Maybe Schumer and Leahy should contact Murray Waas and Jason Leopold to find out what Bush said to Fitzgerald in his 70 minute interview in June 2004...
From Newsinkling.org:
Written by Biloxi
Freitag, 07 Juli 2006
We now know what exactly Bush told Special Prosecutor Pat Fitzgerald in a 70 minute interview on June 24, 2004. Murray Waas of the National Journal published an article on July 3, 2006 about the leak case. According to Waas’ article, President Bush told Fitzgerald that he directed Vice-President Cheney “to disclose highly classified intelligence information to discredit Wilson and defend his administration.”
What is interesting is that Jason Leopold from Truthout.org reported similar yet different information in his April 6, 2006 article. Once again, the media and other journalists are asleep at the wheel in information. This is an interesting spin from Jason's article. In his article, four attorneys had read a transcript of Bush's interview with the investigators.
After the attorneys read the transcript, they said that Bush didn't disclose to either investigators or to Pat Fitzgerald that he had authorized Cheney or any other official to leak classified documents to any reporters. Yet, they said that Bush "frowned upon ‘selective leaks'".
And both Waas and Leopold reported that Bush told investigators that he had no knowledge of anyone on his staff had been involved in a plot to discredit or retaliate against Wilson by leaking Wilson's wife undercover identity to reporters. But, this caught my eye in the National Journal that had me questioned the article.
Waas said: "A senior government official who has spoken to the President about the matter said that although Bush encouraged Cheney to get information out to rebut Wilson's charges, Bush was unaware that Cheney had directed Libby to leak classified information."
I notice that his quote from the senior government official is in the present tense. Who is this senior government official? Waas' article leaves a lot of gray areas and questions. But, the bottom line is that in every shape of from that President Bush was involved directly or indirectly involved in the leak case.
In Truthout.org, in early part of June 2003, Cheney met with Bush and told Bush that "CIA officer Valerie Plame was the wife of Joe Wilson and that she was responsible for sending him to Niger to check out reports about Iraqi attempt to purchase uranium, according to current and former White House officials and attorneys close to the investigation."
There were other White House officials who attended the meeting with Cheney and Bush: former White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card, then-National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice, and her former deputy Stephen Hadley, and Karl Rove. So, these individuals knew Valerie Wilson's covert identity, her relationship to Joe Wilson, and why Wilson was sent to Niger. These individuals were indirectly involved in the leak case.
Murray Waas of National Journal's article puts Bush, once again, in the spotlight. It will have the public questioning again: was President Bush directly involved in the leak case? Well, from the timeline of the leak case, it shows that Bush was a lot more aware of the plan of action to discredit Wilson in order to make a case to go to war in Iraq.
In March 25, 2003, Bush released an amendment to the Executive Order 13292 in Classification Authority. This was four days after the start of the Iraq war. Let's review former President Clinton's Executive Order 12958 in April 17, 1995 in regards to Classification Authority:
Here is Clinton's Executive Order 12958:
Sec. 1.4. Classification Authority. (a) The authority to classify information originally may be exercised only by:
(1) the President;
(2) agency heads and officials designated by the President in the Federal Register; or
(3) United States Government officials delegated this authority pursuant to paragraph
Here is Bush's Executive Order 13292: Sec. 1.3. Classification Authority. (a) The authority to classify information originally may be exercised only by:
(1) the President and, in the performance of executive duties, the Vice President;
(2) agency heads and officials designated by the President in the Federal Register; and
(3) United States Government officials delegated this authority pursuant to paragraph (c) of this section.
What is interesting is that Bush altered the Executive Order for Classification Authority to give authority to Cheney after Cheney‘s meeting in his discussion on how to discredit Wilson on or before March 9, 2003. Yet, after four days of Novak's article that exposed the CIA covert's name, Bush declassified NIE documents on July 18, 2003.
There is more to President Bush's story about his unawareness of his White House staff being involved in retaliation against Wilson or leaking classified information. A President of the United States is no different from a CEO of a company. They are both held responsible for all operations in an organization. Also, they are held accountable for all activities that happen and transpire within that organization. From this leak case investigation, Bush or Cheney are not taking responsibilities in their part in this case. President Bush's lack of taking responsibility in the leak case will unravel a much larger White House conspiracy. This is showing credence of a possible aiding and abetting the Plame leak and a subsequent cover-up by Bush and Cheney. In the words of Winston Churchill, "A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on."
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