Rove-y Bits
Let's take a minute to be clear about a few things.
First, waiting for "the ongoing investigation" is silly. There are sufficient facts on the record for administrative actions, like firing or suspension. The ongoing investigation will merely resolve whether specific laws were violated, and how many people will stand trial, not whether Rove deserves to keep his job or not.
Second, asserting that it is inappropriate to comment, when you are already on record as commenting again and again, is nonsensical.
Third, it matters not a whit whether Rove gave the name 'Valerie Plame' to Matt Cooper. Even Rove's lawyer admits, as the Newsweek report suggests, that he told Cooper that Wilson's wife worked for the CIA. Logically, either Rove knew that was classified information, or he didn't know whether it was classified or not. Most everything about the CIA is classified, after all. In either case, it was completely inappropriate for him to reveal it. One needn't be a genius to realize that, if you don't know for a fact that such a thing is not classified, you act as if it is. We'll leave the legal question to the grand jury, but there can be no doubt that, by his lawyer's own admission, Rove disclosed identifying information about a CIA employee to Matt Cooper.
In fact, one attempted spin in Rove's defense is that he was not out for revenge against Wilson, he was trying to protect Cooper from going to press with the story that Cheney had sent Wilson to Niger, by telling him that it was Wilson's wife at the CIA who had authorized the trip. This spin depends on Rove committing the very transgression for which he should be fired; he revealed classified information.
Third, who sent Wilson, and why, is a smokescreen. The point is that Wilson went to Niger to prove or disprove the report that Saddam had tried to buy uranium. He disproved it. Still, the claim later appeared in the State of the Union address by President Bush. Wilson wrote an op-ed for the New York Times about what he knew. Some defenders, rushing to Rove's aid, are suggesting that Wilson, and perhaps his wife, were partisan peaceniks out to undermine the war effort. Despite the gathering cloud of right-wing bafflegab, let's remember who, in fact, was providing partisan, false and misleading information in the period before the war. Wilson was telling the truth, and Bush, Cheney, Rove, et al. were not.
There are lots and lots of other facets of this story, but, while those are cooking, it should be noticed that a)the President said he would fire anyone in the White House who was leaking classified info, b)Rove, through his lawyer, has acknowledged that he told Cooper (i.e., leaked) that Wilson's wife worked for the CIA, c)the fact that "Wilson's wife" worked for the CIA was classified information, whether or not Rove knew that, and d) all of that is on the record right now. We have no need to wait for the ongoing investigation before responding with, at the very least, suspension and removal of classified access until the investigation is over.
There is, after all, a war on, and anyone who could make that kind of a "mistake", burning not only Plame, but the cover company she worked for, and all the other operatives connected to it, really shouldn't be working. Then we can wait for the indictments.
Don't hold your breath.
Oh, and let's remember, Bush hasn't had to wait for the press to get copies of emails, or to parse statements by Rove's lawyer, to know all this. Nor does he need to continue waiting before doing something about it.
For those who'd like a "remind me again" synopsis of the affair, the estimable Digby provides it.
First, waiting for "the ongoing investigation" is silly. There are sufficient facts on the record for administrative actions, like firing or suspension. The ongoing investigation will merely resolve whether specific laws were violated, and how many people will stand trial, not whether Rove deserves to keep his job or not.
Second, asserting that it is inappropriate to comment, when you are already on record as commenting again and again, is nonsensical.
Third, it matters not a whit whether Rove gave the name 'Valerie Plame' to Matt Cooper. Even Rove's lawyer admits, as the Newsweek report suggests, that he told Cooper that Wilson's wife worked for the CIA. Logically, either Rove knew that was classified information, or he didn't know whether it was classified or not. Most everything about the CIA is classified, after all. In either case, it was completely inappropriate for him to reveal it. One needn't be a genius to realize that, if you don't know for a fact that such a thing is not classified, you act as if it is. We'll leave the legal question to the grand jury, but there can be no doubt that, by his lawyer's own admission, Rove disclosed identifying information about a CIA employee to Matt Cooper.
In fact, one attempted spin in Rove's defense is that he was not out for revenge against Wilson, he was trying to protect Cooper from going to press with the story that Cheney had sent Wilson to Niger, by telling him that it was Wilson's wife at the CIA who had authorized the trip. This spin depends on Rove committing the very transgression for which he should be fired; he revealed classified information.
Third, who sent Wilson, and why, is a smokescreen. The point is that Wilson went to Niger to prove or disprove the report that Saddam had tried to buy uranium. He disproved it. Still, the claim later appeared in the State of the Union address by President Bush. Wilson wrote an op-ed for the New York Times about what he knew. Some defenders, rushing to Rove's aid, are suggesting that Wilson, and perhaps his wife, were partisan peaceniks out to undermine the war effort. Despite the gathering cloud of right-wing bafflegab, let's remember who, in fact, was providing partisan, false and misleading information in the period before the war. Wilson was telling the truth, and Bush, Cheney, Rove, et al. were not.
There are lots and lots of other facets of this story, but, while those are cooking, it should be noticed that a)the President said he would fire anyone in the White House who was leaking classified info, b)Rove, through his lawyer, has acknowledged that he told Cooper (i.e., leaked) that Wilson's wife worked for the CIA, c)the fact that "Wilson's wife" worked for the CIA was classified information, whether or not Rove knew that, and d) all of that is on the record right now. We have no need to wait for the ongoing investigation before responding with, at the very least, suspension and removal of classified access until the investigation is over.
There is, after all, a war on, and anyone who could make that kind of a "mistake", burning not only Plame, but the cover company she worked for, and all the other operatives connected to it, really shouldn't be working. Then we can wait for the indictments.
Don't hold your breath.
Oh, and let's remember, Bush hasn't had to wait for the press to get copies of emails, or to parse statements by Rove's lawyer, to know all this. Nor does he need to continue waiting before doing something about it.
For those who'd like a "remind me again" synopsis of the affair, the estimable Digby provides it.
posted by Paul at 6:43 PM |
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