Plame Gossip - A few more thoughts on Woodward
Was the "Woodward leak" the eleventh hour "new information" mentioned in the Washington Post story?
(I can't date it specifically, because the link no longer works, but it would've been around 10/27 or 10/28)
Also, I don't think the MSNBC(Hardball) allegation that Cheney was Woodward's source holds any water. The sudden release of Woodward from confidentiality served one of two nonexclusive purposes:
1) Woodward was released because the source believed that Fitzgerald was due to find out about the conversation anyhow. This would imply that the source had been covering up out of a fear of prosecution or at least the appearance of guilt.
2) Woodward was released because it was thought that the story Woodward is telling would help Libby. (or maybe Rove?) Quite frankly, I don't see how this helps Libby legally, but it may significantly help his side politically. Those that have been braying about "no underlying crime" can now further impugn Fitzgerald, reinforcing that argument.
Obviously, by the nature of the waiver, Woodward can release the story which is helpful to the anti-Fitzgeraldites, but not the source, which wouldn't be helpful in the overall PR war, this has political considerations all over it.
As for helping Rove, what if those eleventh hour negotiations with Rove were an effort to get him to cooperate? Fitzgerald thinks he has a solid case against Rove and Libby for the underlying crime, is attempting to negotiate plea deals to go after Cheney, when suddenly Rove's lawyer pulls out some bit of evidence which indicates that Rove/Libby were not the first ones to go to the press with the Plame info. Suddenly, Fitzgerald is forced to greatly reduce the scope of the indictments, and, having Libby dead to rights on perjury, decides to indict on that before the grand jury expires. In this scenario, Fitzgerald believes that Rove and Libby committed the "underlying crime," and simply deferred indicting on those charges until it was all fleshed out. Pure speculation, but it fits the facts.
As to who is Bob Woodward's source, I think that my candidate would be Hadley. If Fitzgerald is stalking Cheney, a supposition on my part, Hadley would be far enough down the chain to be worth "dealing." Hadley was on the WHIG, there's evidence he knew of Plame's name early on, and he received an email from Rove which discussed the Rove/Matt Cooper conversation in a manner which implied that they had discussed Plame, and perhaps the media, at some length. I wouldn't say it's a lock, but that's where I think the shortest odds are.
Rove provided new information to Fitzgerald during eleventh-hour negotiations that "gave Fitzgerald pause" about charging Bush's senior strategist, said a source close to Rove. "The prosecutor has to resolve those issues before he decides what to do."
(I can't date it specifically, because the link no longer works, but it would've been around 10/27 or 10/28)
Also, I don't think the MSNBC(Hardball) allegation that Cheney was Woodward's source holds any water. The sudden release of Woodward from confidentiality served one of two nonexclusive purposes:
1) Woodward was released because the source believed that Fitzgerald was due to find out about the conversation anyhow. This would imply that the source had been covering up out of a fear of prosecution or at least the appearance of guilt.
2) Woodward was released because it was thought that the story Woodward is telling would help Libby. (or maybe Rove?) Quite frankly, I don't see how this helps Libby legally, but it may significantly help his side politically. Those that have been braying about "no underlying crime" can now further impugn Fitzgerald, reinforcing that argument.
Obviously, by the nature of the waiver, Woodward can release the story which is helpful to the anti-Fitzgeraldites, but not the source, which wouldn't be helpful in the overall PR war, this has political considerations all over it.
As for helping Rove, what if those eleventh hour negotiations with Rove were an effort to get him to cooperate? Fitzgerald thinks he has a solid case against Rove and Libby for the underlying crime, is attempting to negotiate plea deals to go after Cheney, when suddenly Rove's lawyer pulls out some bit of evidence which indicates that Rove/Libby were not the first ones to go to the press with the Plame info. Suddenly, Fitzgerald is forced to greatly reduce the scope of the indictments, and, having Libby dead to rights on perjury, decides to indict on that before the grand jury expires. In this scenario, Fitzgerald believes that Rove and Libby committed the "underlying crime," and simply deferred indicting on those charges until it was all fleshed out. Pure speculation, but it fits the facts.
As to who is Bob Woodward's source, I think that my candidate would be Hadley. If Fitzgerald is stalking Cheney, a supposition on my part, Hadley would be far enough down the chain to be worth "dealing." Hadley was on the WHIG, there's evidence he knew of Plame's name early on, and he received an email from Rove which discussed the Rove/Matt Cooper conversation in a manner which implied that they had discussed Plame, and perhaps the media, at some length. I wouldn't say it's a lock, but that's where I think the shortest odds are.
posted by mikevotes at
8:15 PM
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