Today's NY Times story that Karl Rove didn't leak Valerie Plame Wilson's identity to Bob Novak, but Novak told it to Rove, is pure White House spin.
It clearly comes from a single anonymous White House source, at a time when all White House officials are refusing to answer questions publicly.
The source was described as “someone who has been officially briefed on the matter” and who “discussed the matter in the belief that Mr. Rove was truthful in saying he did not disclose Ms. Wilson's identity.”
That ain’t coming from the Special Counsel’s office.
Why would the White House want to get this info out?
Because if Rove can claim he received the info from a journalist, and not “as a result of having authorized access to classified information,” he won’t be liable under the Intelligence Identities Protection Act.
Why do we know this is the White House strategy?
Because Fox News already told us, during Wednesday’s pundit roundtable on Special Report with Brit Hume:
JEFF BIRNBAUM (W. Post): We are missing an important fact. And that is, where did Karl Rove get his information? --HUME: Well, I do know one thing. I know what the Rove camp says. The Rove camp says he actually heard about it from a journalist.
...
BIRNBAUM: ...if Karl Rove did not get his information from the CIA or from someone who should not have told him under this law ... then he's sort of off-the-hook.
We can’t be sure how exactly The Leak went down until the Special Counsel finishes his work.
But we do know that Novak got it from somebody in the Administration.
And we know that nobody in the White House has been forthright about what happened, and willing to answer any questions in the public about it.
The Bushies don’t deserve the opportunity to make their case through self-serving leaks of selective info. Their credibility is shot.
And since it is letting them, the NY Times’ credibility is shot too.
