[House Report 109-234]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
109th Congress
1st Session HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Report
109-234
_______________________________________________________________________
DIRECTING THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE TO TRANSMIT TO THE HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES NOT LATER THAN 14 DAYS AFTER THE DATE OF THE ADOPTION
OF THIS RESOLUTION DOCUMENTS IN THE POSSESSION OF THE SECRETARY OF
DEFENSE RELATING TO THE DISCLOSURE OF THE IDENTITY AND EMPLOYMENT OF
MS. VALERIE PLAME
__________
ADVERSE REPORT
OF THE
COMMITTEE ON ARMED SERVICES
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
ON
H. RES. 417
September 22, 2005.--Referred to the House Calendar and ordered to be
printed
HOUSE COMMITTEE ON ARMED SERVICES
One Hundred Ninth Congress
DUNCAN HUNTER, California, Chairman
CURT WELDON, Pennsylvania IKE SKELTON, Missouri
JOEL HEFLEY, Colorado JOHN SPRATT, South Carolina
JIM SAXTON, New Jersey SOLOMON P. ORTIZ, Texas
JOHN M. McHUGH, New York LANE EVANS, Illinois
TERRY EVERETT, Alabama GENE TAYLOR, Mississippi
ROSCOE G. BARTLETT, Maryland NEIL ABERCROMBIE, Hawaii
HOWARD P. ``BUCK'' McKEON, MARTY MEEHAN, Massachusetts
California SILVESTRE REYES, Texas
MAC THORNBERRY, Texas VIC SNYDER, Arkansas
JOHN N. HOSTETTLER, Indiana ADAM SMITH, Washington
WALTER B. JONES, North Carolina LORETTA SANCHEZ, California
JIM RYUN, Kansas MIKE McINTYRE, North Carolina
JIM GIBBONS, Nevada ELLEN O. TAUSCHER, California
ROBIN HAYES, North Carolina ROBERT A. BRADY, Pennsylvania
KEN CALVERT, California ROBERT ANDREWS, New Jersey
ROB SIMMONS, Connecticut SUSAN A. DAVIS, California
JO ANN DAVIS, Virginia JAMES R. LANGEVIN, Rhode Island
W. TODD AKIN, Missouri STEVE ISRAEL, New York
J. RANDY FORBES, Virginia RICK LARSEN, Washington
JEFF MILLER, Florida JIM COOPER, Tennessee
JOE WILSON, South Carolina JIM MARSHALL, Georgia
FRANK A. LoBIONDO, New Jersey KENDRICK B. MEEK, Florida
JEB BRADLEY, New Hampshire MADELEINE Z. BORDALLO, Guam
MICHAEL TURNER, Ohio TIM RYAN, Ohio
JOHN KLINE, Minnesota MARK UDALL, Colorado
CANDICE S. MILLER, Michigan G.K. BUTTERFIELD, North Carolina
MIKE ROGERS, Alabama CYNTHIA McKINNEY, Georgia
TRENT FRANKS, Arizona DAN BOREN, Oklahoma
BILL SHUSTER, Pennsylvania
THELMA DRAKE, Virginia
JOE SCHWARZ, Michigan
CATHY McMORRIS, Washington
MICHAEL CONAWAY, Texas
GEOFF DAVIS, Kentucky
Robert L. Simmons, Staff Director
C O N T E N T S
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Page
Purpose and Summary.............................................. 1
Background....................................................... 2
Executive Communication.......................................... 4
Legislative History.............................................. 4
Committee Position............................................... 5
Committee Cost Estimate.......................................... 5
Oversight Findings............................................... 5
Constitutional Authority Statement............................... 5
109th Congress Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
1st Session 109-234
======================================================================
DIRECTING THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE TO TRANSMIT TO THE HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES NOT LATER THAN 14 DAYS AFTER THE DATE OF THE ADOPTION
OF THIS RESOLUTION DOCUMENTS IN THE POSSESSION OF THE SECRETARY OF
DEFENSE RELATING TO THE DISCLOSURE OF THE IDENTITY AND EMPLOYMENT OF
MS. VALERIE PLAME
_______
September 22, 2005.--Referred to the House Calendar and ordered to be
printed
_______
Mr. Hunter, from the Committee on Armed Services, submitted the
following
ADVERSE REPORT
[To accompany H. Res. 417]
The Committee on Armed Services, to whom was referred the
resolution (H. Res. 417) directing the Secretary of Defense to
transmit to the House of Representatives not later than 14 days
after the date of the adoption of this resolution documents in
the possession of the Secretary of Defense relating to the
disclosure of the identity and employment of Ms. Valerie Plame,
having considered the same, report unfavorably thereon without
amendment and recommend that the resolution not be agreed to.
PURPOSE AND SUMMARY
House Resolution 417, introduced on July 29, 2005, by
Congressman Rush Holt, directs the Secretary of Defense to
transmit to the House of Representatives not later than 14 days
after the date of the adoption of the resolution all documents
including telephone and electronic mail records, logs and
calendars, personnel records, and records of internal
discussions in his possession relating to the disclosure of Ms.
Valerie Plame as an employee of the Central Intelligence Agency
during the period beginning May 6, 2003, and ending on July 31,
2003.
Clause 7 of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of
Representatives provides for a committee to report on a
qualifying resolution of inquiry, such as H. Res. 417, within
14 legislative days or a privileged motion to discharge the
committee is in order. H. Res. 417 was introduced and referred
to the Armed Services Committee on July 29, 2005.
Under the rules and precedents of the House, a resolution
of inquiry is one of the means by which the House may request
information from the head of one of the executive departments.
It is a simple resolution making a demand of the head of an
executive department to furnish the House of Representatives
with specific information in the possession of the executive
branch. It is not used to request opinions or to require an
investigation on a subject.
BACKGROUND
On July 14, 2003, syndicated columnist Robert Novak wrote a
column questioning why Ambassador Joseph Wilson, described as a
senior Clinton Administration official, had been tasked with
gathering information for the Bush Administration. Novak wrote,
``Wilson never worked for the CIA, but his wife, Valerie Plame,
is an agency operative on weapons of mass destruction. Two
senior administration officials told me his wife suggested
sending Wilson to Niger to investigate the Italian report. The
CIA says its counter-proliferation officials selected Wilson
and asked his wife to contact him.'' \1\ Novak refused to
identify his sources publicly, but added additional detail
about how he had learned of Plame's employment in an October 1,
2003 column:
\1\ Robert Novak, ``The Mission to Niger,'' Chicago Sun-Times, 14
July 2003, Editorial section, p. 31.
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During a long conversation with a senior
administration official, I asked why Wilson was
assigned the mission to Niger. He said Wilson had been
sent by the CIA's counterproliferation section at the
suggestion of one of its employees, his wife. It was an
offhand revelation from this official, who is no
partisan gunslinger. When I called another official for
confirmation, he said: ``Oh, you know about it.'' \2\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ Robert Novak, ``Columnist Wasn't Pawn for Leak,'' Chicago Sun-
Times, 1 October 2003, Editorial section, p. 49.
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According to press reports, the CIA referred the matter of
the leak of Plame's CIA status to the Department of Justice
after Novak's July column. The possibility existed that the
revelation of Plame's employment status with the Central
Intelligence Agency was a violation of the Intelligence
Identities Protection Act of 1982 (50 U.S.C. Sec. 421). Section
421(a) provides:
Whoever, having or having had authorized access to
classified information that identifies a covert agent,
intentionally discloses any information identifying
such covert agent to any individual not authorized to
receive classified information, knowing that the
information disclosed so identifies such covert agent
and that the United States is taking affirmative
measures to conceal such covert agent's intelligence
relationship to the United States (shall be punished)
Section 426(4)(A) of the statute defines the term covert
agent to mean: (1) a present officer or employee of an
intelligence agency whose identity as such an officer,
employee, or member is classified information and (2) who is
serving outside the United States or has within the last five
years served outside the United States. At this time, it is not
clear whether Plame is, or was, a covert agent, nor is it clear
whether Novak's sources have, or had, access to classified
information. Wilson confirmed his wife worked for the CIA in
his 2004 book, but most CIA employees are not covert agents.
According to press reports, the Department of Justice began
an investigation in September 2003, which the White House
spokesman confirmed on October 1, 2003. By that time, the
Justice Department had contacted the White House and asked it
to preserve and maintain documents under its control. On
October 3, 2003, a White House spokesperson indicated that the
Justice Department had asked the White House to produce
certain, more specific materials as part of the investigation,
including the kinds of materials that are the subject of H.
Res. 417.
On December 30, 2003, Attorney General John Ashcroft
recused himself from the investigation to avoid an appearance
of a conflict of interest. Prior to his recusal, the Attorney
General, in discussions with Deputy Attorney General James
Comey, concluded that it was appropriate to appoint a special
counsel from outside the Justice Department's normal chain of
command to oversee the investigation. With Ashcroft's recusal,
the special counsel selection fell to Mr. Comey, who selected
the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois,
Patrick Fitzgerald, as the special counsel. Comey
simultaneously delegated all necessary authorities to
Fitzgerald to continue the investigation. As a sitting U.S.
Attorney, Fitzgerald's investigatory authority exceeds that of
a normal ``special counsel.'' He does not have to secure
approval from the Attorney General in making his prosecutorial
decisions and has all the investigatory tools normally
available to a U.S. Attorney at his disposal, including the
authority to interview witnesses, subpoena documents and
testimony, and convene a grand jury.
Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez, who succeeded Ashcroft,
has also recused himself from the investigation. Gonzalez
oversaw the White House response to requests from Fitzgerald
investigators while he was White House counsel. With the
departure of Deputy Attorney General Comey in August 2005, the
Department of Justice announced that David Margolis, an
associate deputy attorney general, would oversee the special
counsel investigation.
According to press reports, several journalists have
testified before a grand jury pursuant to the Fitzgerald
investigation. These reporters include Glenn Kessler and Walter
Pincus of the Washington Post and Tim Russert of NBC. It is
unclear if Novak has testified before the grand jury. The grand
jury also sought testimony from Matthew Cooper of Time Magazine
and Judith Miller of the New York Times. Both refused to
discuss certain issues and were found to be in contempt of
court in October 2004 by Chief Justice Thomas Hogan of the U.S.
District Court for the District of Columbia. In addition, Time
was also held in contempt for refusing to produce subpoenaed
documents. Judge Hogan's decision was upheld by the U.S. Court
of Appeals for the District of Columbia in February 2005. On
June 27, 2005, the Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal of
that decision. Time agreed to produce the subpoenaed documents
on July 1, 2005. Miller was jailed on July 6, 2005. Cooper
agreed at the last minute to comply with the court order to
turn over his notes, e-mails and other documents, stating he
had received a specific waiver from his source to do so. On
July 13, 2005, Cooper testified before the grand jury.
In a submission to the United States District Court for the
District of Columbia, dated June 28, 2005, Special Counsel
Fitzgerald informed Judge Hogan, ``[B]y fall 2004, the Special
Counsel's investigation was for all practical purposes complete
except for the testimony of petitioners (Miller and Cooper).''
In a letter dated September 19, 2005, Mr. William E. Moschella,
the Assistant Attorney General for Legislative Affairs for the
Department of Justice informed the committee, ``Mr. Fitzgerald
has advised that production at this time of the documents
responsive to H. Res. 417 and . . . any attendant hearings,
would interfere with his investigation. Accordingly, we request
that the committee report adversely H. Res. 417.''
In light of the ongoing criminal investigation, the
committee concluded that transmittal of the materials
identified in H. Res. 417 would undermine the investigation and
possible criminal prosecution of any suspects believed to have
committed a crime in the Plame matter. Therefore, the committee
ordered the resolution to be reported adversely.
EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATION
Department of Justice,
Assistant Attorney General,
Washington, DC, September 19, 2005.
Hon. Duncan Hunter,
Chairman, Committee on Armed Services,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: We are advised that the Committee plans
to consider H. Res. 417, which is one of a series of
Resolutions of Inquiry (House Resolutions 417-420) that, if
agreed to, would direct the President, the Secretary of State,
the Attorney General, and the Secretary of Defense to transmit
to the House of Representatives all documents in their
possession relating to the disclosure of the alleged identity
of Ms. Valerie Plame as an employee of the Central Intelligence
Agency.
As you know, United States Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald has
been appointed as Special Counsel to investigate this matter
and his investigation is ongoing. Mr. Fitzgerald has advised
that production at this time of the documents responsive to H.
Res. 417 and the other Resolutions, and any attendant hearings,
would interfere with his investigation. Accordingly, we request
that the Committee report adversely H. Res. 417.
Thank you for your consideration of our views. Please do
not hesitate to contact this office if you would like
additional information about this or any other matter.
Sincerely,
William E. Moschella,
Assistant Attorney General.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
As noted above, H. Res. 417 was introduced on July 29,
2005, and referred to the Committee on Armed Services.
On September 20, 2005, the Committee on Armed Services held
a mark-up session to consider H. Res. 417. The committee
reported adversely the resolution by voice vote, a quorum being
present.
COMMITTEE POSITION
On September 20, 2005, the Committee on Armed Services met
in open session and reported adversely the resolution H. Res.
417 to the House by voice vote, a quorum being present.
COMMITTEE COST ESTIMATE
Pursuant to clause 3(d) of rule XIII of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, the committee estimates the costs of
implementing the resolution would be minimal. The Congressional
Budget Office did not provide a cost estimate for the
resolution.
OVERSIGHT FINDINGS
With respect to clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives, the committee reports that the
findings and recommendations of the committee, based on
oversight activities pursuant to clause 2(b)(1) of rule X, are
incorporated in the descriptive portions of this report.
With respect to clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives and section 308(a)(1) of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974, this legislation does not
include any new spending or credit authority, nor does it
provide for any increase or decrease in tax revenues or
expenditures.
With respect to clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives, performance goals and objectives
can not be explained, because the resolution does not require
any new funding.
CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY STATEMENT
Pursuant to clause 3(d)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, the committee finds that the rule
does not apply because H. Res. 417 is not a bill or joint
resolution that may be enacted into law.