Bush, Lawyer Huddle On CIA Leak

President Consults Outside Attorney To Possibly Represent Him

(CBS/AP)  President Bush said Thursday he was ready to cooperate in the grand jury investigation of who leaked the name of a covert CIA operative last year and that he had consulted with an attorney to determine if he needs legal advice.

"I've told our administration that we'll fully cooperate with their investigation," Mr. Bush said. "I want to know the truth. I'm willing to cooperate myself."

Mr. Bush's move suggests the president anticipates being questioned by prosecutors about whether he could shine any light on the case. But there is no indication that he is a target of the investigation.

"In terms of whether or not I need advice from counsel, this is a criminal matter, it's a serious matter," the president said. "I have met with an attorney to determine whether or not I need his advice, and if I deem I need his advice, I'll probably hire him."

Earlier, White House spokeswoman Claire Buchan identified the lawyer as Jim Sharp, confirming a report by CBS News Chief White House Correspondent John Roberts.

"The president has said that everyone should cooperate in this matter and that would include himself," Buchan said.

She deflected questions about whether Mr. Bush had been asked to appear before a grand jury in the case.

In an exceptionally secretive process, Roberts reports, a federal grand jury has been hearing testimony since January from dozens of administration and government officials. The probe is aiming to pin down the source of the leak that identified Valerie Plame, wife of former ambassador Joe Wilson, as an undercover CIA agent.

Wilson charges that Plame's cover was blown as payback for his challenge to President Bush's claim in last year's State of the Union address that Saddam Hussein was actively shopping for uranium to build a bomb.

"Saddam Hussein has been trying to buy uranium from Africa," Mr. Bush said in the Jan. 28, 2003 address.

Plame was first identified by syndicated columnist and TV commentator Robert Novak in a column last July. Novak said his information came from administration sources.

Wilson has pointed fingers at Vice President Dick Cheney's office and at the president's political director Karl Rove in a recent book, claiming Rove told a reporter that, "Wilson's wife is fair game."

Even though he has a White House counsel, Mr. Bush is dependent on outside lawyers for private matters. A memo distributed to the staff last year reminded officials that the counsel's office works solely for the president in his official capacity and is not a private attorney for anyone.

Democrats seized on the news to criticize the president.

"It speaks for itself that the president initially claimed he wanted to get to the bottom of this, but now he's suddenly retained a lawyer," said Jano Cabrera, spokesman for the Democratic National Committee.

"Bush shouldn't drag the country through grand juries and legal maneuvering. President Bush should come forward with what he knows and come clean with the American people."

The Justice Department assigned a special team of investigators to the case last fall. It demanded thousands of e-mails and other correspondence from the White House- and has either interviewed or brought before the grand jury several high-ranking officials.

Mr. Bush has repeatedly stated that he has no tolerance for such leaks, but he has expressed doubts the investigation will find ever find answers.

"I have no idea if we'll find out who the leaker is … partially because your industry is good at protecting the leaker," he said in the past, referring to the media.

So far, no one is suggesting that President Bush had anything to do with the leak or even knew about it until it became public. But the fact that he has retained outside counsel in the event the grand jury comes calling has elevated this investigation to the highest levels.

"This doesn't necessarily mean the president is in legal trouble or that he's suddenly become the focus or the target of this investigation," says CBS News Legal Analyst Andrew Cohen. "I think it does mean that President Bush expects to play a larger role in this investigation going forward."