The FBI has released its report of thier interview with former VP Dick Cheny about the outing of a CIA opprative. The former Vice President’s memory failed him 72 times during a 3 hour interview by the FBI concerning the Plame leak case.
Showing posts with label Joe Wilson. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Joe Wilson. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 04, 2009
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Dick Cheney furious about No Libby Pardon
Dick Cheney furious about No Libby Pardon
Dick Cheney is reportedly furious at George W Bush for refusing to grant a pardon to Scooter Libby and petitioned Bush all the way up to the Inauguration.
Why? Possibly because Cheney was trying to be loyal to the man who took the fall for Cheney's actual criminal involvement in outing the CIA operative Valerie Plame in retaliation for an op- ed piece by her Plame's husband Joe Wilson ( hired by the Republican Administration) to check on rumors that Iraq was trying to obtain materials from Africa to build a nuclear weapon. Despite Wilson finding out the rumors were false, the Administration continued to use the rumors to support their presumptive attack on the sovereign nation of Iraq.
BY Thomas M. Defrank
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU CHIEF
WASHINGTON - In the waning days of the Bush administration, Vice President Dick Cheney launched a last-ditch campaign to persuade his boss to pardon Lewis (Scooter) Libby - and was furious when President George W. Bush wouldn't budge.
Sources close to Cheney told the Daily News the former vice president repeatedly pressed Bush to pardon Libby, arguing his ex-chief of staff and longtime alter ego deserved a full exoneration - even though Bush had already kept Libby out of jail by commuting his 30-month prison sentence.
"He tried to make it happen right up until the very end," one Cheney associate said.
In multiple conversations, both in person and over the telephone, Cheney tried to get Bush to change his mind. Libby was convicted of perjury and obstruction of justice in the federal probe of who leaked covert CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity to the press.
Several sources confirmed Cheney refused to take no for an answer. "He went to the mat and came back and back and back at Bush," a Cheney defender said. "He was still trying the day before Obama was sworn in."
After repeatedly telling Cheney his mind was made up, Bush became so exasperated with Cheney's persistence he told aides he didn't want to discuss the matter any further.
The unsuccessful full-court press left Cheney bitter. "He's furious with Bush," a Cheney source told The News. "He's really angry about it and decided he's going to say what he believes."
He did just that the day after becoming a private citizen. In an interview with The Weekly Standard, Cheney heaped praise on Libby and denounced his conviction. "He was the victim of a serious miscarriage of justice, and I strongly believe that he deserved a presidential pardon," Cheney said. "Obviously, I disagree with President Bush's decision."
The vehemence of Cheney's last-minute onslaught has struck some Bush loyalists as excessive. "At some point you have to accept the decision of the guy who appointed you," one of them said after learning the details. "I think Cheney was over the top."
A Cheney ally disagreed. "He had every right to push it as hard as he wanted," he argued. "Cheney places great store in loyalty and thinks Scooter got a raw deal."
In July 2007, at Cheney's urging, Bush commuted Libby's 30-month prison sentence. But he also said, "I respect the jury's verdict" and noted that his decision "leaves in place a harsh punishment" for the man often described as "Cheney's Cheney." Libby was fined $250,000, and as a convicted felon, he has been disbarred from practicing law and cannot vote.
Rob Saliterman, a spokesman for the former President, said Bush would have no comment. A Cheney spokeswoman could not be reached for comment.
The latest Libby flap has injected fresh strains in a relationship that had become more businesslike than warm in recent years.
Ten days before leaving office, Bush hailed Cheney as "a fabulous vice president."
About the same time, however, an official who has worked closely with both men mused that the relationship "isn't what it was" when Bush tapped Cheney as his running mate in 2000.
"It's been a long, long time since I've heard the President say, 'Run that by the vice president's office.' You used to hear that all the time."
http://www.usnews.com/articles/news/politics/2009/02/18/ex-vp-dick-cheney-outraged-president-bush-didnt-grant-scooter-libby-full-pardon.html
Past post on this issue:
23 Administration Officials Involved In Plame Leak
I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby = The Guilty Scapegoat
Joe Wilson's Op-Ed for New York Times
Plame CIA leak Lawsuit in Court - Lawyers questioned by Judge
"Evidence in this case overwhelmingly indicated Mr. Libby's culpability "
Scooter Libby today expressed no remorse, and Judge Reggie B. Walton showed no mercy.
U.S. Attorney Patrick J. Fitzgerald Statement about Libby's commuted sentence
Libby in Limbo and famed lawyer Dershowitz take on the case
Dick Cheney is reportedly furious at George W Bush for refusing to grant a pardon to Scooter Libby and petitioned Bush all the way up to the Inauguration.
Why? Possibly because Cheney was trying to be loyal to the man who took the fall for Cheney's actual criminal involvement in outing the CIA operative Valerie Plame in retaliation for an op- ed piece by her Plame's husband Joe Wilson ( hired by the Republican Administration) to check on rumors that Iraq was trying to obtain materials from Africa to build a nuclear weapon. Despite Wilson finding out the rumors were false, the Administration continued to use the rumors to support their presumptive attack on the sovereign nation of Iraq.
BY Thomas M. Defrank
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU CHIEF
WASHINGTON - In the waning days of the Bush administration, Vice President Dick Cheney launched a last-ditch campaign to persuade his boss to pardon Lewis (Scooter) Libby - and was furious when President George W. Bush wouldn't budge.
Sources close to Cheney told the Daily News the former vice president repeatedly pressed Bush to pardon Libby, arguing his ex-chief of staff and longtime alter ego deserved a full exoneration - even though Bush had already kept Libby out of jail by commuting his 30-month prison sentence.
"He tried to make it happen right up until the very end," one Cheney associate said.
In multiple conversations, both in person and over the telephone, Cheney tried to get Bush to change his mind. Libby was convicted of perjury and obstruction of justice in the federal probe of who leaked covert CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity to the press.
Several sources confirmed Cheney refused to take no for an answer. "He went to the mat and came back and back and back at Bush," a Cheney defender said. "He was still trying the day before Obama was sworn in."
After repeatedly telling Cheney his mind was made up, Bush became so exasperated with Cheney's persistence he told aides he didn't want to discuss the matter any further.
The unsuccessful full-court press left Cheney bitter. "He's furious with Bush," a Cheney source told The News. "He's really angry about it and decided he's going to say what he believes."
He did just that the day after becoming a private citizen. In an interview with The Weekly Standard, Cheney heaped praise on Libby and denounced his conviction. "He was the victim of a serious miscarriage of justice, and I strongly believe that he deserved a presidential pardon," Cheney said. "Obviously, I disagree with President Bush's decision."
The vehemence of Cheney's last-minute onslaught has struck some Bush loyalists as excessive. "At some point you have to accept the decision of the guy who appointed you," one of them said after learning the details. "I think Cheney was over the top."
A Cheney ally disagreed. "He had every right to push it as hard as he wanted," he argued. "Cheney places great store in loyalty and thinks Scooter got a raw deal."
In July 2007, at Cheney's urging, Bush commuted Libby's 30-month prison sentence. But he also said, "I respect the jury's verdict" and noted that his decision "leaves in place a harsh punishment" for the man often described as "Cheney's Cheney." Libby was fined $250,000, and as a convicted felon, he has been disbarred from practicing law and cannot vote.
Rob Saliterman, a spokesman for the former President, said Bush would have no comment. A Cheney spokeswoman could not be reached for comment.
The latest Libby flap has injected fresh strains in a relationship that had become more businesslike than warm in recent years.
Ten days before leaving office, Bush hailed Cheney as "a fabulous vice president."
About the same time, however, an official who has worked closely with both men mused that the relationship "isn't what it was" when Bush tapped Cheney as his running mate in 2000.
"It's been a long, long time since I've heard the President say, 'Run that by the vice president's office.' You used to hear that all the time."
http://www.usnews.com/articles/news/politics/2009/02/18/ex-vp-dick-cheney-outraged-president-bush-didnt-grant-scooter-libby-full-pardon.html
Past post on this issue:
23 Administration Officials Involved In Plame Leak
I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby = The Guilty Scapegoat
Joe Wilson's Op-Ed for New York Times
Plame CIA leak Lawsuit in Court - Lawyers questioned by Judge
"Evidence in this case overwhelmingly indicated Mr. Libby's culpability "
Scooter Libby today expressed no remorse, and Judge Reggie B. Walton showed no mercy.
U.S. Attorney Patrick J. Fitzgerald Statement about Libby's commuted sentence
Libby in Limbo and famed lawyer Dershowitz take on the case
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
"Evidence in this case overwhelmingly indicated Mr. Libby's culpability "
Scooter Libby today expressed no remorse, and Judge Reggie B. Walton showed no mercy.
Libby's defense team had asked for probation. But Walton sentenced Libby to two and a half years in prison and fined him $250,000. Libby was found guilty in March of obstruction of justice for lying to a federal grand jury and the FBI about his disclosure of former CIA agent Valerie Plame's identity to reporters.
Walton put off another important decision, however. Saying he was not inclined to grant the defense's request that Libby be allowed to remain free on appeal, Walton nevertheless put off his decision until a June 14 hearing.
Via the WaPo, from Amy Goldstein and Carol Leonnig:
"Evidence in this case overwhelmingly indicated Mr. Libby's culpability," U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton said moments before he handed out the sentence. The judge said he was sentencing Libby "with a sense of sadness. I have the highest respect for people who take positions in our government and appreciate tremendously efforts they bring to bear to protect this country."
At the same time, Walton said, "I also think it is important we expect and demand a lot from people who put themselves in those positions. Mr. Libby failed to meet the bar. For whatever reason, he got off course.["]…
Prosecutors successfully argued that Libby had lied repeatedly to the FBI and a grand jury about how and when he learned about Plame's identity–and what he told reporters about her.
In the court filing that sought Libby's prison term, Fitzgerald emphasized that Libby's lies prevented investigators from learning the full truth about the campaign to discredit Wilson, and may have helped conceal another administration official's criminal leaks. Fitzgerald noted that Cheney was one of the first people to tell Libby about Plame, and that Libby has testified that Cheney and he may have talked about sharing information about Plame with reporters….
The month-long trial cast a harsh light on the way power and information flow through Washington. It offered a window onto the nation's divisions over the war, the Bush administration's disdain for critics and the complex working relationship between an elite tier of Washington journalists and their confidential sources inside the government.
The weeks of testimony and evidence also exposed rivalries within the White House, and the close guarding of information, even among the president's top aides. The trial also made clear that Cheney was involved more personally than had previously been known in the administration's campaign to discredit Wilson.
Former Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage was revealed as Novak's original source on Plame's identity, a fact that Fitzgerald learned early in his investigation….
In the weeks before today's sentencing, admirers and detractors of Libby sent Walton more than 150 letters recommending leniency or a harsh prison term. Walton today released the letters, which come from high-ranking government officials and ordinary citizens. Among the current and former officials are former defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld, former secretary of state Henry A. Kissinger, and Marine General Peter Pace, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Ten days after the trial ended, Plame broke her long public silence about the case during an appearance on Capitol Hill. Calmly but bitterly, she lashed out at the the president's aides, telling a House committee that they had destroyed her career and slipped her name to reporters for "purely political motives That same day, the CIA confirmed for the first time that Plame had been working in a covert capacity when Novak's column disclosed her identity and that her employment status was classified under an executive order. (emphasis mine)
Libby's defense team had asked for probation. But Walton sentenced Libby to two and a half years in prison and fined him $250,000. Libby was found guilty in March of obstruction of justice for lying to a federal grand jury and the FBI about his disclosure of former CIA agent Valerie Plame's identity to reporters.
Walton put off another important decision, however. Saying he was not inclined to grant the defense's request that Libby be allowed to remain free on appeal, Walton nevertheless put off his decision until a June 14 hearing.
| From Amb. Joseph Wilson: (husband of `outed' CIA agent Valerie Plame)  As Americans, both Valerie and I are grateful that justice has been served, reconfirming that our country remains a nation of laws. We are also saddened for the pain that Mr. Libby has inflicted on his family, friends, and the nation. Mr. Libby benefited from the best this country had to offer: the finest schools, a lucrative career as a lawyer and many years of service in Republican administrations. That he would knowingly lie, perjure himself and obstruct a legitimate criminal investigation is incomprehensible. It is our hope that he will now cooperate with Special Counsel Fitzgerald in his efforts to get to the truth. As Mr. Fitzgerald has said, a cloud remains over the Vice President. Every official in this administration must be held accountable for their actions.
|
Via the WaPo, from Amy Goldstein and Carol Leonnig:
"Evidence in this case overwhelmingly indicated Mr. Libby's culpability," U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton said moments before he handed out the sentence. The judge said he was sentencing Libby "with a sense of sadness. I have the highest respect for people who take positions in our government and appreciate tremendously efforts they bring to bear to protect this country."
At the same time, Walton said, "I also think it is important we expect and demand a lot from people who put themselves in those positions. Mr. Libby failed to meet the bar. For whatever reason, he got off course.["]…
Prosecutors successfully argued that Libby had lied repeatedly to the FBI and a grand jury about how and when he learned about Plame's identity–and what he told reporters about her.
In the court filing that sought Libby's prison term, Fitzgerald emphasized that Libby's lies prevented investigators from learning the full truth about the campaign to discredit Wilson, and may have helped conceal another administration official's criminal leaks. Fitzgerald noted that Cheney was one of the first people to tell Libby about Plame, and that Libby has testified that Cheney and he may have talked about sharing information about Plame with reporters….
The month-long trial cast a harsh light on the way power and information flow through Washington. It offered a window onto the nation's divisions over the war, the Bush administration's disdain for critics and the complex working relationship between an elite tier of Washington journalists and their confidential sources inside the government.
The weeks of testimony and evidence also exposed rivalries within the White House, and the close guarding of information, even among the president's top aides. The trial also made clear that Cheney was involved more personally than had previously been known in the administration's campaign to discredit Wilson.
Former Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage was revealed as Novak's original source on Plame's identity, a fact that Fitzgerald learned early in his investigation….
In the weeks before today's sentencing, admirers and detractors of Libby sent Walton more than 150 letters recommending leniency or a harsh prison term. Walton today released the letters, which come from high-ranking government officials and ordinary citizens. Among the current and former officials are former defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld, former secretary of state Henry A. Kissinger, and Marine General Peter Pace, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Ten days after the trial ended, Plame broke her long public silence about the case during an appearance on Capitol Hill. Calmly but bitterly, she lashed out at the the president's aides, telling a House committee that they had destroyed her career and slipped her name to reporters for "purely political motives That same day, the CIA confirmed for the first time that Plame had been working in a covert capacity when Novak's column disclosed her identity and that her employment status was classified under an executive order. (emphasis mine)
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Plame CIA leak Lawsuit in Court - Lawyers questioned by Judge
This is a follow up on The Plame Case
1. Joe Wilson was sent to Niger on a diplomatic mission to see if then Iraq President Hussein was trying to buy weapons grade Uranium to use in Weapons of mass destruction.
2. He came back and reported that it was not true
3. President Bush went on to claim it was true (despite the knowledge that it was not.)
4. Joe Wilson wrote an editorial in the New York Times saying he told the White House that it was not true.
5. Angered Vice President Cheney working with political adviser Karl Rove instructed Cheney's assistant Libbey to leak the fact that Joe Wilson was married to an undercover CIA agent (Valerie Plame)
6. A Republican Attorney was called to see if their was any illeagle activity in the handling of this matter and found and charged Libby with basically obstructing justice. Libby was found guilty. No one was criminally charged with outing the CIA agent.
7. The CIA agent has pubically sued Vice President Cheney, Karl Rove and former State Department official Richard Armitage and Libby.
White House players (from left): Rove, White House Counsel Dan Bartlett, the vice president’s chief of staff Lewis Libby, and Dick Cheney
Other Iraq War News post on this subject
23 Administration Officials Involved In Plame Leak
I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby = The Guilty Scapegoat
Piecing together the story of the weapons that weren't
Wolfowitz Emerges as Key Figure in Intel Manipulation
Video Documentary- Part 4 on the Neocons
Joe Wilson's Op-Ed for New York Times
Joe Wilson -Background information
George Tenent is still at the Center of the Storm
******
White House Lawyer Criticize Plame Suit
WASHINGTON — Lawyers for Vice President Dick Cheney, Karl Rove and two other Bush administration officials belittled Valerie Plame's lawsuit Thursday over the disclosure of her CIA identity.
At a nearly-three-hour court hearing, Cheney's lawyer said Plame was making "fanciful claims" in what amounted to "a fishing expedition."
Plame says her constitutional rights were violated by Cheney and his now-convicted former chief of staff, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, as well as White House political adviser Rove and former State Department official Richard Armitage.
Her suit is "principally based on a desire for publicity and book deals," said Michael Waldman, who represents Armitage.
The case is "about egregious conduct by defendants that ruined a woman's career," countered Plame's lawyer, Erwin Chemerinsky.
Several administration officials, including Armitage, Rove and Libby, disclosed Plame's identity to reporters in 2003. That disclosure came after Plame's husband, Joseph Wilson, accused the administration of twisting prewar intelligence on Iraq.
Evidence at Libby's trial showed that Cheney told Libby about the CIA employment of Wilson's wife more than a month before she was outed.
U.S. District Judge John Bates questioned both sides closely.
"Why would these government officials have any kind of protection for these disclosures" about Plame's classified CIA status? the judge asked.
Rove's lawyer, Robert Luskin, arguing on behalf of all the defendants, said there is no allegation that any of them knowingly disclosed classified information.
The Justice Department has asked Bates to drop an invasion of privacy count in the suit because government officials cannot be sued personally for such claims when acting in their official capacity.
"There is nothing these officials could have said that could go beyond the scope of their employment?" asked Bates.
Not in the context of the Plame affair, replied Justice Department lawyer Jeffrey Bucholtz. What the suit alleges amounts to a government policy dispute in which the defendants tried to discredit Plame's husband, Bucholtz said.
Plame's lawyer responded that the scope of employment ends where the outing of Plame's CIA identity begins.
Plame's identity was exposed eight days after her husband publicly suggested in The New York Times and on NBC's "Meet the Press" that the administration distorted prewar intelligence to exaggerate the Iraqi threat.
To be allowed to pursue their effort to collect compensation, Plame's lawyers must show that Cheney and the other defendants are not immune from such suits.
The vice president "has a lot of the same attributes and considerations that relate to the president," Bucholtz argued, seeking to apply presidential immunity to the vice president.
The judge expressed concern the case might have to delve into classified information comparing Plame's circumstances with those of other CIA officers.
That's a "reasonable prospect," replied Bucholtz.
Chemerinsky pointed out that the government overcame classified information issues in the Libby case, which resulted in his conviction for lying to investigators about how he learned of Plame's identity and what he did with the information.
This up-to-date electronic book on CD-ROM provides the best collection available anywhere of official Federal government information and documents on the subject of the criminal investigation into the possible unauthorized disclosure of classified information regarding Valerie Wilsons CIA affiliation to various reporters in the spring of 2003. The investigation is being headed by Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald. On October 28, 2005, the grand jury indicted senior White House official I. Lewis Libby on obstruction of justice, false statement and perjury charges for allegedly lying about how and when in 2003 he learned and subsequently disclosed to reporters then-classified information concerning the employment of Valerie Wilson by the Central Intelligence Agency. Libby was charged with one count of obstruction of justice, two counts of perjury and two counts of making false statements in a five-count indictment returned today by a federal grand jury as its term expired, announced Justice Department Special Counsel Patrick J. Fitzgerald. The defendant, also known as Scooter Libby, has served since January 20, 2001, as Assistant to the President, Chief of Staff to the Vice President, and Assistant to the Vice President for National Security Affairs. The charges allege that Libby lied to FBI agents who interviewed him on October 14 and November 26, 2003; committed perjury while testifying under oath before the grand jury on March 5 and March 24, 2004; and engaged in obstruction of justice by impeding the grand jurys investigation. The indictment alleges that Libby had frequent access to classified information and frequently spoke with officials of the U.S. intelligence community and other government officials regarding sensitive national security matters. With his responsibilities for national security matters, Libby held security clearances giving him access to classified information. Libby was obligated by federal criminal statute, regulations, executive orders, and a written non-disclosure agreement not to disclose classified information to unauthorized persons, and to properly safeguard classified information against unauthorized disclosure. According to the indictment, on September 26, 2003, the Department of Justice and the FBI began a criminal investigation into the possible unauthorized disclosure of classified information regarding Valerie Wilsons CIA affiliation to various reporters in the spring of 2003. In January 2004, the grand jury investigation began examining possible violations of criminal laws prohibiting disclosing the identity of covert intelligence personnel (The Intelligence Identities Protection Act), improperly disclosing national defense information, making false statements to government agents, and perjury. A major focus of the grand jury investigation was to determine which government officials had disclosed to the media prior to July 14, 2003, information concerning Valerie Wilsons CIA affiliation, and the nature, timing, extent, and purpose of such disclosures. This CD-ROM uses next-generation search technology that allows complete indexing and makes all files on the disc fully searchable. The disc contains information on key characters including: I. Lewis Scooter Libby
Karl Rove
Valerie Plame
Ambassador Joseph WIlson This disc has nearly 58,000 pages reproduced using Adobe Acrobat PDF software and Reader software is included. Advanced search and indexing features are built into our reproduction, providing a complete full-text index. This enables the user to search all the files on the disk at one time for words or phrases using just one search command! The Acrobat cataloging technology adds enormous value and uncommon functionality to this impressive collection of government documents and material. There is no other reference that is as fast, convenient, comprehensive, and portable!
About the Author
The disc has nearly 58,000 pages reproduced using Adobe Acrobat PDF software and Reader software is included. Advanced search and indexing features are built into our reproduction, providing a complete full-text index. This enables the user to search all the files on the disk at one time for words or phrases using just one search command! The Acrobat cataloging technology adds enormous value and uncommon functionality to this impressive collection of government documents and material. There is no other reference that is as fast, convenient, comprehensive, and portable! Our news and educational CD-ROM and DVD-ROM discs are privately compiled collections of official public domain U.S. government files and documents - they are not produced by the federal government. They are designed to provide a convenient user-friendly reference work, utilizing the benefits of the Adobe Acrobat format to uniformly present thousands of pages that can be rapidly reviewed, searched by finding specific words, or printed without untold hours of tedious research and downloading. Vast archives of important public domain government information that might otherwise remain inaccessible are available for instant review no matter where you are. This book-on-a-disc format makes a great reference work and educational tool. There is no other reference that is as fast, convenient, comprehensive, thoroughly researched, and portable - everything you need to know, from the federal sources you trust.
Link: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20070517/cia-leak-lawsuit
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