The DavidCyrus Blog of Wisdom

Rove Rescue Strategy: Blame Colin!
"...rumor has it, he acted alone"

Following Karl Rove's clumsy attempt to squelch rumors about his leaking information (with a classic junior-high reversal of, "I heard it from someone else"), investigators are focusing on an Air Force One trip to Africa on July 7, 2003. Then-Secretary of State Colin Powell was "faxed" summary information about Valerie Plame, Joe Wilson, and the "yellowcake" saga, and someone on the plane signed for it.

OK, we have a totally secure environment at this point. The info arrived on the plane through the White House operations center. It was addressed to Colin Powell.

And suddenly, all media was aware that Valerie Plane was a covert CIA operative. So aware were they, that they immediately decided to inform senior White House advisor Karl Rove about Valerie Plame.

If you're asking yourself why reporters would attempt to verify a State Department memo by talking to Karl Rove, (and not Colin Powell) you're getting off-track. Yes, Powell was the head of the State Department at the time, but apparently, all State Department memo leaks must be verified for accuracy with Karl Rove before they go to print. But only after they've been leaked- prior to leakage, Even though Rove and Cheney-aide Scooter Libby were intent on discrediting Joe Wilson, Neither of these guys would have even mentioned Valerie Plame (by name, anyway).

Let's see: Colin Powell resigned last year. The memo literally has "Colin Powell" written all over it. Powell has a history of steadfastly supporting the Administration's line when it comes to things like uranium, memos, and weapons of mass destruction.

The money's on Powell as the fall guy for this one.

Did Rove Break the Law?
Hint: Don't ask the Rippups

I've been trying to piece together the law that would apply in the matter of CIA agent Valerie Plame's outing. After reading through several of the Republican support group blogs, I've been able to come up with this:

It is a crime against the security of the United States to force members of the press to publish information about covert CIA spies. To be considered criminal, (a) The reporter must actually publish the name of the CIA agent, (b) The informant must provide the exact name of the CIA agent, as documented in the agent's birth record, or subsequent official record of name change, (c) The correct job title of the CIA agent must be provided by the informant, (d) The CIA agent must be actively involved in covert activity at the time his/her name and profession has been made public, (e) The nation must suffer a devastating blow to its security as a result of the agent's publicity (f) The informant must intentionally wish to harm the security of the USA through his/her actions, and finally (g) The spouse of the publicized agent can not have supported John Kerry for President.

Wow- if that's the real law, it's going to be pretty hard to pin anything on Karl Rove. I mean, what's with all the White House secrecy; I'm sure Karl never even used the name "Valerie" in his discussions with the press. Well, at this point, no one in the White House is using the name "Valerie". White House interns named "Valerie" have had their nametags changed to "Jenna".

While all outlets of White House propaganda are furiously penning interpretations that espouse Karl Rove's innocence, and even his forthright commendable and cooperative behavior, Ken Sanders took the time to point out exactly what the law is that governs this matter:

"Under federal statute, it is a felony offense (punishable by 3 to 10 years imprisonment) to disclose any information identifying a covert agent to any unauthorized person. For purposes of the statute, a "covert agent" includes "a present or retired officer or employee of an intelligence agency," whose identity as such is classified information, and who is serving or has served outside the U.S. "within the last five years."

Hmmm. Perhaps it isn't going to be so easy to sidestep this one...

Silence of the Lambs- Day Three
Someone's gonna get slaughtered before this is over

The silence is deafening. Nobody at the White House wants to talk about anything remotely having to do with the CIA, Karl Rove, Niger, yellowcake, or for that matter, any spies named "Valerie". After two days of using the tried-and-true "stony stare", Bush finally mixed it up a bit, and revealed the following:

"We're in the midst of an ongoing investigation and I will be more than happy to comment further once the investigation is completed."

"That should buy us eight to twelve months," Bush hoped.

So, in the meantime, what should they talk about instead? You can almost imagine George Bush, sweat beading on his upper lip, briskly dragging his fingers through his own hair, mumbling, "What can we say that'll take the focus off of this secret agent thing?" I'm sure he considered asking Karl Rove what to do, but then remembered that no one is allowed to speak to, with, or about him. No, he'd have to come up with this solution himself.

His Answer: A Budget Surplus! "That's what we need, by golly; now how can we finagle the data to suggest that we're back in the money?" wondered Bush.

All that needed to be done is to tout the misrepresented fact that this year's budget deficit is not going to be as bad as last year's (the reigning record holder in overspending). It looks like it will only be the 3rd worst budget deficit ever. Sure, predicting the 3rd worst deficit ever isn't exactly tidings of great joy, but remember, we're doing better than last year!

...and all it took for this minor economic miracle to come true is for $173 billion to be taken from the Social Security surplus, and used to hide the actual bloated value of the fiscal 2005 deficit of over $400 billion.

Is this the same Administration that has been trying to tell us that Social Security is going bankrupt? Where, then, did the Social Security Trust Fund suddenly come up with an unneeded $173 billion?

If you are wondering whether the costs for the War on Terror are included in the budget, there's more good news! Bush plans to spend less than $40 billion in Iraq in fiscal 2006. Apparently, after two and a half years of spending nearly $100 billion dollars a year over there, we can expect to cut that cost by 60% next year. Maybe we've found a wholesale dealer (could it be Niger?) for depleted uranium shells, which, ironically, happen to be a main cause in the skyrocketing number of US veterans needing medical treatment.

Well, if the great budget news doesn't lull you into a sleepy dream of happiness, there's always Bush's latest enigmatic statement about the Supreme Court nomination at hand, stating that he would consider nominating a woman or someone with no experience as a judge to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.

I'm already laying bets that it's either gonna be Condi or Bush's mom.

A Very Special Episode of "Rove's Playhouse"
Someone's gonna get busted before this is over

Charge: Deputy White House Chief of Staff Karl Rove leaked the ID of former ambassador Joe Wilson's wife,Valerie Plame, an undercover CIA operative, to the press. His goal was to discredit Wilson's investigative trip to Niger and public denial of Bush's State of the Union claim that Iraq was buying "yellowcake" uranium in Africa. Apparently he thought outing Wilson's wife as the CIA operative directing her husband to travel to Niger would weaken Wilson's appearance of impartiality. This will most probably result in a grand jury indictment of Rove. In fact, with the number of denials of any knowledge in this matter, given earlier by President Bush and Vice President Cheney, contrasting Rove's obvious involvement, people are beginning to ask, "What did the President know, and when did he know it?"

Republican counterspin, part one: "The fact is Karl Rove did not leak classified information. He did not, according to what we learned this past weekend, reveal the name of anybody. He didn't even the know the name."

What utter nonsense! Obviously, Rove called her something like, "Wilson's wife" instead of her name. Several reporters and their subpoenaed notes prove this. He's also on the record for giving reporters the go-ahead on this info; that Ambassador Wilson's wife and her undercover status were "fair game."

Plenty of Rippup mouthpieces are attempting to find no legal crime in this matter. However, as Karl Wilson himself stated, "It should be clear that the CIA would not have referred the case to Justice, if it had not believed a crime was committed."

Republican counterspin, part two: "Wilson endorsed Kerry in October 2003"

This is straight from the Republican National Committee's talking points on the Rove issues! Their Deputy Chief of Staff, the brain behind two razor-thin national elections, is going to be indicted, and their strategy is to highlight their victim's Democratic voting record?

Well, that, and to have every member of the Administration, including Bush himself, dummy up on the issue for two solid days (and counting).

Have you noticed that Karl Rove looks like Rush Limbaugh's twin separated at birth?