIA operatives appears not to apply to Valerie Plame, whose name first surfaced in a July 2003 column by conservative Robert Novak. "There is not one fact that I have seen that there could be a violation of the agent identity act," said Victoria Toensing, a lawyer who helped draft the 1982 act.
The Intelligence Identities Protection Act outlaws intentional disclosure of any information identifying a covert agent. The penalty for violating the law is imprisonment for up to 10 years.
But according to the law, Mrs. Plame was not a "covert agent" at the time that at least two senior Bush administration officials discussed her with reporters.
Ms. Toensing is wrong. Let us pray that Ms. Toensing is not practicing law these days because, if her comments in this article reflect her abilities as an attorney, clients could be in serious trouble. Valerie Plame was a "covert agent" as defined by the law. In her cover position as a consultant to Brewster-Jennings, Ms. Plame served overseas on clandestine missions. Just because she did not live overseas full time does not mean she did not work overseas using her status as a non-official cover officer.
Unfortunately, the organized plot by White House officials to expose Valerie Plame also permanently ended her ability to ever serve overseas in an official cover position. At a minimum, U.S. tax payers invested at least $250,000 (that is in 1985 dollars) in training Valerie as a case officer. Karl Rove, Lewis "Scooter" Libby, and others not yet revealed destroyed by their reckless acts her career, a CIA front company, and a network of intelligence assets.
The law to "protect the identities of undercover officers, agents, and sources" is only one possible source of jeopardy for the White House gang. (The key parts of the law are reprinted below.) The important point is not that a law was broken, but that our country is in the hands of a President who is willing to tolerate people in his Administration who are admitted liars and who played a direct role in compromising our nation's security. President Bush is sending a clear message--it is more important to protect cronies than protect this country.
Oct 17, 2005 -- 10:01:34 PM EST
TITLE 50 > CHAPTER 15 > SUBCHAPTER IV > § 421 § 421. Protection of identities of certain United States undercover intelligence officers, agents, informants, and sources
Release date: 2005-03-17
(a) Disclosure of information by persons having or having had access to classified information that identifies covert agent Whoever, having or having had authorized access to classified information that identifies a covert agent, intentionally discloses any information identifying such covert agent to any individual not authorized to receive classified information, knowing that the information disclosed so identifies such covert agent and that the United States is taking affirmative measures to conceal such covert agent's intelligence relationship to the United States, shall be fined under title 18 or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both. (b) Disclosure of information by persons who learn identity of covert agents as result of having access to classified information Whoever, as a result of having authorized access to classified information, learns the identify of a covert agent and intentionally discloses any information identifying such covert agent to any individual not authorized to receive classified information, knowing that the information disclosed so identifies such covert agent and that the United States is taking affirmative measures to conceal such covert agent's intelligence relationship to the United States, shall be fined under title 18 or imprisoned not more than five years, or both. (c) Disclosure of information by persons in course of pattern of activities intended to identify and expose covert agents Whoever, in the course of a pattern of activities intended to identify and expose covert agents and with reason to believe that such activities would impair or impede the foreign intelligence activities of the United States, discloses any information that identifies an individual as a covert agent to any individual not authorized to receive classified information, knowing that the information disclosed so identifies such individual and that the United States is taking affirmative measures to conceal such individual's classified intelligence relationship to the United States, shall be fined under title 18 or imprisoned not more than three years, or both. (d) Imposition of consecutive sentences A term of imprisonment imposed under this section shall be consecutive to any other sentence of imprisonment.
TITLE 50 > CHAPTER 15 > SUBCHAPTER IV > § 426
§ 426. Definitions
Release date: 2005-03-17
For the purposes of this subchapter:
(4) The term "covert agent" means-- (A) a present or retired officer or employee of an intelligence agency or a present or retired member of the Armed Forces assigned to duty with an intelligence agency-- (i) whose identity as such an officer, employee, or member is classified information, and (ii) who is serving outside the United States or has within the last five years served outside the United States; or (B) a United States citizen whose intelligence relationship to the United States is classified information, and-- (i) who resides and acts outside the United States as an agent of, or informant or source of operational assistance to, an intelligence agency, or (ii) who is at the time of the disclosure acting as an agent of, or informant to, the foreign counterintelligence or foreign counterterrorism components of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; or (C) an individual, other than a United States citizen, whose past or present intelligence relationship to the United States is classified information and who is a present or former agent of, or a present or former informant or source of operational assistance to, an intelligence agency.
pantload
What a bunch of BS. Interesting question though. What is the focus of this grand jury? I haven't seen it stated exactly what they are looking for. Hopefully it is quite broad and the liar Joe Wilson get his due.
This woman was NOT covert for over 6 years. The left continues to push this lie. She's been at a desk job at the Pentagon for over 5.
Plame was brought in from the cold over 6 years ago. I don't remember the name but an agent revealed her position.
I hear that over and over again except from the MSM. I wonder why?
> ... the organized plot by White House officials
> to expose Valerie Plame ...
Well golly. No bias/agenda/spin here, eh?
Credibility meter snapped to zero when I hit that line.
Any reason to think the rest of the article isn't just
a waste of pixels?
This could be true but for the inconvienient fact that she (1) worked and commuted openly at Langley, (2)Was featured in a vanity fair aritcle with the word 'spy' attached.
He is bad-mouthing Victoria Toensing's take on this...but from what I understand, Toesning helped WRITE the law, so she should know what it is...
and Larry Johnson is a Scott Ritter wannabe.
Let's hope that pantload Larry Johnson is not advising anyone about counter-terrorism these days, because if his imbecilic op-ed in the NY Times two months before 9/11 is any indication his 'clients' would be in real trouble. He's the guy who argued that terrorism had become little more than a nuisance ala John 'Vichy' Kerry, even though anyone (even before 9/11) should have been able to see that just one huge attack killing thousands would throw all his numbers out the window.
If you park your car in the CIA employee parking lot, you are not covert.
Is this the same guy or is my memory getting worse?
"Traitor Joe" Wilson.
Joe took the Islamicists' side,
When he said that the President lied.
Since the Times spread Joe's tale,
Please put them in jail
And, certainly, Joe should be fried
Either my reading comprehension is addled or this definition of a covert agent just does not describe Valery Plame. Pay very close attention to the "and" and "or" usage in the above definition.
She was not a covert agent, this guy is wrong.
Johnson has some mental stuff going on, it seems to me.
That, or he has a jones for Valerie Plame.
She regularly commuted to her place of employment at CIA headquarters at Langley ~ to get there she had to take several of the most heavily traveled and public roads in the United States ~ doesn't seem to me the United States was taking affirmative measures to conceal Valerie Plame/Flame/Plume's intelligence relationship to the United States. Otherwise she wouldn't have had a CIA parking permit on her car, nor would she have been commuting to that building from her home.
Well, Larry-boy, if she was covert anytime in the past 5 years then she is a real bozo for donating to Algore so that her name and 'cover' company Brewster-Jennings is out there on the Internet for anyone to see, and then her husband making himself an international spectacle discussing his mission for the CIA in the NY Times ensured that interested intel agencies would not need too much effort to run down details on both of them. If Valerie Plame and Larry Johnson are supposed to be examples of the quality of our intel agencies then 9/11 and other terrorist attacks should not surprise anyone.
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