President Wavers on Pledge to Help Find Leaker

[kayell]

http://www.misleader.org/daily_mislead/Read.asp?fn=df01062004.html

When it was first reported that a "senior Bush Administration official" had leaked the name of undercover CIA operative Valerie Plame, President Bush dutifully pledged his full cooperation and assistance with the investigation. He said, "I'd like to know who leaked, and if anybody has got any information inside our government or outside our government who leaked, you ought to take it to the Justice Department so we can find out the leaker. I have told my staff, I want full cooperation with the Justice Department."1

But with the Justice Department now asking White House staff to sign forms that could definitively expose the leaker, the president appears unwilling to uphold that commitment.2 Specifically, the Washington Post now reports that the White House "declined to say Monday whether President Bush thinks his aides should sign the forms that would release reporters from any pledges of confidentiality" - and thus allow reporters to identify the White House leaker.3 (Time magazine reported that Karl Rove, Bush's senior adviser, was one of a number of top White House staff that has been sent the form by investigators).4

When asked about the President's stonewalling, White House spokesman Scott McClellan dismissed any inquiries, saying, "That's asking a specific question about matters that should be directed to the career officials at the Department of Justice."5 It was a sharp contrast to his previous comments attempting to specifically absolve Rove, the Vice President's Chief of Staff, Scooter Libby, and National Security Council official, Eliot Abrams, from any responsibility.6 McClellan also said that "no one wants to get to the bottom of this more than the President does." But three months ago, Bush refused to ask his staff to sign the same release form to minimize the investigation's cost and potential damage to national security. His apparent reticence to fully support the Justice Department's efforts to expose the leaker is now raising additional questions.

[papau]

1. So why no national media attention over the Bush attempt at cover-up?

not that we have a right wing GOP controlled national media - they just act that way.

[grannylib]

2. This is what I feared would happen, Shrub stonewalling and the media

ignoring his lies and waffling as usual. I have no doubt whatsoever that Shrub knows the identity of the leaker but is playing his little games.
Can you imagine the hooha over this had it been a Clinton appointee? Holy shit, we'd still be hearing about it, and there would have been public executions too, most likely...
Fuckin' hypocrites.

[fjc]

3. Yall expected something different?