The Ashford Zone Blog

Criminal laws aside, Executive Order No. 12958 would require that the White House, independent of any criminal investigation, take affirmative action to determine if there was a leak, and punish the leaker accordingly.  Under the executive order, “officers and employees of the United States Government . . . shall be subject to appropriate sanctions if they knowingly, willingly, or negligently . . . disclose to unauthorized persons information properly classified.”

You can read the full tesxt of Executive Order No. 12958 here.

The investigation would be conducted by an internal “Information Security Oversight Office”.

Does anyone know if this is happening?

The Rude Pundit, the only blogger to have turned his rants into a critically-acclaimed off-off-Broadway show (seriously!) explains why the general public disbelieves the Bush Administration on the whole Plame thing, even if we (the public) don’t all necessarily understand the minutae of the law.  Quote:

The American public, having been fed years of propagandistic books, films, and television shows, since the Cold War, about how magnificent the CIA is in protecting our freedom (despite, you know, having often done quite the opposite), feels as if it’s looking out for Jack Ryan. You know Jack Ryan, Tom Clancy’s CIA agent, played by AlecBaldwinHarrisonFordBenAffleck in the movies. By this point in a Clancy novel or film, Jack Ryan (or someone) would have grabbed the tweedy, bespectacled, fat, balding asshole politico, who thought a CIA agent’s identity was just more political capital to be spent when expedient, and beaten the shit out of him, leaving him bleeding, glasses broken, pissing himself on the floor of the Oval Office. Hell, where do you wanna go with this? Jason Bourne? Sydney Bristow? Bill Cosby on I Spy? George Smiley? James fuckin’ Bond? All of the spy glorification in pop culture has made it a cardinal rule: you don’t blow someone’s cover.

He adds:

So all Democrats really have to do is stand back and let these fuckers twist in the wind. When we hear Rove told Matt Cooper, “I’ve said too much already,” we know that that’s the line of scoundrels and weasels trying to cover their own asses. When we hear the President lower the ethical standards bar by which one can work for the White House all the way to the floor, we know that he’s covering for his friend. It’s all SOP for those who, it seems more and more each day, are SOL.

From Corrente, on the revelation that Novak’s second source “high administration official” (besides Rove) was Scooter Libby, Dick Cheney’s chief of staff:

You know, this whole thing reminds of that great old Agatha Christie novel, Murder on the Orient Express. The whodunnit is totally confusing, clues pointing every which way and cancelling each other out, until Hercule Poirot figures out that the reason the clues could only make sense if they were all in on it, is that, indeed, they were all in on it.

I doubt it, but it’s nice to dream.  (Hope I didn’t ruin the book/movie for y’all!)

Administration officials who are given security clearance are required to read and sign a form known as the “Classified Information Nondisclosure Agreement,” of SF 312.  A copy of the form can be found here (PDF format).

Accompanying the form is a briefing booklet, the contents of which are here.  Here’s a key excerpt from the booklet:

Question 19: If information that a signer of the SF 312 knows to have been classified appears in a public source, for example, in a newspaper article, may the signer assume that the information has been declassified and disseminate it elsewhere?

Answer: No. Information remains classified until it has been officially declassified. Its disclosure in a public source does not declassify the information. Of course, merely quoting the public source in the abstract is not a second unauthorized disclosure. However, before disseminating the information elsewhere or confirming the accuracy of what appears in the public source, the signer of the SF 312 must confirm through an authorized official that the information has, in fact, been declassified. If it has not, further dissemination of the information or confirmation of its accuracy is also an unauthorized disclosure.

The import of this cannot be underestimated.  It reflects directly on the meme that “Rove learned about Plame from Novak.”

First of all, “Information remains classified until it has been officially declassified” means exactly what it says.  And that means that Rove cannot assert “Novak told me” that as a “complete defense” to the issue of whether or not Plame was/wasn’t covert.

On the plus side for Rove (and as I wrote before), merely saying “Yeah, I heard that too” may not, in and of itself, be an unauthorized disclosure.  (An argument can be made that Rove’s “I heard that too” was a confirmation, rather than an acknowledgement in the abstract.  It’s a plausible argument, and perhaps Novak took it as a confirmation, but I seriously doubt that it is sufficient enough to meet the high burden associated with criminal statutes).

Where Rove may face problems is the last part.  Assuming Rove heard about Plame’s status through Novak, he still had an affirmative duty to check it out to see if the info was declassified before further dissemination.  Let’s also assume, that Rove discussed Plame with Cooper and Miller, and perhaps others, post-Novak.  (Note: If Rove talked to Cooper and Miller PRE-Novak, then he’s beyond deep doo-doo, if his excuse is “I learned it from Novak").

If Rove didn’t check the accuracy of Novak’s comment, he’s got a problem.  He clearly didn’t do what he was supposed to (and, at a minimum, his security clearance should be revoked—I don’t see how anybody can disagree with that).

If he DID check it out, there’s probably a record somewhere, which could spell trouble, especially if he learned that her status WAS classified . . . and he later talked to Cooper about it nonetheless.  (If Cooper raised the issue, Rove should have given a “no comment”.)

But Cooper has said that Rove talked about Plame, and her work with WMD analysis.  (He also said that Rove closed with a revealing "I’ve already said too much") How did Rove come about the WMD information? From Novak?  Not according to any account I have heard.  So perhaps Rove did check into Plame after talking to Novak, in which case he would have learned that Plame was not de-classified.  Which means he should not have “further disseminated” the information to Cooper.

Anyway, make of SF 312 what you will.  Just another brick in the wall.  Or, er, nail in the coffin.  You decide.

So focus has been on this classified State Department memo which says that Plame recommended or arranged for Wilson to go to Niger.  Fitzgerald’s office appears to believe that that memo was the ultimate source of the information that eventually made its way into print in Robert Novak’s column.  (Read more
here).

It looks like someone else may have had access to the memo, or a similar memo, or something related to the memo.  On October 28, 2003, a reporter had an interview with Joe Wilson, and asked the following question:

"An internal government memo prepared by U.S. intelligence personnel details a meeting in early 2002 where your wife, a member of the agency for clandestine service working on Iraqi weapons issues, suggested that you could be sent to investigate the reports. Do you dispute that?"

Who was the “reporter”?  Our buddy, Jeff Gannon.

Now, how did HE get his hands on that “internal government memo”?

Hey, is Rove married?  Happily?  Just asking . . .

Whether you work in Langley or a faraway nation, whether your tasks are in operations or analysis sections, it is upon your intellect and integrity, your wit and intuition that the fate of freedom rests for millions of your countrymen and for many millions more all around the globe. You are the trip-wire across which the forces of repression and tyranny must stumble in their quest for global domination. You, the men and women of the CIA, are the eyes and ears of the free world.

Like those who are part of any silent service, your sacrifices are sometimes unappreciated; your work is sometimes misunderstood. Because you’re professionals, you understand and accept this. But because you’re human and because you deal daily in the dangers that confront this nation, you must sometimes question whether some of your countrymen appreciate the value of your accomplishments, the sacrifices you make, the dangers you confront, the importance of the warnings that you issue.

As I’ve said, the enactment of the Intelligence Identities Protection Act is clear evidence of the value this nation places on its intelligence agencies and their personnel. It’s a vote of confidence in you by the American people through their elected representatives. It’s also a tribute to the strength of our democracy.

The Congress has carefully drafted this bill so that it focuses only on those who would transgress the bounds of decency; not those who would exercise their legitimate right of dissent. This carefully drawn act recognizes that the revelation of the names of secret agents adds nothing to legitimate public debate over intelligence policy. It is also a signal to the world that while we in this democratic nation remain tolerant and flexible, we also retain our good sense and our resolve to protect our own security and that of the brave men and women who serve us in difficult and dangerous intelligence assignments.

Source.

Compare Reagan with Rove, who reportedly expressed views (now echoed by the America-hating right) that Valerie Plame was “fair game”.

With the barage of silly excuses, sliming points, irrelevancies, and (occasionally) outright lies emanating from the right on the issue of L’Affaire Plame, it’s time for another link-o-riffic round-up.  This time, it comes courtesy of Think Progress:

CLAIM: White House Can’t Comment While Investigation Is Ongoing
McClellan: “While that investigation is ongoing, the White House is not going to comment on it.”

FACT: White House Has Repeatedly Commented During the Ongoing Investigation
McClellan had previously cited that same investigation and then gone on to answer the questions as they pertained to Rove. For example, on October 1, 2003, he said, “There’s an investigation going on … you brought up Karl’s name. Let’s be very clear. I thought — I said it was a ridiculous suggestion, I said it’s simply not true that he was involved in leaking classified information, and — nor, did he condone that kind of activity.” Similarly, on October 10, 2003, McClellan said, “I think it’s important to keep in mind that this is an ongoing investigation.” But he then added with regard to a question about Rove’s involvement, “I spoke with those individuals, as I pointed out, and those individuals assured me they were not involved in this.”

CLAIM: Rove Didn’t Leak The Name So He’s Not Guilty
Rove: “I didn’t know her name and didn’t leak her name.” Rove attorney Robert Luskin said “he did not tell any reporter that Valerie Plame worked for the CIA.”

FACT: National Security Law Says Identifying Covert Agent Is Illegal
Rove at the very least identified Plame as “Wilson’s wife.” Under section 421 of the Intelligence Identities Protection Act, the disclosure of “any information identifying [a] covert agent” is illegal.

CLAIM: White House Didn’t Push The Story
Rove’s lawyer Robert Luskin claims Cooper manipulated what Rove said to him “in a pretty ugly fashion to make it seem like people in the White House were affirmatively reaching out to reporters to try to get them to report negative information about Plame.”

FACT: There Was An Organized Campaign To Push Leak Info
First, Robert Novak admitted: “I didn’t dig it out [Plame’s identity], it was given to me…. They [the White House] thought it was significant, they gave me the name and I used it.” Second, Rove told Chris Matthews that Plame’s identity was “fair game.” Third, Time magazine reported the orchestrated campaign against Wilson in October 2003: “In the days after Wilson’s essay appeared, government officials began to steer reporters away from Wilson’s conclusions.” 

CLAIM: Conversation Was About Welfare Reform, So Rove Didn’t Do Anything Wrong
National Review’s Byron York: “According to Luskin, the fact that Rove did not call Cooper; that the original purpose of the call, as Cooper told Rove, was welfare reform.”

FACT: What They Spoke About Was Irrelevant
The original purpose of the conversation between Rove and Cooper is irrelevant. It has no bearing on the fact that Rove did identify a covert agent during that conversation.

CLAIM: Plame Wasn’t An Undercover Agent
Ed Rogers, former official under Reagan/Bush: “I think it is now a matter of established fact that Mrs. Plame was not a protected covert agent, and I don’t think there’s any meaningful investigation about that.”

FACT: Former CIA Officer Who Worked With Plame Verified She Was Undercover
Larry Johnson, former CIA officer: “Valerie Plame was a classmate of mine from the day she started with the CIA. I entered on duty at the CIA in September 1985. All of my classmates were undercover–in other words, we told our family and friends that we were working for other overt U.S. Government agencies. We had official cover.”

CLAIM: Rove Was Trying To Correct A False Story
Rove attorney Luskin added, “What Karl was trying to do … was to warn Time away from publishing things that were going to be established as false.”

FACT: Wilson Was Right, Bush Was Wrong
Bloomberg recently reported, “Two-year old assertions by former ambassador Joseph Wilson regarding Iraq and uranium, which lie at the heart of the controversy over who at the White House identified a covert U.S. operative, have held up in the face of attacks by supporters of presidential adviser Karl Rove.”

CLAIM: Wilson Lied About His Trip To Niger
Former Rove deputy Ken Mehlman: “What Joe Wilson alleged was that the vice president, then he said the CIA director sent him to Niger.” [CNN, 7/12/05]

FACT: Wilson Never Said Cheney Personally Sent Him To Niger
Bloomberg reported, “Wilson never said that Cheney sent him, only that the vice president’s office had questions about an intelligence report that referred to the sale of uranium yellowcake to Iraq from Niger. Wilson, in his New York Times article, said CIA officials were informed of Cheney’s questions. ‘The agency officials asked if I would travel to Niger to check out the story so they could provide a response to the vice president’s office,’ Wilson wrote.”

The folks at World O’ Crap are spoofing the right-wing machine this week, by offering more reasons why it would be okay for Rove to expose Plame as a CIA operative:

Reason #1: Because Plame made out with her husband before marriage.  And, even worse, she goes by her maiden name.

Reason #2: Because Karl did it to keep Plame from inventing a time machine, going back to 1911, and preventing Ronald Reagan from ever being born. 

Reason #3:  Because when Joe Wilson was the ambassador to Iraq, he met with Saddam Hussein.  Saddam had links to al Qaeda, in that some of his people met with some of their people.  Therefore, Joe Wilson has links to al Qaeda!  So, Rove had to out Wilson’s wife to prevent her from causing another 9/11! 

Reason #4: Because Karl Rove learned Plame’s identity from Novak, who learned it from Judy Miller, who learned it from Matt Cooper, who learned it from Karl Rove.  Scooter Libby is in there somewhere too.  And as the law says, if it’s a circle jerk, then Rove is free to smirk. 

Reason #5: Because the Agent Protection Act says “knowing that the information disclosed so identifies such covert agent,” but Karl didn’t know that Ms. Plame’s name would identify her, because he thought that, as a covert agent, she went by a cool Bond Girl name, like “Pussy Galore” or “Holly Goodhead” or “Vixen Oralsex."

Yup:

There’s a point that’s probably worth raising with our scofflaw Republican friends. All of their arguments now amount to excuses, like those of a small child caught stealing cookies: Joe Wilson’s a liar. Plame’s covert status wasn’t protected well by the CIA. It was just a short phone call. Rove really wanted to speak about welfare reform. Wilson said Cheney sent him to Africa. Plame sent Wilson to Africa. Rove leaked Plame’s identity in the interests of good journalism. Wilson went on too many TV shows. On and on and on.

The salient point is not that each of these claims is false. The point is that they’re irrelevant. It’s the mid-life version of ‘He hit me first!’ or ‘He called me a name!’ or other such foolery.

No presidential advisor should ever disclose the identity of a covert agent at the CIA. That doesn’t require elaboration.

If it’s done knowingly, it’s a felony. Joe Wilson could be the biggest hack in the world. Plame could have cooked the whole trip idea up to damage the president—as some GOP loopsters are now claiming—and it wouldn’t matter.

Rove (and, though we’re not supposed to say it yet, several of his colleagues) did something obviously wrong and reckless.  And they probably broke several laws by the time it was all done.

… And nothing was done amiss? If Rove et al. didn’t do anything wrong, why have they spent two years lying about what they did? No law was broken? Then what is Fitzgerald looking at? Why is a grand jury investigating Rove? A prosecutor like Fitzgerald, a Republican appointee, wouldn’t be throwing journalists in jail unless he thought he was investigating a serious crime.

What’s their answer to that? They have none.