Clarification on the Powell Plame connection ...

[FormerRepublican]

I had been reading on these boards about some mention that Powell had a Plame brief with him on his trip to Africa with Bush, and some had speculated that Powell was the leak. So, I looked up this info on when he testified to the Grand Jury:

"Aug. 9 issue - Secretary of State Colin Powell recently testified before a federal grand jury investigating the leak of the identity of CIA covert officer Valerie Plame, NEWSWEEK has learned. Powell's appearance on July 16 is the latest sign the probe being conducted by prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald is highly active and broader than has been publicly known. Sources close to the case say prosecutors were interested in discussions Powell had while with President George W. Bush on a trip to Africa in July 2003, just before Plame's identity was leaked to columnist Robert Novak. A senior State Department official confirmed that, while on the trip, Powell had a department intelligence report on whether Iraq had sought uranium from Niger—a claim Plame's husband, Joseph Wilson, discounted after a trip to Niger on behalf of the CIA."

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5570006/site/newsweek/

It looks like Powell had the brief with him and discussed it with Bush. I think Powell is in the clear (he wasn't recalled for additional testimony and he didn't hire an attorney to represent him, as others did). I think the target may be Bush, based on this article.

[bonito]

1. Thanks. n/t

[DemsUnited]

2. You rock, FormerRepublican!

Was wondering where Isikoff had gotten his information about Powell and the Plame brief and now it makes sense -- he actually reported it in one of his Periscope blurbs. Looks like the date of his article was August 2004.

Thanks for finding this!

<snip>
By Michael Isikoff and Eve Conant
Newsweek

Aug. 9 issue - Secretary of State Colin Powell recently testified before a federal grand jury investigating the leak of the identity of CIA covert officer Valerie Plame, NEWSWEEK has learned. Powell's appearance on July 16 is the latest sign the probe being conducted by prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald is highly active and broader than has been publicly known. Sources close to the case say prosecutors were interested in discussions Powell had while with President George W. Bush on a trip to Africa in July 2003, just before Plame's identity was leaked to columnist Robert Novak. A senior State Department official confirmed that, while on the trip, Powell had a department intelligence report on whether Iraq had sought uranium from Niger—a claim Plame's husband, Joseph Wilson, discounted after a trip to Niger on behalf of the CIA. The report stated that Wilson's wife had attended a meeting at the CIA where the decision was made to send Wilson to Niger, but it did not mention her last name or undercover status. At the time, White House officials were seeking to discredit Wilson, who had become a public critic of the Bush administration. There's no indication Powell is a subject of the probe; the department official said the secretary never talked to Novak about the Plame matter. Still, sources say the decision to question Powell shows the thoroughness with which Fitzgerald is conducting the probe—and that knowledge about Plame was circulated at the highest levels of the administration. Though most lawyers thought the investigation was nearly complete, sources say Fitzgerald has recently recalled witnesses before the grand jury—apparently to ask about issues raised by a new Senate intelligence committee report that seemed to contradict some of Wilson's public statements about Plame's role in his trip to Niger.

[mom cat]

3. When did Powell "retire" in relation to his testimony? I hope that you ar

on to something there!

[Zen Democrat]

4. I seem to remember that there was some flap about a news briefing

by Ari Fleischer done either in Africa, or on the plane back home, and the transcripts were wiped by the WH shortly thereafter.

Anybody remember that? I recall that there was some dust-up on DU about it.

[DoYouEverWonder]

5. I believe that Fitzgerald subpoenaed the transcripts

for all the phone calls made from AF1 on that trip to Africa.

[calimary]

6. Welcome to DU, FormerRepublican!

Good to have you among us! Now, roll up yer sleeves...

BTW, thanks for this post. MOST intriguing. :toast:

[DemsUnited]

7. So many questions raised by this

So many questions raised in this small blurb.

1) Was this intelligence report truly classified as Isikoff stated in his 7/11 interview on CNN with Candy Crowley?
http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0507/11/ip.01.html
If yes, does this mean that all information contained in it was also classified?

2) Was this report how the leaking "White House officials" found out about Wilson's wife to begin with? If so, how exactly did this report find its way into the leakers' hands?

3) If this report was the initial source of the leak, then how did Novak get the name Valerie Plame since the report "did not mention her last name or undercover status".