Whatever Happened To That Whole CIA-Leak Story Anyway?

By: Vaughn Ververs
Topics: In The News

(CBS)

Rem Rieder at the American Journalism Review asks the question few in the Washington press corps seems willing to pose: Where's all the coverage of the Valerie Plame leak case these days? After all, it wasn't all that long ago the city's tongues were wagging with speculation over the identity of the person who leaked the name of the former CIA operative to columnist Bob Novak, thereby blowing her cover in what was widely assumed to be a campaign to discredit her husband, Bush administration critic Joe Wilson. Now that former Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage has confirmed that he was the original source for Novak's column, what's happened to the story? Is the lack of hoopla because, as Reider suggests, because:

… it turns out the villain wasn't an angry neocon bent on revenge against a critic of the Iraq war – Plame's husband, Joseph Wilson – but a Colin Powell ally who was at best a lukewarm supporter of the invasion.

Far from being part of an orchestrated plot or a vast White House conspiracy, Plame's unmasking was simply the handiwork of that Washington, D.C., staple, an insider with a big mouth. The culprit was gossip, not political gunslinging.

The whole thing is worth a read (hat tip: Romenesko). Reider can't fully answer the question of why the Armitage revelation hasn't gotten more attention but wonders if the DC press corps simply wants to sweep this one under the rug:

Maybe it's simply a matter of embarrassment. After so much breathless coverage of supposed White House character assassination, maybe the MSM just kind of hoped the whole thing would go away.

Whatever the reason, it was a curious and disappointing performance.

6 Comments +

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by mattcat25 September 20, 2006 7:41 PM EDT: Different news commentators, different network, but the same mindset of attacking the media instead of really analyzing, or accepting the actions of George W. Bush. There were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, Saddam Hussein didn%u2019t attack the World Trade Center, and George W. Bush didn%u2019t serve his military obligation properly with the Alabama and Texas Air National Guard. Karl Rove, *** Cheney, Scooter Libby (and, a host of others) all played a part in bringing down the CIA Operation under Brewster Jennings. The only motivation for these actions clearly against our national security was%u2026.greed.; Reply to this comment


by truestories September 20, 2006 6:34 PM EDT: There are articles on the Valerie Plame case truthout.com; Reply to this comment


by centralcal-2009 September 20, 2006 5:45 PM EDT: I agree with mailpro56, however, it won't happen. MSNBC's ratings are perpetually pathetic and so are their "stars." Their niche seems to be increasingly the trash talk and hysteria that so personifies Air America - that ratings winner of the radio airwaves. Olberman, Matthews, Shuster, and yes, Scarborough, are unable to compete for the sane or rational viewer. If you are NOT a diehard partisan, it is quite comical to watch them as they become ever more absurd and an utter parody of real news commentators.

Has anybody been watching Corn making the TV rounds? Another amusement! More and more it would appear that Isikoff's association with him in co-authoring "Hubris," should do for his credibility what the above mentioned clowns have done for MSNBC.; Reply to this comment


by mattcat25 September 20, 2006 2:00 PM EDT: There were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, and no yellow cake uranium purchased from Niger. Valerie Plame was working undercover for a CIA front company called %u201CBrewster Jennings%u201D which posed as consultants to countries and organizations that endeavored in Nuclear Energy. Plame was an Energy Analyst working specifically with Iran.

The Bush/Cheney Administration toppled the entire Brewster Jennings Operation including vital information and relationships with Iran. The entire Iraq War was a Public Relations creation by an Administration hired firm of John Rendon. Joe Wilson (Plame%u2019s Husband) blew a large hole in the Public Relations story of Saddam Hussein pursuing yellow cake uranium from Niger in an effort to develop nuclear weapons.

The Bush/Cheney Administration spent $Millions on marketing a War with Iraq to divert Federal Treasury Funds to the private sector in excess of Hundreds of Billions of US $Dollars. The American People need to stand up for oversight of our government, or continue to stay the course of being taken advantage of by unethical management.; Reply to this comment


by iloveusa-2009 September 19, 2006 11:05 PM EDT: Why so little ink on this vaughn? Cat got your tongue?; Reply to this comment


by mailpro56 September 19, 2006 8:57 PM EDT: Chris Matthews and David Shuster should be fired after they apolgize to Karl Rove!; Reply to this comment

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