Valerie Plame scandal
The Valerie Plame scandal revolves around the disclosure of the covert identity of Valerie Plame Wilson, a CIA officer, following her husband Joseph C. Wilson IV's public criticism of the U.S. government's claims about Iraq's attempts to acquire uranium. In 2002, Joseph Wilson was sent to Niger to investigate these claims after Plame recommended him, but he found no evidence of such sales. Despite his findings, President George W. Bush continued to suggest that Iraq was pursuing nuclear weapons, leading Wilson to publish an article in the New York Times in July 2003 challenging these assertions. Shortly thereafter, journalist Robert D. Novak revealed Plame’s covert status, prompting an investigation into the leak. The investigation primarily focused on figures within the Bush administration, notably Karl Rove and Scooter Libby. Libby was ultimately convicted on charges related to the case, although President Bush commuted his sentence. The scandal sparked significant debate regarding the protection of intelligence personnel and raised critical questions about the justification for the Iraq War, highlighting the delicate balance between national security and governmental accountability.
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Valerie Plame scandal
The public disclosure of Valerie Plame, ValeriePlame Wilson as a spy for the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the subsequent grand-jury investigation into who leaked this information
The CIA recruited Valerie Plame Wilson, best known as Valerie Plame, in 1985. In 1998, she married diplomat Joseph C. Wilson IV. In February 2002, Wilson was sent to Niger to investigate possible sales of uranium to Iraq for use in weapons. The CIA sent Wilson after Plame recommended him, stating that her husband was on good terms with former Niger prime minister Ibrahim Assane Mayaki. After meeting with Mayaki, Wilson told the CIA that Niger never sold uranium to Iraq but that it was approached about doing business with the country. Despite Wilson’s claims, US president George W. Bush began giving speeches in October 2002 stating that Iraq had been caught attempting to purchase hundreds of tons of uranium.
On July 6, 2003, Wilson published an article in the New York Times titled “What I Didn’t Find in Africa.” In the article, Wilson states that the federal government exaggerated the threat posed by Iraq and that intelligence reports about the country’s nuclear weapons program were false. On July 14, 2003, an article by journalist Robert D. Novak was published in the Washington Post titled “Mission to Niger.” In the article, Novak revealed that Plame was a covert CIA agent.
The disclosure of Plame’s identity set off an investigation by CIA director George Tenet, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the US Department of Justice into who leaked the information concerning Plame’s identity to Novak. Experts believed that the disclosure of Plame’s identity compromised every network and relationship she had created over her career. Lead suspects in the investigation were Karl Rove, the White House deputy chief of staff, and Lewis “Scooter” Libby, chief of staff for Vice President Dick Cheney.
Libby was charged with two counts of perjury and making false statements and one count of obstruction of justice. In March 2007, he was found guilty on all counts except one count of making a false statement. President Bush commuted Libby’s sentence.
Impact
Following the disclosure of Plame’s identity, several debates ensued over the extent of the damage it would cause in the foreign intelligence community. The Bush administration was heavily criticized for what many saw as its protection of people such as Libby and Rove. Several members of Congress called for Rove to disclose his role in the affair. The Plame scandal demonstrated the sensitive nature of the intelligence community and raised questions about the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
Bibliography
Novak, Robert D. “Mission to Niger.” Washington Post. Washington Post, 14 July 2003. Web. 2 Nov. 2012.
Wilson, Joseph C., IV. “What I Didn’t Find in Africa.” New York Times. New York Times, 6 July 2003. Web. 2 Nov. 2012.
Wilson, Valerie Plame. Fair Game: My Life As a Spy, My Betrayal by the White House. New York: Simon, 2007. Print.