29 May 2007

Ms. Plame couldn't have lied, could she?

No, of course not. She was just a pawn, an innocent victim of the Rove-Bushco-Halliburton machine. Or, not (via Iowa Voice):
The lovely Mrs Wilson testified on Capitol Hill a couple of months ago, once again capturing the hearts of our friends on the left, who are, as always, seeking ammunition to use against President Bush. Trouble is, the Intelligence Committee Vice-Chairman, Senator Christopher Bond (R-MO), did his homework (or at least his staff did!), and it turns out that Mrs Wilson lied under oath. In Fact-Checking Valerie Plame Wilson, Pt. 1, National Review’s Byron York documents Senator Bond’s report. In her recent testimony, Mrs Wilson flatly either recommending or suggesting that her husband be sent to Niger for his famous fact-finding mission. Mrs Wilson continued that her “quick e-mail” of February 12, 2002, was taken out of context, to “make it seem as though I had suggested or recommended him.”

Senator Bond published the entire February 12, 2002 memo by Mrs Wilson:

The report forwarded below has prompted me to send this on to you and request your comments and opinion. Briefly, it seems that Niger has signed a contract with Iraq to sell them uranium. The IC [Intelligence Community] is getting spun up about this for obvious reasons. The embassy in Niamey has taken the position that this report can’t be true — they have such cozy relations with the GON [Government of Niger] that they would know if something like this transpired.

So where do I fit in? As you may recall, [redacted] of CP/[office 2] recently approached my husband to possibly use his contacts in Niger to investigate [a separate Niger matter]. After many fits and starts, [redacted] finally advised that the station wished to pursue this with liaison. My husband is willing to help, if it makes sense, but no problem if not. End of story.

Now, with this report, it is clear that the IC is still wondering what is going on… my husband has good relations with both the PM and the former minister of mines, not to mention lots of French contacts, both of whom could possibly shed light on this sort of activity. To be frank with you, I was somewhat embarrassed by the agency’s sloppy work last go-round, and I am hesitant to suggest anything again. However, [my husband] may be in a position to assist. Therefore, request your thoughts on what, if anything, to pursue here. Thank you for your time on this.
Let's see. Scooter Libby got how long for having a bad memory? How long of a sentence do you think the liberal left will recommend Ms. Plame-Wilson receive? Yeah, I thought so too.