WP: Court Hears Libby Describe Cheney as "Upset" at Wilson; Rove "animated" by Novak

[DeepModem Mom]

Court Hears Libby Describe Cheney as 'Upset' at Critic
Grand Jury Tapes Bolster Case Against Former Aide
By Amy Goldstein and Carol D. Leonnig
Washington Post Staff Writers
Wednesday, February 7, 2007; Page A03

Vice President Cheney and other senior White House officials regarded a former ambassador's accusations that President Bush misled the nation in going to war in Iraq as an unparalleled political assault and, early in the summer of 2003, held daily discussions about how to debunk them, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby told a federal grand jury.

In grand jury audiotapes played yesterday during Libby's perjury trial, the vice president's then-chief of staff said Cheney had been "upset" and "disturbed" by criticisms from former ambassador Joseph C. Wilson IV that Bush had twisted intelligence to justify the war. And Libby said that Karl Rove had been "animated" by a conversation with Robert D. Novak, in which the conservative columnist told Rove he "had a bad taste in his mouth" about Wilson and was writing a column about him.

Libby is charged with lying to the grand jury as it investigated a leak by administration officials of the identity of Wilson's wife, an undercover CIA officer named Valerie Plame. The sound of Libby's clear, measured voice in the tapes -- filling a courtroom in U.S District Court here for six hours over the past two days -- buttresses the prosecution's case in two significant ways.

Libby's portrayal of the zeal to discredit Wilson's claims, reaching to the White House's highest echelons, reinforces Special Counsel Patrick J. Fitzgerald's assertion that the criticism of war provoked such a political crisis among Bush's top aides that it is unlikely the defendant simply forgot his role in the leak, as defense attorneys contend.

In addition, the tapes display the specific gaps between Libby's version of events and those of government officials and journalists who, as prosecution witnesses, have testified about conversations they had with Libby about Plame....

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/05/AR2007020500831.html?nav=hcmodule

[hwmnbn]

1. Notice how the Libby defense team......

tried to discredit FBI Agent Bond by nitpicking words from her notes. The term "upset" didn't appear on the notes and they made a big deal about that. Guess what!?! That exact word was in the testimony like Bond said.

The jury will see the bullshit Libby's defense team is trying to pull.

[Kagemusha]

2. Bond was reporting on the statements to FBI agents. (Including her)

The fact Libby used that exact word to the grand jury is completely separate, though independently damning...

[HuffleClaw]

10. typical strategy when losing

and its exactly the sort of crap we hear endlessly from the 'usual suspects'. attacking things of no import (peolosi's plane for example) when they lack criticisms of substance.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

3. It's what Wilson's wife 'found' that cheney was upset about?

....or have I been watching too many spy movies?

[TacticalPeek]

4. K&R

:kick:

[annabanana]

5. Jeez it's hard to imagine that beast "animated".,

Everything he does & says seems to be in slow motion. Seeing him agitated would be interesting.

[Olney Blue]

6. Maybe he meant "animated" in a different way....

[DeepModem Mom]

9. LOL!

[CBGLuthier]

7. Bad taste in Novak's Mouth

COuld be that was from years of kissing the ass of guys like Rove, Bush, Cheney, etc..

[goforit]

8. No tears for that slimebucket! He believed it was a special honor to be ...

included in "The club" on such a tantalizing sceme.

Just like Asscroft! It was an honor.