Prez ex-flack lumped with Rove?
By THOMAS M. DeFRANK
and KENNETH R. BAZINET
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
WASHINGTON - The special prosecutor probing the outing of a CIA spy is looking beyond who leaked Valerie Plame's identity, seeking whether White House aides tried to cover their tracks after her name went public, sources told the Daily News.
Along with Bush political guru Karl Rove, the grand jury is investigating what role, if any, ex-White House mouthpiece Ari Fleischer may have played in the revelation that the former covert operative Plame was married to former Ambassador Joe Wilson.
"Ari's name keeps popping up," said one source familiar with special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald's probe.
Another source close to the probe added there is renewed interest in Fleischer, "based on Fitzgerald's questions."
A State Department memo that included background on Wilson - and who in the White House had access to it - appears to be a key to revealing who gave conservative columnist Robert Novak Plame's name, both sources said.
Another person of interest in the case is Vice President Cheney's chief of staff Lewis (Scooter) Libby, who was described as "totally obsessed with Wilson," the sources said.
Wilson traveled to Africa at the CIA's behest to assess Bush administration suspicions - later debunked - that deposed Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein tried to buy nuclear weapons-grade uranium from Niger. The outing of his wife was payback for his later criticism of Iraq policy, Wilson asserts.
A grinning Bush, meanwhile, tried to show support for Rove by walking with him yesterday at the White House while TV cameras rolled.
On the sidelines, Democrats and the GOP traded barbs, press statements and Senate amendments to embarrass Rove, Wilson and their allies.
Wilson appeared at a press conference with Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), who wants Rove's security clearance yanked. "Even a child knows that if a person can't keep a secret, stop telling them secrets," Schumer said.
But Wilson wants Rove's head.
"The President [should] honor his word that he would fire anybody who was involved in the leak," Wilson said.
Rep. Pete King (R-L.I.) said it was a blunder for Schumer to appear with Wilson. "I can't believe that Democratic senators would ally themselves with someone like Joe Wilson, who is a proven liar," King said. "They are shamelessly politicizing this."
With Michael McAuliff
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/wn_report/story/328100p-280454c.html
and KENNETH R. BAZINET
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
WASHINGTON - The special prosecutor probing the outing of a CIA spy is looking beyond who leaked Valerie Plame's identity, seeking whether White House aides tried to cover their tracks after her name went public, sources told the Daily News.
Along with Bush political guru Karl Rove, the grand jury is investigating what role, if any, ex-White House mouthpiece Ari Fleischer may have played in the revelation that the former covert operative Plame was married to former Ambassador Joe Wilson.
"Ari's name keeps popping up," said one source familiar with special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald's probe.
Another source close to the probe added there is renewed interest in Fleischer, "based on Fitzgerald's questions."
A State Department memo that included background on Wilson - and who in the White House had access to it - appears to be a key to revealing who gave conservative columnist Robert Novak Plame's name, both sources said.
Another person of interest in the case is Vice President Cheney's chief of staff Lewis (Scooter) Libby, who was described as "totally obsessed with Wilson," the sources said.
Wilson traveled to Africa at the CIA's behest to assess Bush administration suspicions - later debunked - that deposed Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein tried to buy nuclear weapons-grade uranium from Niger. The outing of his wife was payback for his later criticism of Iraq policy, Wilson asserts.
A grinning Bush, meanwhile, tried to show support for Rove by walking with him yesterday at the White House while TV cameras rolled.
On the sidelines, Democrats and the GOP traded barbs, press statements and Senate amendments to embarrass Rove, Wilson and their allies.
Wilson appeared at a press conference with Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), who wants Rove's security clearance yanked. "Even a child knows that if a person can't keep a secret, stop telling them secrets," Schumer said.
But Wilson wants Rove's head.
"The President [should] honor his word that he would fire anybody who was involved in the leak," Wilson said.
Rep. Pete King (R-L.I.) said it was a blunder for Schumer to appear with Wilson. "I can't believe that Democratic senators would ally themselves with someone like Joe Wilson, who is a proven liar," King said. "They are shamelessly politicizing this."
With Michael McAuliff
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/wn_report/story/328100p-280454c.html
posted by Kangaroo Brisbane Australia at 1:07 AM
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