Just on Yahoo news about the Libby trial.

news.yahoo.com...

WASHINGTON - Sworn testimony in the perjury trial of I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby has shone a spotlight on White House attempts to sell a gone-wrong war in
Iraq to the nation and Vice President
Dick Cheney's aggressive role in the effort.

Definitely curious as to what people on here think about these developments. I've been watching it closely and to me this is more serious than I think most people realize. I wonder what this is going to lead to, especially as far as Cheney is concerned.

I have been following the trial as well www.firedoglake.com... has been blogging live as well as reading patrickjfitzgerald.blogspot.com...
and have just posted a thread today

Bush-Cheney Nucleus Of Leak & Propaganda
According to trial transcripts obtained by Truthout, former White House staffer I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby testified before a grand jury in 2004 that Vice President Dick Cheney instructed him to divulge portions of a then-classified report to New York Times reporter Judith Miller. Libby testified that Cheney said authorization to leak a section of the report had come directly from President George W. Bush, the court transcripts state

and remember Bush saying this.

"If there's a leak out of my administration, I want to know who it is," Bush told reporters at an impromptu news conference during a fund-raising stop in Chicago, Illinois. "If the person has violated law, that person will be taken care of.
www.cnn.com...

So Bush and Cheney are behind the leaks, but it seems most of America does not know or care.

[edit on 11/2/2007 by Sauron]

Sauron

So Bush and Cheney are behind the leaks, but it seems most of America does not know or care.

I know what you mean. Where do you think it's all going to go from here? Speculation is of course very welcome.

I don't know ViewFromTheStars, your guess is as good as mine, I can see years of government hearings that will go round and round and lead no where. But then again who knows maybe they might just get held accountable.

What if Libby is found guilty of perjury? If this is going to happen it should happen soon and everything that has been exposed from this trial definitely has some stuff that could be used to indict Cheney and maybe even Bush with implications that go beyond government hearings.. no?

well the prosecution has finished presenting there case, and now the defence is up and from what I have read.

Snip
Libby's lawyers also are debating whether or not Libby should testify or throw in the towel and negotiate a plea, the source said. Ted Wells is arguing, "if Scooter takes the stand we are screwed," while William Jeffress is countering, "without Scooter we are screwed."
www.cnn.com...

I think Libby will take on the chin to keep Cheney off the stand and try and contain the political fallout.

[edit on 11/2/2007 by Sauron]

Originally posted by Sauron
Libby testified that Cheney said authorization to leak a section of the report had come directly from President George W. Bush, the court transcripts state

and remember Bush saying this.

"If there's a leak out of my administration, I want to know who it is," Bush told reporters at an impromptu news conference during a fund-raising stop in Chicago, Illinois. "If the person has violated law, that person will be taken care of.
www.cnn.com...

So Bush and Cheney are behind the leaks, but it seems most of America does not know or care.

[edit on 11/2/2007 by Sauron]

Ah, but here's the rub:

I seem to remember, back in the early days of the "leak" investigation, someone (could it have been Rove? Gonzales?) saying that, as the Chief Executive and Commander in Chief, it was the President's perogative to declare certain information to be "Classified".

By that same "perogative" the claim went, the President had the innate authority to deem previously "Classified" materials as suitable for release!

Lagally, Constitutionally (or by what little remains of this nation's Constitution) that assertion may be defensable.

I can only say that I am, personally, sickened to have had such potentially dangerous authority used for so obvously petty partisan political expediencies.

(Quote function seems not to be working prperly on this one. Props to Sauron!)

Originally posted by Bhadhidar


Ah, but here's the rub:

I seem to remember, back in the early days of the "leak" investigation, someone (could it have been Rove? Gonzales?) saying that, as the Chief Executive and Commander in Chief, it was the President's perogative to declare certain information to be "Classified".

By that same "perogative" the claim went, the President had the innate authority to deem previously "Classified" materials as suitable for release!

Well the only problem here is that Bush de-classified the information 10 days after it was leaked ?

The document, titled the National intelligence Estimate, was officially declassified on July 18, 2003. However Libby testified before the grand jury in March 2004 that he had received instructions from Cheney on July 8, 2003, to release portions of the report to Judith Miller.

www.truthout.org...

Bhadhidar,

That is very interesting.. I've been wondering how many outs 'they' have since I'm sure most of us can't keep up with all the special authority the president has...also because of 'circumstances'.. created or otherwise.

Sauron.. I wonder if there is a 10 day clause built in?

I'm checking out some blog spots, I keep learning something new.