Re: Jury convicts Libby on four of five charges
Quote Crunch
Probably Libbys attorney didn't think it was necessary.... what's your point?
Point #1. On or about June 9, 2003, a number of classified documents from the CIA were faxed to the Office of the Vice President to the personal attention of LIBBY and another person in the Office of the Vice President. The faxed documents, which were marked as classified, discussed, among other things, Wilson and his trip to Niger, but did not mention Wilson by name. After receiving these documents, LIBBY and one or more other persons in the Office of the Vice President handwrote the names 'Wilson' and 'Joe Wilson' on the documents."
-- United States of America v. I. Lewis Libby; 10-28-05; page.
"And as you sit back, you want to learn: Why was this information going out? Why were people taking this information about Valerie Wilson and giving it to reporters? Why did Mr. Libby say what he did? Why did he tell Judith Miller three times? Why did he tell the press secretary on Monday? Why did he tell Mr. Cooper? And was this something where he intended to cause whatever damage was caused?"
-- Patrick Fitzgerald; Press Conference on 10-28-05
Point #2 Cheney authorized leaks Libby says
But the disclosure that Cheney instructed Libby to leak portions of a classified CIA report on Joseph Wilson adds to a growing body of information showing that at the time Plame was outed as a covert CIA officer the vice president was deeply involved in the White House effort to undermine her husband.
http://news.nationaljournal.com/articles/0414nj3.htm
Point#3
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070113/ap_on_re_us/cia_lea ...
CATHIE MARTIN: A public affairs assistant to the vice president, Martin told Libby around July 8, 2003, that she learned from another government official that Wilson's wife worked at the CIA
Point #4.
Moreover, given that there is evidence that other White House officials with whom defendant spoke prior to July 14, 2003, discussed Wilson's wife's employment with the press both prior to, and after, July 14, 2003 - which evidence has been shared with defendant - it is hard to conceive of what evidence there could be that would disprove the existence of White House efforts to "punish" Wilson. Patrick Fitzgerald,
GovernmentS Response To DefendantS Third Motion To Compel Discovery, filed 4/5/2006
link:
http://www.nysun.com/30561.pdf , pg. 30.
Point #5. "Cathie Martin: On or about June 12, 2003, LIBBY was advised by the Vice President of the United States that Wilson's wife worked at the Central Intelligence Agency in the Counterproliferation Division. LIBBY understood that the Vice President had learned this information from the CIA."
-- US v. Libby; Indictment; page 5
"A public affairs assistant to the vice president, Martin told Libby around July 8, 2003, that she had learned from another government official that Wilson's wife worked at the CIA."
--CIA Leak Witnesses; Newsday; 1-13-07
"
On the plane ride back to Washington from Norfolk on July 12, Cheney strategized once again with Libby and Martin as to how to discredit Wilson's allegations, according to people familiar with the federal grand jury testimony of both Libby and Martin."
-- CIA Leak Probe:Inside the Grand Jury; Murray Waas; 1-12-07
[Very few people are going to make notes on the margins of the Vice President's documents.]
Point #6 Q: Do you recall ever discussing those issues with Vice President Cheney?
LIBBY: Yes, sir. ....
Q: Was it a topic that was discussed on a daily basis?
LIBBY: Yes, sir.
Q: And was it discussed on multiple occassions each day in fact?
LIBBY: Yes, sir.
-[- From Libby's Grand Jury testimony.]
Point#7=1992: Scooter Libby and Paul Wolfowitz prepare a classified document for their boss, **** Cheney, which is leaked to the press. It is a blueprint for empire, calling for a global US military presence to "establish and protect a new order," and to deter any "potential competitors from even aspiring to a larger regional or global role." (Where the Right Went Wrong; Patrick Buchanan; 2004; pages 42-43)
1992: Karl Rove is fired from President Bush1s re-election campaign for leaking information to journalist Robert Novak. (Newsweek; 7-25-05; page 31)
January 26, 1998: The neoconservative Project for the New American Century (PNAC) sends a letter to President Bill Clinton, requesting that he invade Iraq.
http://www.newamericancentury.org/iraqclintonletter.htm
January, 2002: The first "reports" of a possible Niger-Iraq deal involving yellow cake uranium surface in the Bush administration.
February 19, 2002: Joseph Wilson meets with people at the CIA, to discuss his taking a trip to Niger to investigate the Niger situation.
March, 2002: After he returns from Africa, Wilson briefs people at the CIA and State Department on his findings
March 9, 2002: The CIA sends a memo to the White House, summarizing Wilsons findings. (TIME; 7-25; page 26)
August, 2002: "Hadley and Libby were part of another secret office that had been set up within the White House. Known as the White House Iraq Group (WHIG), it was established in August 2002 by Chief of Staff Andrew H. Card, Jr., at the same time the OSP was established in Feiths office. Made up of high-level administration officials, its job was to sell the war to the general public, largely through televised addresses and by selectively leaking the intelligence to the media." (A Pretext for War; James Bamford; 2004; page 318
August, 2002: "The WHIG began priming its audience in August when Vice President Cheney, on three occasions, sounded a shrill alarm over Saddam Husseins nuclear threat." (Bamford; page 319
October, 2002: "The Iraqi regime is seeking nuclear weapons. Does it make any sense for the world to wait
. For the final proof, the smoking gun that could come in the form of a mushroom cloud?" President Bush, speech in Cincinnati.
There is a whole series of this kind of propaganda I wont repeat all of it Im sure that most of you remember it. Where Im going with this will be apparent soon enough bear with me.
Point #8=March, 2003: According to media analyst Andrew Tyndall, of the 414 stories on Iraq broadcast on the three major television networks NBC, ABC, and CBS all but 34 originated at the White House, the Pentagon, or the State Department. All but 34 of 414 stories on Iraq followed the Bush line. Mere coincidence?
May 6, 2003: Nicholas Kristof has an article in the New York Times that exposes the White House lies on the Niger yellow cake
June 9, 2003: "
a number of classified documents from the CIA were faxed to the Office of the Vice President to the personal attention of LIBBY and another person
. The faxed documents, which were marked as classified, discussed, among other things, Wilson and his trip to Niger, but did not mention Wilson by name.
LIBBY and one or more other persons in the Office of the Vice President handwrote the names Wilson and Joe Wilson on the documents." (Indictment; page 4
July 14, 2003: Robert Novaks column exposes Valerie Plame.
July 16, 2003: David Corn writes that the exposing of Plame may be criminal. (A white House Smear; The Nation)
July 20, 2003: NBCs Andrea Mitchell tells Wilson that the White House is coordinating a campaign to smear him and his wife. (Wilson; page 453)
July 21, 2003: Chris Matthews calls Wilson to tell him about a phone call from Karl Rove, in which rove said, "Wilsons wife is fair game." (Wilson; page 453)
September 29, 2003: The Department of Justice begins investigating.
September 29, 2003: Mike Allen and Dana Priest report that the White House had called at least six top journalists with information on Plame. (Washington Post)
October 14, 2003: Libby is interviewed by the FBI.
When Joseph Wilson challenged the Bush administration on VP Cheneys outright lies, Cheney and Scooter freaked. Their lack of boundries was revealed in Greniers testimony yesterday, when he told of Libby ordering him out of a meeting with CIA director George Tenet. The contempt that Cheney and Libby felt for the Agency was expressed by the Team Libby attorney in the cross-examination.
Point #9 In my opinion the reason that Libby didnt take the stand was because he was protecting Vice President Cheney, and he didnt want to have to lie again, plus a whole lot of what he said before the grand jury could be put up to cross examination in closing. A lot of what I put up in this post could have been introduced if Scooter had taken the stand in his defense. So it ended up with this.
Obstruction of Justice=
Guilty
False Statements to FBI Investigators about Russert conversation= Guilty
Perjury to the Grand Jury about Russert conversation= Guilty
Perjury to the Grand Jury about Cooper conversation== Guilty
