When it comes to Dick Cheney and the Plame scandal, the hits just keep on coming. Two weeks ago, it was George Stephanopoulos reporting that Cheney was “actually involved in some of these discussions” regarding smearing Joseph Wilson. Yesterday, it was Bloomberg reporting that Patrick Fitzgerald is focusing on whether Cheney played a role in the leak.
And the Washington Post picked up on this today with a front-page story that continues to move the ball forward, in the direction of Cheney’s office.
As the investigation into the leak of a CIA agent’s name hurtles to an apparent conclusion, special prosecutor Patrick J. Fitzgerald has zeroed in on the role of Vice President Cheney’s office, according to lawyers familiar with the case and government officials. The prosecutor has assembled evidence that suggests Cheney’s long-standing tensions with the CIA contributed to the unmasking of operative Valerie Plame.
In grand jury sessions, including with New York Times reporter Judith Miller, Fitzgerald has pressed witnesses on what Cheney may have known about the effort to push back against ex-diplomat and Iraq war critic Joseph C. Wilson IV, including the leak of his wife’s position at the CIA, Miller and others said. But Fitzgerald has focused more on the role of Cheney’s top aides, including Chief of Staff I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby, lawyers involved in the case said.
One former CIA official told prosecutors early in the probe about efforts by Cheney’s office and his allies at the National Security Council to obtain information about Wilson’s trip as long as two months before Plame was unmasked in July 2003, according to a person familiar with the account.
Unfortunately, the WaPo story is a little short on blockbuster revelations beyond information that’s already been reported. But to tell you the truth, I really just enjoy seeing a headline that reads, “Cheney’s Office Is a Focus in Leak Case,” on the front page, above the fold, of the Washington Post.