[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 140 (Tuesday, October 7, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1985]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     NEWSPAPERS CALL FOR AN INDEPENDENT INVESTIGATION OF THE BUSH 
                             ADMINISTRATION

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                           HON. GEORGE MILLER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, October 7, 2003

  Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, I would like to call my 
colleagues' attention to two newspaper editorials concerning the leak 
of a covert CIA agent's identity. These editorials, printed last 
Thursday in the Contra Costa Times, of Walnut Creek California, and the 
San Francisco Chronicle, address the very serious federal crime 
involving the leak of the name and occupation of a covert CIA agent who 
is the wife of a former U.S. ambassador who investigated and then 
revealed that the Administration had used false information to justify 
the war against Iraq. Both newspapers call for a special counsel to 
investigate the White House's role in this leak, and the Chronicle 
suggests that Congress might need to conduct its own inquiry. The 
Washington Post and ABC News recently conducted a poll that found that 
seven out of ten Americans support a special counsel to investigate 
this serious matter.
  I support many of my colleagues in the House and Senate who have 
called for a special counsel for similar reasons as stated by these 
newspapers. It is not credible that the United States Attorney General, 
John Ashcroft, can independently investigate a potential crime by this 
White House when not only was he appointed by President Bush but he 
employed the president's top political adviser on numerous occasions to 
help him in his Senate election campaign. The credibility of this 
Administration is already low, when you consider their failure to 
revive the economy, the clearly misleading nature of the evidence they 
provided to justify a war in Iraq, and their failure to properly 
prepare for the post-war conflict. The Administration owes it to the 
public to ensure that the most independent investigation possible is 
carried out regarding the leak of the CIA agent's identity.
  The articles appear as follows:

              [From the Contra Costa Times, Oct. 2, 2003]

                           Independent Probe

       If President Bush wants to find out who leaked information 
     about a CIA officer to journalists he should support an 
     investigation by an independent special council, not just one 
     by the Justice Department. The leak is a serious matter 
     involving the wife of a diplomat who was critical of Bush's 
     assessment of Iraq's attempt to get uranium from Africa.
       Joseph Wilson IV, in a July 6 op-ed piece in The New York 
     Times, recounted his mission on behalf of the CIA in early 
     2002. He was investigating the possibility that Saddam 
     Hussein was attempting to obtain uranium for Iraq's nuclear 
     arms program. Wilson charged that the Bush administration 
     twisted some of the information to make a case for going to 
     war against Iraq.
       Eight days after the commentary appeared, Robert Novak 
     wrote a column that revealed Wilson's wife, Valerie Plame, as 
     a CIA official. Novak attributed his information about Plame 
     to two ``senior administration officials.'' Two other 
     journalists from Newsday, Timothy Phelps and Knut Royce, 
     expanded on Novak's column after confirming Novak's 
     account.
       Novak refuses to reveal his confidential sources. That is 
     his right and obligation as a journalist. But we are 
     suspicious of the motivation of Novak and those who leaked 
     the information about Plame. It appears to be retaliation 
     against Wilson and a warning to others.
       The leak and almost gratuitous mention of Plame in the 
     column put her and anyone she did business with in jeopardy. 
     We wonder what Novak would have written in his column had 
     some liberal columnist revealed the name of an undercover CIA 
     officer.
       The damage caused by the leak goes beyond the CIA and into 
     the White House. Certainly Bush would like to unveil the 
     leakers, and we trust that the Justice Department has 
     competent investigators. However, it is important to avoid a 
     conflict of interest, which would occur if the probe is 
     handled by Justice, led by political appointee John Ashcroft.
       The surest way to both nab the leakers and assure public 
     confidence is through a special counsel. To do otherwise 
     damages the credibility of the White House and leaves the 
     door open for political demagoguery by the president's 
     opponents.
                                  ____


            [From the San Francisco Chronicle, Oct. 2, 2003]

                            A Dangerous Leak

       The Still Unfolding story that White House officials leaked 
     sensitive information to silence a critic of the Iraq War is 
     a troubling addendum to what so far has been the curious, if 
     not exaggerated, reasoning behind the Persian Gulf foray in 
     the first place.
       This week the FBI launched a full-scale criminal probe to 
     determine who disclosed the identity of an undercover CIA 
     operative and whether federal law had been broken. A senior 
     administration official has confirmed that two top White 
     House staffers outed the agent to punish her husband, former 
     Ambassador Joseph Wilson, who forced Bush to back track on 
     his State of Union assertion that Iraq may be building a 
     nuclear arsenal with uranium from Africa. Two years earlier, 
     Wilson investigated and found no such Iraq-Africa link, and 
     pilloried Bush in a newspaper op-ed for implying that there 
     was.
       As revenge, someone at the White House leaked to the press 
     the name and occupation of Wilson's wife, an undercover 
     weapons expert. Aside from threatening her life, it further 
     inhibits the effectiveness of the nation's intelligence 
     operations.
       Bush disavowed any knowledge of the treacherous deed, but 
     failed to show the kind of outrage this warranted. Either a 
     special counsel should look into this matter, or Congress 
     should conduct its own inquiry.

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