Something about the Plame case doesn't make sense to me... [View All]

[GOTV]

... am I the only one?

I don't really get the motivation for the Bush administration outing Plame. I think I've heard 3 explanations

1 - To discredit Joe's report on the Niger documents
2 - To intimidate Joe into shutting up
3 - To punish Joe for contradicting the administration

Has a consensus formed on DU on the real reason?

Here's my problems with these motivations:

1 - I don't what connection people were supposed to make about the credibility of Joe Wilson or his report based on the fact that his wife was a CIA agent and might have had some influence in selecting Joe to go to Niger. They seem unrelated. In fact, doesn't it suggest that Joe might have all kinds of access to info, through his wife, that would make his report even more credible?

2 - I could see this if someone first told Joe that his wife was in danger if he didn't shut up. That sounds like intimidation. But if you don't warn first, how do you expect your intimidation to work. I guess there's a possibility that the exposing of his wife was supposed to be a warning shot and that he would know that there was worse to come if he didn't shut up. Is that what people are thinking? What possible "worse things to come" might there have been?

3 - This is the most plausible because I understand that his wife's career was ended by the revelation. But, couldn't they have just fired her? Since there is only one CIA, if your career is that of a CIA agent, and you're fired, that also ends your career. A firing wouldn't have exposed an agent and endangered god knows how many other people that were working with her.

Does anyone have a clear explanation of what the Bush administration expected to get out of exposing Plame? To me it seems like more of an accident that her status got revealed. Just one more blunder from an incompetent administration.

What's the story?