Indicting Dick

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emptywheel

In my sixth post after Libby's indictment–just two days after the indictment–I wrote a post called Indicting Dick. After noting that one of the indictment descriptions–the strategy session aboard Air Force Two on July 12, 2003–was really about Cheney even though it didn't name him, I wrote,

Tricky Fitzgerald!! He's been hiding Dick right in the middle of his Libby indictment.

I went on to list a whole bunch of details included in the indictment that might be references to Cheney. With all the evidence that has come out at the trial, I see I was right about several of these (but not that Cheney was a source for Martin of Plame's identity).

But we have learned far, far more about Cheney's personal involvement in the smear against Joe and Valerie Wilson. So it's time to gather it all into one chronology. If Fitzgerald wants to use this chronology to indict Cheney, he can be my guest.

By my reading, Cheney took his own notes on at least four documents pertaining to Wilson. It appears likely that, after learning that Plame worked at CIA from Libby or Martin, he went out and found out precisely where she worked, then he reported it back to Libby. Cheney directed Libby on at least three occasions (with Judy, with David Martin and Mitchell, and with Cooper et al) to personally intervene with journalists. And Cheney remained actively involved in crafting the response to Wilson all week during leak week. In addition, it seems clear that Cheney was pushing the Wilson attacks after the Novak article.

All this at a time when–according to Libby–they were obsessed with making sure they got Iraq right. It'd be funny how that worked out … if only it weren't so tragic.

Anyway, here's the chronology. I'm focusing on things directly touching Dick here–either things we know he was involved in, or things that clearly indicate a wide push to "get the whole story out." I will leave out some events tied more closely to others in the Admin, though we may well find out Dick has ties to that, too.