Asymmetrical Information

Looks like the whole affair is going to die a very rapid death. Clark and the Democrats are going to have to find a new issue. Here's the quote from Robert Novak as it appears on Drudge:

'Nobody in the Bush administration called me to leak this. In July I was interviewing a senior administration official on Ambassador Wilson's report when he told me the trip was inspired by his wife, a CIA employee working on weapons of mass destruction. Another senior official told me the same thing. As a professional journalist with 46 years experience in Washington I do not reveal confidential sources. When I called the CIA in July to confirm Mrs. Wilson's involvement in the mission for her husband -- he is a former Clinton administration official -- they asked me not to use her name, but never indicated it would endanger her or anybody else. According to a confidential source at the CIA, Mrs. Wilson was an analyst, not a spy, not a covert operator, and not in charge of undercover operatives'

You guys are dreaming if you think this is going away:

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-leak30sep30,1,7004579.story?coll=la-home-headlines

"Novak said the CIA asked him not to disclose Plame's name, "but never indicated it would endanger her or anybody else," and that he was led to believe that she was "an analyst, not a spy, not a covert operative, and not in charge of undercover operatives."

"Novak was wrong on those accounts, according to the CIA. "We wouldn't file a crimes report" if the case didn't involve an agent undercover, a U.S. official said."

"U.S. intelligence officials declined to discuss details of the case, but said exposing an operative's identity is a serious breach with unpredictable consequences. It not only deprives the operative of being able to work undercover in the future, but threatens to expose her sources, some of whom may be risking their lives to share secrets with the CIA. Outing an officer also places in jeopardy any CIA operative who replaces her in her overseas "cover," often a diplomatic post at a U.S. embassy."

Looks like the whole affair is going to die a very rapid death.

What Clinton had was an affair. This is a felony.

Beautiful scandal for the democrats because if Novak doesn't reveal his sources it may be hard to find out who he was interviewing and who committed the felony (if anyone). Thus you get a conspiricy theory filled with potential coverups, etc, that smears the entire administration. Far better than actually nailing a guilty person.

I hope Bush finds the person and flogs them.

Its all part of the VRWC. They are scared o Clark so they cooked up the whole scandal to take attention away from his campaign.

Disclaimer: The rest of this comment really belongs with the "Curiouser and curiouser" entry, but that thread has descended into chaos...

Actually, if you ask me, I am with you 100%, Jane. This whole thing is a load of crap, and I am sitting this one out. Politics, thanks to the 24-hr, ratings driven news cycle is no different from an episode of The Real World, or Paradise Hotel, or any number of other inane, insipid "Reality" TV shows. Any substance there is to the story is being blown out of proportion.

"I hope Bush finds the person and flogs them."

What if there is nobody to flog? It was apparently an open secret that Mrs. Wilson was employed by the CIA. Thus, it's very possible that somebody innocently blurted out this well known fact. This incident may have nothing to do with an individual intentionally trying to do her harm.

Alas, I have almost forgotten about Wesley Clark. He is definitely being screwed by this recent “scandal.” This is suppose to be Clark’s time in the sun. It is ironic that this liberal manufactured outrage over the Wilson affair---may ultimately help President Bush.

As I read the statute, for this to be a crime, 1) Ms. Wilson's employment at CIA had to be covert. 2) The leaker had to know that Ms. Wilson was covert. And 3) the leaker had to come across the information during the authorized acess to classified material.

Note nowhere in Novak's story does his Senior Administration Offical mention that Ms. Wilson is a spy. Only that she works on WMDs for CIA. Which may or may not be public, if not common, knowledge.

The fact she works at CIA is itself not grounds to think she was a covert operative. The fact the leaker mentioned she worked at CIA on WMDs is not any indication of whether he knew her status (either covert or any other vert.) Nor is it any indication how he knew she worked at CIA.

The fact that CIA apparently confirmed her employment to Novak would indicate that she is not covert. And if she is not covert, then no felony was committed.

The idea that CIA would not pursue this unless it thought a crime is committed is not quite right. If Tenet or DoJ failed to investigate, then the Dems would scream cover-up to high heaven. And do to the confusion inside CIA, Tenet might have problems with the trust of his own folks if gave the appearance of "letting it slide" regardless of Ms. Wilson's vertness.

Besides which, it does shine a spotlight on just how partisan Mr. Wilson is, and how little he did to investigate a serious issue, namely whether Saddam tried to get uranium from Africa. Sitting around, drinking tea poolside and talking to folks, but missing the head of COMINAK, the major uranium mining company in the country? Come on!

If anything, a DoJ investigation has exposed just what "proof" Mr. Wilson had concerning the famous 16 words.

IMHO, the Plame affair, at least in the short term, has been drawing media attention away from all of the Democratic candidates. This would hurt Gen. Clark the most, since as the last one to announce so far, he has the greatest need to keep his name before the public. Maybe he could consult the undisputed experts on that subject (Madonna and J-Lo come to mind).

WHO CARES

WHO CARES

others will want, and get, more direct shows rolling luggage of emotion: "Proust/ used to weep over days digital camera gone by," she asks the reader, "do you?" (Feb.) giftologies Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information. survival kit
A professor of classics at McGill University golf gift and the author of Autobiography of Red, a National stereo system Book Critics Circle nominee, Carson has rapidly electric scooter become one of North America's most acclaimed home theater academic poets. But even though she spangles ionic breeze her work with the costume jewelry of literary

Comments are Closed.