Imagine the reaction from the media and the Republican Party if this story had been in the news ten years ago:
Sworn testimony has revealed that Vice Pres. Al Gore masterminded the unmasking of a covert CIA agent who specialized in the terrorist blackmarket for weapons of mass destruction — and that Gore’s motive was to exact political retribution against the agent’s husband, an outspoken critic of Clinton-Gore policies.
It is hardly an exaggeration to suggest that Vice Pres. Gore would have been hounded from office within weeks of such headlines — as Vice Pres. Mondale or any other Democratic vice president would have been.
And yet we now know from testimony by an FBI agent and others at Scooter Libby’s perjury trial in the CIA Leak scandal that it was not Karl Rove who masterminded the campaign to reveal agent Valerie Plame’s identity, as most of us assumed — it was Libby’s boss, Dick Cheney, the vice president of the United States.
It also clear from the evidence that Cheney was fully aware that Plame worked undercover for the CIA’s Counter-Proliferation Division, where she was involved hands-on in tracking of illegal sales and shipments of WMD around the world. It is also clear that Cheney was more than willing to risk whatever intelligence assets Plame had developed in order to retaliate against her husband, former Amb. Joe Wilson, who had dared to call the Cheney-Bush administration on its lies about Iraq’s purported nuclear capabilities.
If Cheney were a Democrat, and these accusations had been made against him as part of sworn testimony, the reaction in Washington would be as clamorous as it would be swift:
- Investigations would be launched by both the Senate and House committees on national security and government affairs.
- Even in advance of the hearings, the House would have drawn up Bills of Impeachment against the vice president and probably the president as well.
- Fox News would be leading with the story wall-to-wall, couching the news as a deliberate, pro-terrorist security breach orchestrated from the White House.
- Rush Limbaugh and his cohorts would be hammering away at the vice president, calling his patriotism into question and implying that he was revealing national secrets at the behest of his boss, the president.
Instead, what we have gotten from the media and the Congress is bascially, “So what? It’s just Cheney being Cheney.” It is apparent that the vice president will get away with jeopardizing our national security without punsihment, or even a mild rebuke.
- Topic: Politics
- Topics: Impeachment, Scandals
Suggest impeaching Cheney to Congress and the reaction you would get would be the same reaction Wolf Blitzer had when Cheney stared him down and barked at him: A look of total panic combined with obsequious sniveling.
They have more than enough evidence to impeach him. They have the will of the people behind them. They just don’t have the stones for the job – well, maybe Conyers, Webb, Waters and Waxman do – that’s four out of how many?
This, too, shall pass. Darth Cheney’s already almost good as gone. Justice & Fate/Karma are not dead…
“They have more than enough evidence to impeach him..”
They have more than enough evidence to HANG him.
The outing of Plame was more than just personal revenge. By revealing Plame’s identity and that of her company, Bruster Jennings the entire intelligence operation involving
Iranian nuclear weapons research was compromised. So when the Bush Administration lies about Iran’s nuclear capabilities (just as they lied about iraq’s nuclear intentions) there would be no legitimate intelligence to disprove their false assertions.
Oil is what motivates and corrupts the Bush regime. Blood is the cost.
It is everything ben amato said plus much more.
Cheney’s Haliburton got Iran’s Nuclear program off and running:
…Sources at former Cheney company Halliburton allege that, as recently as January of 2005, Halliburton sold key components for a nuclear reactor to an Iranian oil development company.

Additionally, throughout 2004 and 2005, Halliburton worked closely with Cyrus Nasseri, the vice chairman of the board of directors of Iran. Nasseri was interrogated by Iranian authorities in late July 2005 for allegedly providing Halliburton with Iran’s nuclear secrets. Iranian government officials charged Nasseri with accepting as much as $1 million in bribes from Halliburton.
Halliburton has a long history of doing business in Iran, starting as early as 1995, while Vice President Cheney was chief executive of the company.
It was Halliburton’s secret sale of centrifuges to Iran that helped get the uranium enrichment program off the ground, according to a three-year investigation that includes interviews conducted with more than a dozen current and former Halliburton employees.
If the U.S. ends up engaged in a war with Iran in the future, Cheney and Halliburton will bear the brunt of the blame.

No, what’s disturbing about these facts is how little attention it has received from the mainstream media. Thousands of pages of documents obtained by various federal agencies show how Halliburton’s business dealings in Iran helped fund terrorist activities there—including the country’s nuclear enrichment program.
It is past time to put “Darth Vader” Cheney with a few growls that he gives to the media whenever he is cornered…what must this man do to get impeached???
Impeachment is too good for Bush and Cheney for their traitorous acts against the Constitution and the citizens of this country. The laws not only allow for impeachment, but for jail and execution. Congress needs to do its’ duty and to hell with the national news media who were cheerleaders in our run-up to the illegal war in Iraq. Who continue to look the other way when our treasury is depleted, our environment ruined, our voting process is compromised, our Constitution is violated and our citizens become poorer and more destitute. You cannot expect any truth from them, only propaganda that increases the bottom lines of their corporate owners at the expense of the lives and well-being of most citizens.
Nothing happens because they own the media and the Republicans in the Congress. What a handy tool eavesdropping must be. You can use it on those for or against you. Also, when you can steal elections for them they owe you, bit time!
Nixon was brought down what was before now the stupidest example of hubris. Hopefully this will be bush&co.’s Watergate.
Trees and Ropes….solution for traitors…The Founders
Impeachment is to light of a punishment.They both should be tried for war crimes and treason.They continue to pilfer the treasury and wreck and shred all laws and the constitution.
No he won’t.
Nuff said
Treason! Treason! Treason!
Why are these people still in office?
Why is the media still treating them as if they’re credible, ethical, moral human beings?
Why is congress debating Bush’s actions instead of empanelling a jury and setting court dates for his trial?
When will these people finally be held accountable and thrown in jail where they belong?
For the love of God, someone do something before they destroy our Constitution, our economy, our lives, our planet!!!
Cheney went to CIA prior to invading Iraq to turn the intel in favor of his WMD fiction–CIA refused. Plame was the CIA officer specializing in WMD proliferation, and she told Vice no dice. Cheney is one vindictive SOB, and with Val out, bet Porter put in a team player to replace her. Should pay asshole dividends re: Iran
In regards to the damage done to MS Wilson’s section:
MS Wilson had run many intelligence assets. Some of them American, others not. When she moved to Langley someone else took over her assets and position. When it became known for whom, and what she worked on, every one of those assets were put in harms way.
We will never know how many of those assets were lost or rounded up by thier prospective governments. We will never know what vital information was lost due to this breakdown in security.
How can any person would be willing to become an agent of America if this is the way this nation repays foreigners for cooperating with us.
King George will do the expected thing and pardon Libby. The biggest traitor, Cheney, will also get away with his ill gotten gains.
The American people will remain the losers.
Interesting take on things. Too bad that it’s already been shown that career bureaucrat Richard Armitage was the original source of Plame’s identity. These are facts that are not disputed, not even by Armitage himself, or by the Federal prosecutor in the Libby case.
Doesn’t fit the world view of the conspiracy crowd, but reality no less.
There is something that I have not seen addressed. Those on the right would have us believe that Plame was not a covert agent. “No harm, no foul”. However, a witness has testified that Libby asked him how he could find out if an agent was or was not covert.This after he had mentioned her name to several reporters. In addition, from Ted Wells (Libby’s lawyer) opening statement ” He (Libby) didn’t know and we still don’t know if Plame was covert”. So, the bottom line is that Cheney and Libby outed an agent that they had no idea of her status. To my mind a serious breach of national security. This case is not about “Nothing”.
You’re right of course, but you’re not looking at the big picture. It would just be politically foolish to impeach Cheney and have him replaced by a politically viable alternative.
This doesn’t mean the Dems should not jump all over this. They just need to not jump all the way.
Marital Infidelity takes priority over pure corruption. A guy getting a little head is much more of an impeacheable offense than ratting out a CIA agent or causing the death of 3100 soldiers and hundreds of thousand of innocent civilians. In what world am I living?
what every body doesnt seem to understand is ratting out a cia agent is treason period. the person/persons in this situation all need to be prosicuted period.if they do not get prosicuted then are country/constitution/policies/ dont mean sh*t period.
Stozzel – Whatever Armitage did does not negate the sworn testimony in the Libby case by the FBI agent and former Cheney staffer Cathie Martin that Cheney was calling the shots in the campaign to “get” the Wilsons.
Arlo – In his news conference after he charged Libby, prosecutor Fitzgerald said explicitly that Valerie Plame Wilson was a covert agent at the time her identity was revealed.
In addition, documents have been produced as evidence in Libby’s trial that the VP and others saw in the summer of 2003 that made it clear that she was covert and that she worked for the CIA’s Counter-Proliferations Division.
Dick Cheney intentionally revealed the identity of secret agent. Whether Armitage revealed it first is immaterial to the fact that the decision to out Plame was made by the vice president.
Cheney’s role is also immaterial to Libby’s perjury trial, but that doesn’t make what Cheney did any less egregious.
Lifetime in jail
Eternity in hell
The Democrats seem to ask themselves, of any action, “Will this help or impede our electability?” rather than “Is this good for the citizens?” (The Republicans of course do the same thing, but are better at the electability things …)
Bush, however, must be terrified lest Cheney be impeached or die:
25th Amendment: Section 2
In case of the removal of the Vice President from office, or of his death or resignation, the President, within a period of thirty days thereafter, shall nominate a Vice President who shall take office upon confirmation by both Houses of Congress by a majority vote of those present and voting.
The fact that Dick Cheney could become Vice President of The United States in the first place speaks volumes about the lie that America. It’s really gotten to the point where every manifestation of patriotism for this country draws waves of nausea from this boy.
How’d we get in this mess?
Look in the mirror, douchebag.
The reason why the press would have hounded Gore and hasn’t hounded Bush/Cheney is very simple. Bush/Cheney and their neo-con co- conspirators OWN the press/media and the Republikan Party! The mass media does an excellent job of babyspooning negative news about Bush/Cheney to the public. They are ALL COWARDS! It’s over five years now and they still haven’t done a damned thing about THOROUGHLY investigating 9-11 with a fine-toothed comb.
read this:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/story/0,,2005943,00.html
why does everyone keep asking “why”? don’t you all know it’s a done deal? we ALL let this happen w/our complaceny and apathy and now we are all doomed. just hope that all your loved ones are with you when the end comes. there is no turning back now. “they” have made sure of it and”we” have let them…..stop whining and prepare for the end
To Sally–couldn’t agree with you more! I’m so GLAD I don’t have children or grandchildren to leave this fu**ed up legacy to. I’ll be gone by the time it REALLY hits the fan!
to veteran – i do and i am “terror”fied for them
It’s over folks for our democracy. It’s dead. Killed by global corporations. It’s a corpse and its starting to stink. Cheney and Bush are just the maggots. There is a
whole lot more of disgust to follow before the process is finished. So Christo-fascists you are right. Their is a Satan (Cheney) and the world is coming to an end with Dick’s assistance. Enjoy your friggin’ rapture!
to Sally–I feel for you!
How’d we get here???
Anyone who voted for Nixon, Reagan, or either Bush, even once, is responsible for where we are now.
Anyone who secretly gloated when Reagan broke PATCO and cheered that finally those union bastards are getting what they deserve is responsible for where we are now.
Anyone who puffed out there chest with pride as the war criminal North bragged about subverting the will of the people by doing an end run around congress is responsible for where we are now.
Anyone who says there were no WMD, but….is responsible for where we are now.
Look at the history of this family. Prescott Bush not only got away with trading with the enemy, he was elected to the senate. Even after his son Neil was convicted of pillaging a savings and loan, George Bush I was given a free ride throughout the Iran-Contra fiasco even though congress knew he was involved. Where was the outrage when he pardoned every single one of his co-conspirators, including Weinberger before the latter was even convicted of a crime? George Bush II steals two elections, shreds the bill of rights, and arrogantly thumbs his nose at the American people and gets a free ride.
The mainstream media owners are of the same class as the Bushes. There are secrets to be protected, possibly videos and pics given Bush’s past in the CIA (and that involvement goes back to 1953 as proven by Mary Ferrell). They will NEVER lead the charge but must be dragged kicking and screaming to the hanging.
Veteran – I’m a veteran too, Marine combat veteran of Vietnam and I refuse to die until this country is back on track even if I am reduced to nothing but a head in a jar on the mantle artificially kept alive.
Dick Cheney knows where your bodies are buried, and he knows where to bury your body–should it come to that.
Jon Ponder’s premise is undeniably true and the double standard is so outrageous but ignored that you cannot help but get very angry when you think about it. How can members of the MSM seriously continue with their jobs while this huge green elephant rumbles around the room? The ability of humans to ignore and disregard unsettling realities is amazing.
On a similar vein, do you think Cheney ignores his hypocrisy, or does he rationalize it with a political view that democracy and constitutional republics, as forms of governing a state are no longer or never were viable, and that an oligarchy of wise men should rule is the best way to rule a state?
republics no longer viable, and that an oligarchy of wise men should rule America?
it makes sense that darth may resign. why else would john negroponte have taken a job which appears to be a step down, unless, there is the possibility that darth resigns, condi is appointed to the veep job and then negroponte becomes secretary of state. hmmmmm, we’ll see