The public knows a lot more about the Wilson/Plame controversy than it did before Friday, but there are still more questions than answers.
Certainly, at the top of the list has to be the identity of the Novak Two. Everyone loves a mystery and the political world is desperately wondering who’s responsible for this mess.
A distant second-place question would have to be the identity of the source for the Washington Post’s ground-breaking story from yesterday. A “senior administration official” told the Post critical details, including the fact that the leakers called at least six political reporters in DC, and characterized the leakers’ motivation as “revenge” for Wilson’s criticism. Who in the White House would spill the beans like this?
I’d say the third-place question is why the White House hasn’t done something about this controversy before now. If the White House wanted to argue in July that these leakers were just two irresponsible, rogue staffers who got caught up in a stupid vengeance game, it might be at least a little plausible. After all, Wilson exposed them as frauds. The White House — or, at a minimum, a couple of people within it — responded the way they always do, by lashing out wildly to destroy their perceived enemy. Chalking this up to a random mistake made by two rascals caught up in the moment won’t work anymore — too much time has passed.
Novak’s now-infamous column ran on July 14 — over three months ago. Only July 24, 10 days later, White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan was peppered with questions as to whether the White House “deliberately blew the cover of an undercover CIA operative, and in so doing, violated a federal law.”
In other words, aside from the two leakers (who obviously knew before July 14 and kept offering the news to reporters in DC), the White House was on notice by July 24 that this was a problem in need of attention. The Bush team can’t very well use the “We had no idea there were two leakers amongst us” line now.
The Note also raises several more behind-the-scenes questions that deserve answers:
* Has President Bush made clear to the White House staff that only total cooperation with the investigation will be tolerated? If not, why not?
* Has he insisted that every senior staff member sign a statement with legal authority that they are not the leaker and that they will identify to the White House legal counsel who is?
* Has Bush required that all sign a letter relinquishing journalists from protecting those two sources? Has Bush said that those involved in this crime will be immediately fired? If not, why not?
* Has Albert Gonzalez distributed a letter to White House employees telling them to preserve documents, logs, records? If not, why not?
* Has Andy Card named someone on his staff to organize compliance? If not, why not?
So many questions, so few indictments…
And, for what it’s worth, I’ve compiled my own short-list of potential candidates for the Novak Two, based on some cursory research and a few email guesses sent my way.
Vice President Dick Cheney
Karl “Bush’s Brain” Rove
National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice
Deputy National Security Advisor Steve Hadley
White House Chief of Staff Andy Card
Former Press Secretary Ari Fleischer
Current Press Secretary Scott McClellan
Speechwriter Michael Gerson
White House Counsel Albert Gonzales
Communications Guru Dan Bartlett
Cheney Chief of Staff Scooter Libby
If memory serves, Fleischer and McClellan wouldn’t necessarily have the security clearance to obtain classified info on Plame, but one of them certainly could have been tipped off by a superior and then participated in helping to leak the story to reporters.
Have a hunch? Send me your guesses. Maybe we’ll start a pool or something. Should we call it “The Plame Game”? (gotta love bad puns)