http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=544&u=/ap/20040209/ap_on_go_pr_wh/cia_leak_1&printer=1
President Bush's press secretary said Monday he had testified before a federal grand jury investigating the leak of a CIA undercover officer's identity. Scott McClellan told reporters that he appeared before the panel in Washington last week. "I'm doing my part to cooperate, as the president directed all of us to do," McClellan said aboard Air Force One during Bush's trip to Springfield, Mo. The Justice Department is trying to determine who leaked the name of CIA officer Valerie Plame to syndicated columnist Robert Novak in July. Plame's husband, former Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson, contends the disclosure may have been intended to discredit his assertions that the Bush administration exaggerated Iraq's nuclear capabilities to build a case for war. Whoever leaked Plame's name could be charged with a felony. McClellan did not discuss the substance of his testimony or questions asked by prosecutors. Justice Department and White House officials have steadfastly refused to discuss any aspect of the investigation other than to confirm that it is under way. A spokesman for U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald of Chicago, who is overseeing the investigation, said he could not confirm or deny the identity of anyone who has appeared before the grand jury. Fitzgerald was chosen to run the investigation in late December after Attorney General John Ashcroft disqualified himself from the politically sensitive case to avoid an appearance of conflict of interest. A group of former CIA officers and several members of Congress are demanding a congressional investigation as well. So far, however, Republican leaders of the House and Senate have not initiated separate action. xponent Rake The Muck Out Of The White House Maru rob _______________________________________________ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
