Federal investigators exploring the Plame Game scandal have now focused nearly all of their attention on those who received or were offered the leak in the first place: political reporters.
Two weeks ago we learned that two Washington Post reporters have been asked to speak to the federal grand jury. That, apparently, was just the first wave.
A federal grand jury has subpoenaed at least two journalists, Tim Russert of NBC’s “Meet the Press” and Matthew Cooper of Time magazine, to testify about whether the Bush White House leaked the identity of an undercover C.I.A. officer to the news media.
Not surprisingly, the news outlets, which want to remind sources of confidentiality agreements, aren’t exactly anxious to cooperate with these subpoenas.
Lawyers for NBC and Time said they would fight the subpoenas. NBC said its subpoena could have a “chilling effect” on its ability to report the news.
In a statement, Neal Shapiro, the network’s president, said, “Sources will simply stop speaking with the press if they fear those conversations will become public.”
I understand the free press angle here, and this probably isn’t the most efficient way to get journalists to reveal confidential sources, but the Times report included an interesting tidbit about the law covering this area.
Subpoenas to the news media are rare, and many courts have acknowledged significant legal protections for the press. But the leading Supreme Court case, decided in 1972, rejected the argument that the First Amendment protected reporters from grand jury subpoenas seeking information about crimes they have witnessed.
In the Plame investigation, the journalists could be in a similar position. Not all leaks are crimes, but there is a law that specifically prohibits the disclosure of the identities of undercover intelligence operatives.
And finally, these media subpoenas continue to suggest that the Plame Game inquiry is almost done. DoJ guidelines instruct prosecutors to explore every other avenue before calling on journalists to testify.
The timing of this couldn’t be much worse for Bush. The Plame Game still has the potential to be politically devastating. Stay tuned.