WASHINGTON, October 30, 2009
Cheney Said He Didn't Know Plame Leaker
Former V.P. Said in 2004 Interview He Had No Idea Who Leaked CIA Identity; His Chief of Staff was Eventually Convicted
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Former Vice President Dick Cheney said he had no idea who released Plame's identity as a CIA agent. (AP)
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Interactive The Leak People and events surrounding the leak of a CIA officer's name.
An FBI summary of Cheney's interview from 2004 reflects that the vice president had deep concern about Plame's husband, Joseph Wilson, a former U.S. ambassador in Africa who said the administration had twisted prewar intelligence on Iraq.
Cheney's chief of staff, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, was convicted of perjury, obstruction and lying to the FBI in the probe of who leaked Plame's identity to the news media. President George W. Bush commuted Libby's 30-month prison sentence but rejected Cheney's vehement appeals to pardon Libby.
The 28-page FBI interview summary was released Friday to a watchdog group, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.
In the interview whose participants included federal prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald, Cheney told agents that he did not recall having a conversation about either Plame or her husband with Bush.
The vice president said he probably discussed Wilson with Bush's top political adviser, Karl Rove, but told the FBI he would not have talked to Rove about Wilson's wife.
Cheney's denials that he talked about Plame are among the few things in the lengthy interview with the FBI that Cheney appeared certain about. He repeatedly said he could not recall key events. Among them, he said he did not recall discussing Wilson's wife with Libby before her CIA employment was publicly revealed by conservative columnist Robert Novak in mid-July 2003.
Evidence at Libby's criminal trial showed that Cheney had told Libby about Wilson's wife in mid-June 2003.
According to courtroom testimony, Rove was one of Novak's sources for his column disclosing Plame's CIA identity and Rove and Libby were sources for Time magazine reporter Matt Cooper, who also wrote a story identifying Plame.
Cheney said he was not aware of any discussions Libby may have had with Rove about Wilson or Wilson's wife, and Cheney said Libby did not tell him about any such discussions.
The vice president advised the agents that he had no idea what Libby knew on the days before Plame's CIA identity was publicly revealed.
Cheney said he did not recall if he told Libby about Wilson's wife and her employment at the CIA or if Libby revealed to the vice president his independent knowledge about that fact.
© MMVIII The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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- Right - Cheney also said Iraq "unequivocally had an weapons of mass deception program and weapons of mass deception".
As usual, the only deception here is Richard's statements to the US people! - Reply to this comment
- Cheney is a lying bastard that should be hanged for his war crimes.
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- Its all a part of 'plausible deniability'. Cheney lets out that it would be a good thing for the 'cause' if Plame's name were leaked. 'Someone' then leaks it. Cheney has 'no idea' who it was.
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- I doubt that Hitler killed any of the Jews, either. In fact, if he'd set it up right, he wouldn't even have known WHO killed all those Jews.
- Cheney has different opinions than the Editorial staff at CBS News so it's important to destroy him.
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- Destroy Cheney!!! Cheney should have been in jail for war crimes and shooting his friend in the face and all the mess he did under Nixon.
- Cheney had different opinions than CBS news, so its important to destroy him.
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- YEA, RIGHT!!! WHAT A LIAR AND A CROOK. I AM HOPING THAT CHENEY READS ALL THESE POSTS TO SEE WHAT THE AMERICAN PEOPLE ACTUALLY THINK OF HIM. TO THOSE OF YOU WHO THINK CHENEY IS A GOOD AND WONDERFUL MAN: WHERE WERE YOU FOR THE LAST 8 YEARS BEFORE OBAMA WAS ELECTED? I SUSPECT THAT YOU ARE ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE WHO THINK THAT IT IS OK TO LIE AND CHEAT AS LONG AS YOU ARE A REPUBLICAN AND CAN FEATHER YOUR OWN NEST.
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- "He Didn't Know Plame Leaker".........
and "there are weapons of mass destruction in Iraq".......
no comment needed...... - Reply to this comment
- I don't understand why this man still gets the attention that he does. He considers himself above the law and always has. I have stored hundreds of email sent to me by Republicans that have all been lies. Karl Rove's style of politics. Scooter Libby took the fall for Cheney.
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- You know, maybe the Birthers should attempt to invalidate this guy's birth certificate. It would make more sense.
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- Poor man, its obvious the man has been suffering from Alzheimer's Disease for a long time.
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- This son of a bittcch will lie until they bury him.
Cheney, want to see the leaker? Look in the mirror! - Reply to this comment
- Cheney holds himself out as a "being in the know" kind of guy yet claims to not have had clue about what was happaneing in his own office.
PUHLEASE. - Reply to this comment
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- formrusmcsgt: Yeah! Cheney is the type of guy, who can't sleep at night UNLESS he KNOWS all the B.S. that's going on!
chonder2: We definitely need a viable 3rd party, but mostly we need the public to take a little time and get behind a 3rd party candidate, versus doing the quick, easy thing...and voting for a Dem or a Rep!
- formrusmcsgt: Yeah! Cheney is the type of guy, who can't sleep at night UNLESS he KNOWS all the B.S. that's going on!
- Keep the faith guys.Cheney may still get dragged in for questioning for his participation in torture leading to an investigation of the intel, manipulation/ false intel going into Iraq.
Just think everybody, soon the whole Cheney Klan will infiltrate every part of Washington by starting multiple advisory boards,think tanks,lobbist firms,consulting firms with the purpose of funneling and laundering corporate funds to insure that the REFORM/CHANGE we voted for gets stopped...the corporate stranglehold on government is protected...a Neo-con party takes the next election and invades another mideast country. - Reply to this comment
- Keep the faith guys.Cheney may still get dragged in for questioning for his participation in torture leading to an investigation of the intel, manipulation/ false intel going into Iraq.
Just think everybody, soon the whole Cheney Klan will infiltrate every part of Washington by starting multiple advisory boards,think tanks,lobbist firms,consulting firms with the purpose of funneling and laundering corporate funds to insure that the REFORM/CHANGE we voted for gets stopped...the corporate stranglehold on government is protected...a Neo-con party takes the next election and invades another mideast country. - Reply to this comment
- Conservative Excrement.
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- Has there ever been a more disgusting piece of Human Trash, EVER, in ANY Administration in this nations history? I have searched my memory and even Agnew was above this lower than life creature.
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- "Evidence at Libby's criminal trial showed that Cheney had told Libby about Wilson's wife in mid-June 2003."
Jeez... so simple. Contradictory evidence. Now charge the lying sob, convict him and put him in prison.
How can Repubs still PAY him to speak to them? Honor among thieves? - Reply to this comment
- Uh huh.
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- What a fascist.
And to think, we taxpayers actually have to foot the bill to keep this miserable excuse for a human being alive -- paying for his GOVERNMENT-SUBSIDIZED healthcare pacemakers and heart operations and his Secret Service protection . . . how obscene.
Keep it up, D. ick! The more you run your lyingahhhz mouth the better for the Democrats!
Hope the goppies stick your equally sick spawn -- Liz -- on the ticket in 2012 -- another landslide for Obama/Biden! - Reply to this comment
- Dick Cheney is a lying sicko who should be in jail for his crimes! Dark, evil and plain sick describes this wacko! He ran America into the ground while George Bush was riding his bike!
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