CIA secret prisons leaker fired

[wastepanel]

I don't know what the procedures are in an IG office (thirty years working for Uncle and I've never come remotely close to seeing anything that looked like official malfeasance). If she works in the IG's office, I assume it's her job to deal with it. I suppose that means start an inquiry/investigation, and file charges or whatever, if it comes to that. Calling the newspapers is, I would assume, way down the list.

This is where the government horribly confuses me. Has there been any mention on whether she approached her boss or other co-workers on this issue?

 

[BPSCG]

This is where the government horribly confuses me. Has there been any mention on whether she approached her boss or other co-workers on this issue?

Not that I've seen, but:

• I'll bet nobody at the CIA is talking to the press today without seventeen different letters from his superior explicitly authorizing it;
• This is still very much a developing story, with lots of stuff yet to come out (and a lot that won't) and;
• The real story is Scooter, Scooter, Scooter!!!

 

[daredelvis]

Ah yes, Valerie PLame - the "undercover operative".

Except she wasn't - at least as defined by the law.

What is your source for this statment? Tony Snow?

Daredelvis

 

[jj]

Ah yes, Valerie PLame - the "undercover operative". Except she wasn't - at least as defined by the law.

My understanding is that she was, and did qualify, and that there is an intense campaign to misrepresent the intent and perhaps the letter of the law here. It certainly is not definite and absolute that she was not an undercover operative, and stating as much does not seem to me to be an evenhanded debating tactic.

 

[gnome]

If she wasn't a covert operative (and there was therefore nothing wrong with mentioning her name) how long would it have taken President Bush to determine this, before he promised to fire anyone responsible? Wouldn't that have been a reasonable first step before such bluster?

 

[gnome]

Ah yes, Valerie PLame - the "undercover operative". Except she wasn't - at least as defined by the law. I like the "on a whim" approach just because that is the same brand of BS. Plame's husband had been busy lying and squawking in a partisan effort to 'get Bush' - never mind the facts of the matter of course.

As for how keeping secret prisons is helping our national security the honest answer is that I do not know for sure. What I do know is that with all the fuss about Gitmo I would be more inclined to keep these jerks somewhere where people aint whining about it.





I would agree with that - except that it strikes me as gratuitous when one has joined an agency like the CIA. If one is truly concerned about exposing and bringing to light egregious abuse (or on the other side of the coin tough self defense..) then the leaker should have become a journalist.

Wars are not some sort of surgical atmosphere where it pays to be nice. Win it first.

Civil rights are not some sort of convenience that only exist absent conflict.

With no oversight, "These jerks" could be anyone, including innocents or "inconvenients", rather than terrorists. By all means, keep the terrorists locked up. But don't reserve the right to lock up anybody for any reason--which is the logical equivalent of arguing for no oversight.

 

[gnome]

I don't know what the procedures are in an IG office (thirty years working for Uncle and I've never come remotely close to seeing anything that looked like official malfeasance). If she works in the IG's office, I assume it's her job to deal with it. I suppose that means start an inquiry/investigation, and file charges or whatever, if it comes to that. Calling the newspapers is, I would assume, way down the list.

By the way, this aspect of the question has a lot of my attention. I would want to know what steps she took within channels before jumping out of the system, and for her to explain why she eventually did.

 

[wastepanel]

By the way, this aspect of the question has a lot of my attention. I would want to know what steps she took within channels before jumping out of the system, and for her to explain why she eventually did.

I'm with Gnome on this one. Of course, if the government is looking for a patsy, then all the files have been deleted or shredded. Wow, conspiracy theories are easy to come up with!

 

[aerocontrols]

My understanding is that she was, and did qualify, and that there is an intense campaign to misrepresent the intent and perhaps the letter of the law here. It certainly is not definite and absolute that she was not an undercover operative, and stating as much does not seem to me to be an evenhanded debating tactic.

I would be more inclined to believe that she was clearly a covered covert operative if Fitzgerald were going after Libby for leaking her name, rather than lying to Fitz's grand jury, and also going after the unnamed official who does not work at the White House who also leaked, rather than protecting his identity so as not to sully his reputation.

Why is Fitzgerald so worried about Richard Armitage's that official's reputation? When he leaked her identity to reporters, it was OK?

 

[aerocontrols]

By the way, this aspect of the question has a lot of my attention. I would want to know what steps she took within channels before jumping out of the system, and for her to explain why she eventually did.

She worked in the Inspector General's office. She was the official channel.

She knows that the channel goes from her, to the relevant Congressional oversight committees. Maybe the Republicans (and the Democrats!) on those committees just weren't returning her calls, so she went to the media instead.

 

[BryanLower]

Civil rights are not some sort of convenience that only exist absent conflict.

With no oversight, "These jerks" could be anyone, including innocents or "inconvenients", rather than terrorists. By all means, keep the terrorists locked up. But don't reserve the right to lock up anybody for any reason--which is the logical equivalent of arguing for no oversight.

Totally agree. Cast my vote with Gnome.

 

[wastepanel]

She worked in the Inspector General's office. She was the channel.

She knows that the channel goes from her, to the relevant Congressional oversight committees. Maybe the Republicans (and the Democrats!) on those committees just weren't returning he calls, so she went to the media instead.

That could be funny:

McCarthy: I called the following congressmen (insert list of names)

Government: Oh no she di'nt! (insert finger snap)

Another story swept under the rug.

 

[pgwenthold]

I am wondering why everyone is taking it for granted that she actually leaked the information in the first place?

Initial reports claimed that she admitted it, but those are now unconfirmed. She is denying it, which is nominally to be expected, but less expected from someone who supposed confessed.

Similarly, the stories of how she was marched out of her office are also to the unconfirmed pile.

Lots of initial reports ending up as unconfirmed. Who is in charge of the misinformation campaign?

 

[Ziggurat]

I am wondering why everyone is taking it for granted that she actually leaked the information in the first place?

Initial reports claimed that she admitted it, but those are now unconfirmed. She is denying it, which is nominally to be expected, but less expected from someone who supposed confessed.

My understanding is she denied leaking the secret prisons story. Perhaps she confessed to leaking some other information, and the CIA isn't in the mood to clarify what exactly she leaked. Just speculating.

 

[aerocontrols]

That could be funny:

McCarthy: I called the following congressmen (insert list of names)

Government: Oh no she di'nt! (insert finger snap)

Another story swept under the rug.

I guess all 'the Government' needs for that to work is for her not to have contacted any Congressmen who would care about exposing or ending the program.

Legally, though, it wouldn't matter if she went to Congress before going public, since her legal options don't seem to include going to the press.

 

[davefoc]

Lots of initial reports ending up as unconfirmed. Who is in charge of the misinformation campaign?

My question also.

And why is she loose? Isn't leaking super secret information to the press a big deal?

And how did the campaign to discredit her get going? All of a sudden every Republican pundit is referring to her as a Clinton appointee and is mentioning her and her husband's contributions to Kerry.

OK, how about this scenario:
She first denies and then admits meeting with the author of the secret prison story to CIA interrogators. This is enough for the powers that be in the CIA to fire her who may have already been leaning on her because of her Democratic connection. The powers-that-be realize the political nature of her firing in light of the recent revelations about Bushco leaks and decide to coordinate efforts with Bushco on dealing with this publically.

Bushco realizes that discrediting her is important because otherwise she looks like citizen taking personal risk to out Bushco practice of handling of some prisoners in potentially inhumane ways. Bushco seizes on her Democratic connections and makes sure reporters know where to get this information. CIA powers-that-be realize that she hasn't exactly confessed to leaking secret information but decide to push the truth envelope and claim that she did hoping that nobody will notice that somebody that actually admitted to revealing secret information would be charged and put in jail while the facts are sorted out.