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Tuesday, Jul 05, 2005

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International

Bush aide linked to CIA leak

Gary Younge

Prosecutors now have their sights set on Karl Rove

NEW YORK: United States President George Bush's right-hand man, Karl Rove, who is called "Bush's Brain" by detractors, on Sunday found himself at the centre of the controversy over who revealed the name of a secret CIA agent, after Newsweek revealed that he was a source for a story that appeared in Time magazine and for which two reporters are facing prison.

In a development that could prove extremely damaging to the Bush administration, two lawyers close to the case say that e-mails between the Time reporter who wrote the story and his editors indicate that the reporter spoke to Mr Rove.

Mr Rove's lawyer, Robert Luskin, confirmed that his client had been interviewed by Matthew Cooper for the article, but denied that Mr Rove provided the crucial information that exposed the identity of the agent.

Mr Luskin told Newsweek that Mr Rove ``never knowingly disclosed classified information''. But the two lawyers who spoke to Newsweek said there was growing concern that prosecutors now have their sights set on Mr Rove, the architect of Mr Bush's rise.

The controversy relates to the leaking of the identity of a CIA agent, Valerie Plame, whose husband, the former ambassador Joseph Wilson, went on a CIA-sponsored trip to investigate whether Iraq was seeking to buy uranium from Niger for nuclear weapons.

"Leak by officials"

Some time after his return, Mr Wilson publicly accused the Bush administration of exaggerating the case for going to war.

Annoyed by Mr Wilson's public statements, two unnamed officials reportedly told the syndicated Right-wing columnist Robert Novak that Ms Plame was a CIA ``operative'' and had helped arrange his trip to Niger.

Mr Novak published the claims, sparking accusations that an undercover agent's identity had been disclosed, placing both her and her sources in physical danger, for partisan political purposes.

At the time, Mr Wilson said he believed that Mr Rove was the source, but the accusation was dismissed by the White House as ``totally ridiculous''.

It is a crime knowingly to divulge the identity of an undercover CIA operative and the leak prompted such a row that the Justice Department appointed a special counsel, Patrick Fitzgerald, to investigate. It is believed that Mr Novak has reached a deal with the special prosecutor, which is why he is not being pursued by authorities.

Two other reporters, Mr Cooper from Time magazine and Judith Miller from the New York Times, who followed up the story have been threatened with jail for contempt of court unless they reveal their sources.

Time Inc has been also charged with contempt and threatened with huge fines because it was in possession of Mr Cooper's notes that could be relevant to the case. —

- Guardian Newspapers Limited 2005

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