Former Press Secretary Blames Bush, Cheney for Misstatement About Leak
Ex-White House press secretary writes in his new book that top administration officials let him unknowingly pass on false information.
WASHINGTON - Former White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan blames President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney for efforts to mislead the public about the role of White House aides in leaking the identity of a CIA operative.
In an excerpt from his forthcoming book, “What Happened,” McClellan recounts the 2003 news conference in which he told reporters that aides Karl Rove and I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby were “not involved” in the leak involving operative Valerie Plame.
“There was one problem. It was not true,” McClellan writes, according to a brief excerpt released Tuesday. “I had unknowingly passed along false information. And five of the highest-ranking officials in the administration were involved in my doing so: Rove, Libby, the vice president, the president’s chief of staff and the president himself.”
Bush’s chief of staff at the time was Andrew H. Card Jr.
The excerpt, posted on the website of publisher PublicAffairs, renews questions about what went on in the West Wing and how much Bush and Cheney knew about the leak.
White House Press Secretary Dana Perino said it wasn’t clear what McClellan meant in the excerpt. “The president has not and would not ask his spokespeople to pass on false information,” she said.
Plame maintains the White House quietly outed her to reporters. Plame and her husband, former Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson IV, said the leak was retribution for his public criticism of the Iraq war.
Since that news conference, however, the official White House stance has shifted and it has been difficult to get a clear picture of what happened behind closed doors around the time of the leak.
McClellan’s flat denials gave way to a steady drumbeat of “no comment.” And Bush’s original pledge to fire anyone involved in the leak became a promise to fire anyone who “committed a crime.”
McClellan turned down interview requests Tuesday.
Bush most recently addressed the issue in July after commuting the 30-month prison term of Libby, the only one charged in the case. He acknowledged that some in the White House were involved in the leak.
© 2007 Associated Press
So Bush and Cheney are liars. Big suprise.
I admire McClellan for having the nads to come out about it though.
I don’t know—did he really have a choice? I mean the evidence was all presented at the Libbey trial. Coming clean now just seems like his attempts to restore some credibility to his own tarnished reputation. His mea culpa still passes the buck—” hey it wasn’t me! I was just saying what they told me.” Like saying the devil made me do it.
Like all the others abandoning the sinking ship, he does not want to accept any real responsibilty for his wilful blindness, if not his complicity. It rings hollow to me.
“White House Press Secretary Dana Perino said it wasn’t clear what McClellan meant in the excerpt. ‘The president has not and would not ask his spokespeople to pass on false information,’ she said.”
I’ll bet she was shaking in her pumps as she said that!
One word: impeach
Either impeach bush/cheney, or impeach Pelosi for shirking her duty to the people of the US, and the oath of office she took.
The intentionally obtuse Dana Perino laughably says Bush “has not and would not ASK his spokespeople to pass on false information.” (emphasis added). Of course he wouldn’t ask - they’re called ORDERS or MANIPULATIONS.
These people are dragging us down for god sakes just cement shoe the bunch and throw them all in the Potomac river! why the hell should we keep this game of theirs going til they either resign or their term is up and they are “Scott” free.
sorry for the cross posting, but the site keeps logging me on to this story instead of the free trade headliner.
this morning on an exclusive interview with WBAI/Pacifica’s mimi rosenberg, dennis kucinich stated that on his first day as president, he would get the u.s. out of nafta and the wto. no other candidate has spoken so clearly and forcefully on this issue.
can you see that smirk on cheney while he is sitting on the bottom of the murky river held down by a cement weight? funny hahah
Don’t rely on Congress to do anything about this!
The Bush-Cheney Crime Syndicate are famous for passing along “false information, misinformation, misleading information, misstatements” blah blah blah.
Let’s not forget the “flawed intelligence” (hehe) that led to the attack and occupation (we’re STILL there?) of Iraq.
Let’s just skip the politically correctness and euphemisms and say what it actually is — LIES.
Correction, rjmart01. It is unlikely that Perino or Snow or any of the other neocon mouthpieces need to be ordered to say or do anything.
Their white house jobs are a stepping stone in their neocon career ladder that ultimately leads to $50,000 per day speaking engagements at neocon events.
Everyone’s abandoning the sinking ship of fools. After the next election cycle, even Bush will finally come clean and tell Diane Sawyer all about how Cheney tricked him into believing he didn’t have shitforbrains.
dmia:
“I admire McClellan for having the nads to come out about it though.”
Sounds like “nads for book profit” to me. Why the hell didn’t he have the “nads” when it was happening. He seems to know a LOT now for having been so deceived THEN, eh?
“can you see that smirk on cheney while he is sitting on the bottom of the murky river held down by a cement weight? funny hahah”
Knowing our luck this motherf~!@er’s pacemaker will still keep him alive !!
Hi Claudius, I don’t expect our piss-ant Congress to do anything about this either. UNLESS, our spinless media, finally has the nerve and guts to get on it BIG time. I don’t use the word BALLS, because our balls are actually our weakest links.
We’ll see, it is Thanksgivng and football will rule the airwaves. Unless,,,, Paris Hilton or some other big boobed blond gets a parking ticket or farts in church.
bush never actually pledged to fire anyone…he said anyone involved in a leak would be “taken care of”….and Libby was well taken care of..as has been cheney, and Bush himself.
Um not for nothing but isn’t this enough now to impeach and try the bastards? Or am i missing something? Then again, wasn’t the Downing Street Memo the evidense needed on being mislead to war? What the fuck is really going on? What more do they need to prosecute the Bush Crime Family?!
In related news…The Presidential thankgiving turkeys have been pardoned for leaking Cheney’s Oil Industry designed engery policy to the public.
Gobble, gobble, gobble, gobble it all up
Dick Cheney is like the Scarab beetle in the movie “The Mummy.” It was found in a pyramid enclosed in amber, and when released from its amber enclosure, it became alive again. It was everlasting and eternal.
It appears we just can’t get rid of Cheney no matter what. How many heart attacks has the man had anyway? Four or five, but the battery just keeps it pumping away, much to the detriment of the world.
I don’t blame McClellan for waiting to spill the beans on Bush. A person in his position must garner other credible sources to back him up before he said anything. That can take time, as it also takes quite a bit of time to have a publisher insure the facts are substaniated, before any credible book of such a serious nature is published.
Another thing is, McClellan was very possibly in danger, he may have been threatened. When you are on a team who plays hardball, you better be careful, sort of like being a hit man for the Mafia. I mean, even the Kennedys’ were targeted. I’d sure hate to be a member of the Cheney /Bush mob. Look at that picture of Cheney, that’s pure evil and it cannot be hidden. Like the picture of Dorian Gray.
Hi Kem,
It always is good hearing from you. Love the humor! Have a great holiday!
Question, What do the Republicans have on the Demos that they won’t pursue this matter.
Hello? Can we impeach now? Harry are you out there? Take your head out of the turkey’s ass and do your job. Or are you too busy guzzling the gravy?
Happy Thanksgiving
Ramsay
saywhat:
Question: “What do the Republicans have on the Demos that they won’t pursue this matter?”
Well, according to the rumour mill, the Democrats were threatened with a certain attack on Iran if they went ahead with impeachment. True or not? Who knows. Things like this fall under “conspiracy theory” but in this day and age it seems there is NOTHING too scary to be true.
We are being distracted from something. Probably Iraq oil contracts.
HMM, SOUNDS AS IF BUSH DOES NOT HAVE TO BE IMPEACHED AS HE WILL BE FIRING HIMSELF ANY DAY SOON.
JUST LOVE THE WORD ” MISSTATEMENT”
Cheney’s look of pure unadultereted evil suggests perhaps that a new Dr Frankenstein was creating monsters 60+ years ago.
What surprises me is that anyone is at all surprised that Bush, Cheney, et al lied. Of course they did. That’s what they are best at.
I’ll wager that McClellan knew at the time he was lying. From where else but the off-White House could the leak to yellow journalist Novak have come? Would he have printed the story on the word of a CIA janitor or phone operator? Tell-all books written years after the fact have no usefulness except to make lots of money for the authors, who should have known better at the time.
(See also Alan Greasespan, and a veritable horde of former Bushies who now can’t wait to tell all, in print, with a huge advance!)
I’m not surprised they lied, I’m surprised anyone whth McCllan’s credibility and was in the inner circle, has blown the whistle. Hope he sticks to his first story. We’ll see. actually this is realy big news. We’ll also see if the big people cover it. It’s as bad as Watergate. Let;s hoe it end in that manner too, only much quicker.
Why won’t this edit system allow me to edit half of the time?
One comment to dmia about admiring McClellan for having the nads to come out about this affair - McClellan would have been more admirable if he had said something while he was a memebr of the administration and resigned over it rather than continue to be the mouthpiece for the administration… There’s nothing admirable about knowing of an impeachable offense and saying nothing about it.
And I really wish columnists would stop characterizing lies as “misstatements”. “Misstatement” implies lack of knowledge or ignorance… Everything about this Plame affair suggestes the opposite in that the administartion was calculating, deceitful, purposfully obfuscating, and outright lying.
I previously offered a different opinion than yours Ghost Rider, It made sense to me. We don’t know what pressues McClellan was under when he was replaced. At least I don’t know,___ do you?
Pecking order in the national security state:
Top/ Initiating liars spewing bold lies
Middle/ Spin liars lying to cover asses of
initiating liars
Bottom/ Indignant liars pretending
consequences for top and middle liars
The National Security State, aka Prevaritocracy, does at least have a formal definition:
A mentally disorderd polity ruled by popular addiction to official and personal untruths; predictably culminating in multi-form disaster for average adherents; short-lived for all, once reaching full development.
“Why won’t this edit system allow me to edit half of the time?”
Good question, Kem. I’ve sent a couple of queries to the web master about this and have gotten nothing back. I think s/he doesn’t know SQL.
I got a very pleasnat answer Immyself. He said they had a problem with their software and were going to change it. Didn’t say when.
Hoe they fix it so we can use the CD Stats page again, that’s an excellent tool.
KEM,
Good news!
If you use your browser HISTORY, you will discover as I just did, that the “missing” DU article is still here on the server, it just no longer has a link from the archives page, but this worked a moment ago:
http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/11/18/5309/#comment-139993
Namaste
P.S. I guess the editor “angels” fly in the blind sometimes
Uh, yeah, hey folks, when IS the impeachment, anyway?
Hellooooooooo!
Cheney says, “there are no-nos you know and there are no-nos you no know; I know no-nos you no know; state secrets, ha ha.”
I love Perino’s statement. I wonder what she’ll say in her book.
If Congress and the Democrats don’t impeach this treasonous conspiracy then we will know who the silent partners are.
This really isn’t such surprising news, is it? The only thing we didn’t have up to this point was confirmation from someone on the inside about it; now we do.
The real question now becomes, “What else has gone on in this super-secret neo-conled cabal that we need to have confirmed?” There have been many instances in the nearly seven years past where the “spin” probably did not match the truth to the point of being deliberately framed to mislead and even deceive. And the “closed society” of the Administration has been so strict about what they would allow to come under scrutiny that it will be imperative to begin to re-examine some of them with official (maybe even Congressional) investigations. One suggestion: How about starting off with a real official Congressional investigation of what really took place on 9/11; an investigation with teeth and subpoena power - - no holds barred?
If this sounds like a re-hash of something submitted before, so be it! But the point is now more valid than ever - - these events need to happen, and the sooner the better - - the ruling junta is driving our nation toward oblivion.
Bush and Cheney are impervious to any law and order what so ever. Sadly, with this corrupt truculent Bush cabal, the days of reporting the truth and seeing to it that justice is served are long since gone. They wield an enormus amount of power, which has corrupted absolutely.
If I could note, everyone remembers the Clinton Lewinsky scandal don’t they? Ahhh! the good ole days, when this same so called “liberal” media covered that scandal 24-7, like white on rice. They made certain that Clinton was held accountable. But that was a much more pernicious scandal than Bush an Cheney having lied this once great country of ours into an illegal and horrific war. Don’t you think!
Someone needs to fix the legs on that broken Impeachment table and fast!
This is just standard practice for politicians, lie, lie, and more lying. Why tell people the truth that you are serving, you don’t have too, you are on a higher plane…….in their twisted view of the situation.
So an improbable investigation now has it’s star witness, provided he doesn’t succumb to some accident before an investigation probably never materializes.
If they don’t get investigated now, I don’t see why they don’t just start ignoring congress altogether. “Privatize SS? Done, what ya gonna do bout it?” “Iran? Done. try and stop me.”
I’m guessing the dems aren’t thinking justice here, rather “what kind of deal can we get out of this?” “Lets run child health care past him again.”
And the MSM?
Here’s today’s top stories on CNN http://edition.cnn.com/US/
* Three charged in Natalee Holloway case
* Hard to swallow: Woman develops hairball
* Test your Thanksgiving Day knowledge
* Actor’s newborns get accidental overdose
* Thanksgiving traditions, up close and personal
* Homeless man sleeps in a holeVideo (1:25)
* Champ read ‘American Gangster’ in jail
* King on walkoff: ‘I have seen it all now’
* Judge: ‘Grinch’ back on Broadway
It’s like the Weekly World News
I give up.
Lets hear about the hairball, that sounds like real news. Did she happen to know Bill Clinton?
The smoking gun keeps showing up and Pelosi keeps blowing off the smoke and cramming the pistol in her purse.
Lobo Gris
So, Colin Powell, where are you now ?
Bush & Cheney could be caught eating babies at high noon on the White House lawn by the D.C. Chief of Police, with 50 cameras rolling, and Congress would not begin impeachment. It’s time to stop being naive and face it folks: the fix is in. The only thing that will change your gov’t now is armed takeover by the Great Unwashed.
You all thought Mcclellan was lying before and you believe him now because it fits your beliefs? What a bunch of losers.
It’s good to see Dana Perino carrying on the White House Press Secretary tradition of telling at least one lie with every breath. Not that I have any sympathy or respect for Valerie Plame. The CIA is the world’s most notorious terrorist organization, and anyone who works for them is a TERRORIST. At least her husband Joe did some good.
From the look on Cheney’s face, looks like he’ll soon be extending a bird hunting vacation to the latest “talker.”
But he was supposed to lie, that’s what he was paid to do. ___ Now, he’s allowed to tell the truth about the lies and sell a book, that’s what he is paid to do. I wish Laura would come out with a book about what is really going on. That would be a best seller and the press would cover it too. ___ Just imagine!
Hi all,
KEM, I always enjoy your comments, thanks for your contribution to the discussion.
One could criticize McClellan for seeking profit from writing this book. However, my wish is that everyone like him in the Bush administration, realizing they have been duped into aiding the destruction of our democracy and the weakening of our Constitution for elitist profits, would “blow the whistle” as well. May the floodgates open to reveal the extent of evil so that more of the public can be enraged. Nothing short of a real angry revolution is going to stop this momentum.
PAX
Will anything be done about the pres. et.al lying and exposing CIA operative? Don’t anyone hold their breath as principles and conscience aren’t virtues extolled anymore: only money.
Sounds like a win-win paid to lie and then paid to “tell the truth”. I dont care what kind of scary threats someone is under..this is no excuse for their behavior. These poor scared people could stand up and tell the truth or they could have refused and quit. Is Dennis Kucinich the only one with any courage..appears so.
I guess this whole thing sends a message to each and every American. If you have an agenda, not even national security should get in a way of it.
I have little sympathy for the CIA, an organization totally at the antithesis of free scholarship, open inquiry, promotion of democracy, transparency, etc. But I have even less sympathy for someone who’d betray his own country for some other agenda.
Suppose he had apologized to the press and the people for telling lies to them because he relied on the honesty of people who have turned out to be liars as soon as he was aware of the truth. He should have promised to tell the truth in the future and done so until fired.
Then he could have went on a speaking tour saying that the liars fired him BECAUSE he would not knowingly lie to the people.
Then you would KNOW he was a real hero and that his book would be worth reading.
The way it has turned out looks like a big cover your ass operation.
I’m flabbergasted and totally shocked !!!
Imagine such revelations about “The Leader of The Free World”.
I bet The Evil Leaders of Evil Empires chuckle at what this beleaguered “War Time President” must tolerate.
BUSH LIES
They lied about Iraq not becoming another Vietnam.
They lied repeatedly–and still do to this day–about Saddam Hussein having connections to al-Qaeda.
They lied about the intelligence briefings both then NSA head Condi Rice and GW Bush had received in the Summer of 2001.
They lied about Jose Padilla wanting to use a “dirty” bomb an an American city.
They lied about knowing the possibilities of someone using an airplane as a weapon to attack buildings.
They lied repeatedly–and still do to this day–about using torture techniques on prisoners.
They lied about the threat level of the people picked up in Afghanistan and shipped to Gitmo, saying they’re “bomb makers” and terrorists.
Less than 8% have any connection to aL-Qaeda.
They lied–and still do–about not spying on Americans unless they have a court order.
They lied in the outing of now former CIA undercover operative Valerie Plame Wilson.
They lied about the FISA Court–Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act–not issuing warrants in a timely manner.
They lied about the size and scope of the domestic spying the Bush/Cheney junta has been performing on its own citizens.
They lied about Iraq having biological and chemical weapons.
They lied about Iraq having a nuclear weapons program…Yellowcake, anyone?
They lied about Saddam having mobile facilities for producing biological warfare agents.
They lied about Iraq having UAV’s–Unmanned Aerial Vehicle’s–that could deliver chemical or biological agents to the U.S.
They lied about finding WMD’s in post-invasion Iraq.
They lied about Iraq being an “imminent” threat to the United States.
They lied about the threat level of the then approaching Hurricane Katrina.
They lied about not knowing that the New Orleans levees were in danger of being breached.
They lied–and still do–about the need for an immediate fix on the Social Security fund.
They lied about the tax cuts going mostly to the middle class.
They lied about the estate tax saving the “family farm.”
They lied about the 2003 Prescription Drug Bill cost Estimates.
They lied about Bush’s “Clean Air Act” imposing stringent new rules on polluters.
They lied about mercury levels in young mothers.
They lied–and still do–about the effects of the tax cuts on the national debt.
They lied about the provisions of the “PATRIOT” Act.
They lied about the outgoing Clinton administration damaging White House property.
They lied about Bush’s service in the Air National Guard.
They lied about the level of care our wounded veterans were receiving.
They lied about the amount of federal educational funding states would receive.
They lied about the number of Americans having access to clean drinking water and the threat of arsenic in drinking water.
They lied about using conservation as part of a National Energy policy.
They lied about the White House’s connections to the now bankrupt company, Enron.
They lied about Bush being the first president to advocate for a separate Palestinian state.
They lied about their level of involvement in the attempted coup in 2002 of President Chavez of Venezuela.
They lied about Cheney’s involvement in awarding contracts to his old firm, Halliburton. (Cheney still receives a deferred compensation package from Halliburton)
They lied about Bush supporting a patient’s bill of rights, that would allow patients denied care the right to take their HMO to court.
They lied about the safety of imported prescription drugs from Canada.
They lied about the budget deficits being only “small and temporary.”
They lied about the fact that Bush and the WH do conduct focus groups and listen to polls.
They lied about the war in Iraq having nothing to do with oil.
They lied about former NFL star Pat Tilman’s murder in Afghanistan.
They lied–and still do–about people wanting to attack us for our freedom.
They lied about turning information over to the 9/11 Commission.
They lied–and still do– about addressing the security concerns and vulnerabilities at chemical plants and ports.
They lied–and still do–about Iran having connections to aL-Qaeda.
They lied–and still do–about Iran being a threat to the United States.
They lied about Saddam Hussein refusing to allow U.N. WMD inspectors into Iraq.
So, why in the hell should anyone believe ANYTHING this pack of professional liars has to say about the events that took place on September 11, 2001?
P.S. Thanks to the excellent web site, Bush Lies and to an article in the “Nation.”
Yet impeachment remains “off the table”. Bush couldn’t possibly have things better: unbound by laws, and the opposition leadership is in complete agreement.
So, if it walks like a Bush and it talks like a Bush, it’s a liar?
Yeah GREG and Clinton lied about having sex with ‘that woman’ and he was impeached.
It shows how a group of dangerous people in power can manage to enact Hitler’s planned program in a very short period of time and for the most part, the public is oblivious of it.
Glad to see CD finally put a picture of Cheney with a smile on his puss for us to see the guy ain’t all bad.
Kem Patrick,
You do make a point about the danger that Scott M may have been in. I honestly don’t doubt it. However, in all practicality, I doubt that it was ever the similar danger that many others have been in, and continue to be in, for all of the reasons you’ve stated. The Dick Bush thugs wouldn’t hesitate to ‘off’ any potential ’secret spillers’.
Still, they couldn’t very easily just ‘do away’ with him, without bringing a great deal of attention to the matter. I mean, how many people of his position, (whitehouse spokesperson) could meet with mysterious demise? (not that other lesser known figures haven’t)
So, I’m willing to go along with the fact that he may have been in danger from the Cheney mob. He does seem to have survived it quite well though. Or, at least he’s got a book in publication. That should certainly pay the mortgage for a while longer, and keep something edible on the table.
I agree CYRENA, he may have been and still may be in danger. He shut his mouth and left. He likely lined up the appropriate ducks before he decided it was safe enough to speak out. It MIGHT be, ths is the begnning of the end of Bush/Cheney. ___ We’ll see.
I believe, had I been in his position, I would have lined up my ducks prior to the press conference, told the Bush adminitrations spin, and then spilled the beans when they began their questions and told the press and the world right then and there, the whole truth, and stated that I feared for my life for tellling it.
Had he done that, the press room would have emptied with all of them running for their offices and the house of cards would have fallen in about ten minutes. Scott M would have had little to fear. Bush and Cheney and a whole slew of others would have been running for their prepared caves. I can picture it would have been similar to the ending of the book and movie, Clear And Present Danger.
That said, I wasn’t in his position, and so my opinions are clearly supposition. Monday morning quarter backing is always an art form almost anyone can delve into and come across as soundng fairly intelligent and learned. I attempt it all too often. Of course it’s fun and we do learn from it at times, when other quarterbacks here show us how dumb we are.