Novak Boils Over

Former CIA spokesman, Bill Harlow, said in the WaPo last week that Harlow told Bob Novak that Novak's story about Valerie Plame was wrong. The implication being that Novak printed the July 14, 2003 column anyway.

Now Novak's boiling over and says that Harlow's statements in WaPo were "just plain wrong".

The key elements here are" Mrs. Wilson "authorized" Joe Wilson's Niger trip -- Harlow's term, and

Mrs. Wilson "suggested" Joe Wilson's Niger trip -- Novak's term (which was later verified as accurate by the Senate Committee Report).

Novak notes: "Joseph Wilson was discarded a year ago by the Kerry presidential campaign after the Senate committee reported much of what he said "had no basis in fact."

Just One Minute's got the goodies.


Update Aug 2: The NYT points out that Novak may have figured out himself that Valerie Wilson's maiden name was Valerie Plame. Novak "could have obtained Ms. Wilson's maiden name from the directory Who's Who in America, which used that name in identifying her as the wife of Joseph C. Wilson IV, a former ambassador", instead of learning it from a confidential source.

Valerie Plame's employer is not mentioned in the Who's Who directory.

"Any request that he withhold Ms. Wilson's name from his column of July 14, 2003, would have been "meaningless" once he had been told she was married to Mr. Wilson, Mr. Novak wrote on Monday, because she was openly listed in the directory."

Related: He Said, She Said
Media Brief: No Crime Committed
Did Wilson Expose Plame?
What Cooper Told Grand Jury
State Dept. Memo
Rove E-Mailed Security Official

-- LynZee