Libby Said Bush OK'd Leaks Court papers say the former White House aide, who is charged with perjury, testified that he told reporters about Iraq intelligence. By Richard B. Schmitt and Peter Wallsten, Los Angeles Times April 7, 2006 WASHINGTON — President Bush personally authorized leaking classified information to deflect Iraq war critics at a time when declining public support for the invasion threatened his reelection campaign, according to testimony from a former senior White House aide. The assertion, which came in a filing late Wednesday by federal prosecutors in the perjury case against I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, connects the president for the first time to a case that until now publicly focused on the activities of senior aides and the office of Vice President Dick Cheney. Libby, Cheney's former chief of staff, is facing charges related to the disclosure of a CIA operative's identity. Bush repeatedly has deplored leaks and has maintained an appearance of distance throughout the CIA leak investigation, telling reporters in 2003: "I don't know of anybody in my administration who leaked classified information. If somebody did leak classified information, I'd like to know it, and we'll take the appropriate action." But Libby's testimony, if true, places Bush in the middle of his administration's effort to undermine its critics at a time that the White House was preparing to make Iraq a central theme of the 2004 presidential campaign. Read the rest of the story . . .
Sure, Democrats and republicans both leak information. But this is about the White House leaking classified intelligence information for political purposes. This is serious and unprecedented. And direct violation of an Act of a Republican Congress. There is no democratic leak equivialent . . .. go ahead and list one. This is simple ignorance of the facts. Everybody is way past this. Plame was a CIA covert operative. Period. This is nonsense that you cannot document. The Intelligence Act applies to everyone and the All the President's Men are NOT above the law. Who do you think you are kidding? This is a scandal of major proportions, has been for months, and it is now headed directly to the White House, perhaps even to the President of the United States of America. There is a special prosecutor and a Grand Jury working. It is snowballing like Watergate, the last Presidential political scandal. This is a MAJOR story and an awful lot of people care. It is NOT going to go away and it could bust wide open soon. There will likely be indictments coming, folks.
YAWN.... I've been hearing this from you for the better part of the last year, Red. And in all that time, there's been what...one indictment? And of a flunky, who's now pointing fingers 6 ways from Sunday in order to save his own arse? The guy ought to have been indicted simply for being a male over the age of 40 with a nickname like "Scooter". Like I told you once before, Red...keep sh*tting in one hand and wishing in the other and see which one fills up first. :hihi: :hihi: :hihi:
"The National Intelligence Estimate was officially declassified almost two weeks later and released to the media." so i guess bush thought it was ok to tell people about information that was so secret it was released to the public in two weeks. big deal. i will let bush, as commander in cheif, decide what is too secret. and for the record: "The court filing makes no allegation that Bush — who has vowed to fire anyone in his administration who was involved in revealing the identity of CIA operative Valerie Plame — encouraged or authorized the disclosure of her identity." and furthermore: "As commander in chief, Bush has the authority to declassify information when he thinks it is in the national interest". who cares.
this is an example of liberal bias in media: "Bush repeatedly has deplored leaks and has maintained an appearance of distance throughout the CIA leak investigation, telling reporters in 2003: "I don't know of anybody in my administration who leaked classified information. If somebody did leak classified information, I'd like to know it, and we'll take the appropriate action." that paragraph is trying to paint bush as hypocritical. of course bush is critical of leaks. but bush can't really "leak" something that he has the authority to declassify, which is basically everything. if all the information is yours to declassify, you cant "leak" it in a negative sense, because the information is yours to do with as you please! and you are not hypocritical for complaining about other leakers, because they are not the president and don;t have the same powers you do. the information was declassified anyways, so was that a "leak" by whoever decided it was ok to declassify?
its ok Red, really it is. :sob: BTW: hey has anyone noticed how the spring rates on these roller cams are going right through the roof? its unreal! 900 range isn't unheard of these days. :shock: :thumb:
Keep watching, the fat lady has not sung yet. It took years to unravel Watergate. I also predicted that this story would lead to Dick Cheney and guess what? :grin:
True. But there is a strict procedure for doing this that was not followed. Instead selected bits that discredited political opponents were released to the press while still classified. This is called a leak by anyone's definition. But you miss the point. Even if the president manages a legal defense of this action, it is a political disaster. He loudly proclaimed early in his term that leaking would not be tolerated. He loudly proclaimed when this scandal began that he would fire anyone who was proved to have leaked clasified data. Now he is claiming that he instantly declassified small bits of a document as it was leaked which technically makes him not guilty of leaking a "classified" document and exposing a cover CIA agent. But the public is not fooled. It makes him look like he intentionally deceived us. The citizens do not like being fooled. The White House chief of staff jumped ship last week and the Press Secretary is reported going soon because his creditbility is shot. This is still snowballing.
if i can have the authority to decalssify, that mean i can "leak" it, because it isnt being leaked against the wishes of anyone that matters! i know, the point is to bash bush. you dont seem to understand that the president has the power to declassify information. i know that fact must be frustrating when you are trying to claim he leaked something that it is perfectly within his power to declassify. for someone to "leak" something, it has to be a person without the authority to do it!
You don't seem to understand that there is an official procedure for declassifying a document and IT WAS NOT FOLLOWED. Parts of this document were LEAKED to THE PRESS weeks before the document was offically declassified. Not only that, the parts that were leaked were done for political reasons to try to discredit someone that found that the pre-war intelligence was exaggerated and unreliable. And those findings turned out to be correct. The last time a president used his office to break laws for political reasons, he ended up having to resign the office. You can keep repeating your case, martin, but it ain't flying and this story is not going away.
