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Ambassador Joseph Wilson Accuses Republican National Committee
Of Conducting New Smear Attack
Sen. Robert Byrd on Losing America and Confronting A Reckless
& Arrogant Presidency
Lila Lipscomb, A Star of Fahrenheit 9/11, Speaks on the Iraq
Invasion and the Death of Her Son
Ambassador Joseph Wilson Accuses Republican National
Committee Of Conducting New Smear Attack
A year ago Wilson revealed the Bush administration was fabricating
intelligence that Iraq sought to purchase uranium from Niger.
Since then his wife was outted as a CIA agent and now Republicans
say a new Senate intelligence committee report contradicts
some of Wilson's statements. Wilson accuses the GOP of trying
to divert attention from the federal inquiry into the outing
of his wife.
Newsweek magazine is reporting that Secretary of State Colin
Powell recently testified before a federal grand jury investigating
the leak of the identity of CIA covert officer Valerie Plame.
According to the magazine, Powell's July 16 appearance focused
on discussions Powell had when he went to Africa with President
Bush in July 2003, just before Plame"s identity was leaked
to columnist Robert Novak.
A senior State Department official confirmed that, while
on the trip, Powell had a department intelligence report on
whether Iraq had sought uranium from Niger—a claim Plame's
husband, Joseph Wilson, discounted after a trip to Niger on
behalf of the CIA. The report stated that Wilson's wife had
attended a meeting at the CIA where the decision was made
to send Wilson to Niger, but it did not mention her last name
or undercover status. At the time, White House officials were
seeking to discredit Wilson, who had become a prominent critic
of the Bush administration. Newsweek says the decision to
question Powell shows that knowledge about Plame was circulated
at the highest levels of the administration.
Though most lawyers thought the investigation was nearly
complete, sources say prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald has recently
recalled witnesses before the grand jury—apparently
to ask about issues raised by a new Senate intelligence committee
report that seemed to contradict some of Wilson's public statements
about Plame's role in his trip to Niger. Meanwhile, Wilson-who
is a foreign policy advisor to Democratic presidential candidate
John Kerry-has been responding to what he calls a concentrated
smear campaign against him, led by the Republican National
Committee. He spoke last week in Boston at the "Take
Back America" conference sponsored by the Campaign for
America's Future.
Sen. Robert Byrd on Losing America and Confronting
A Reckless & Arrogant Presidency
Although he is the most senior member of the Senate, Robert
Byrd did not speal during the Democratic National Convention.
However, he did speak in Cambridge during the convention and
issued a call for on citizens to save the country and preserve
the Constitution.
Last week, on Democracy Now! we reported on the vetting
process for the speeches given at the Democratic National
Convention and looked at who was asked to speak and who wasn't.
One of those not invited to speak was the Senator who has
been the most outspoken critic of the invasion and occupation
of Iraq, Sen. Robert Byrd. Byrd may not have been at the podium
in Boston last week, but he was in the city, promoting his
new book "Losing America: Confronting a Reckless and
Arrogant Presidency."
He spoke at an event where he was introduced by Senator Edward
Kennedy. Kennedy said of Byrd, "I can imagine him signing
the Declaration of Independence, taunting King George with
a big florid signature. I can picture him throwing the tea
in Boston harbor." Byrd said he wrote his book to save
another one as he held up his ragged and worn copy of the
US constitution.
- Sen. Robert Byrd speaking last week at the First Parish
Church in Cambridge.
Lila Lipscomb, A Star of Fahrenheit 9/11, Speaks
on the Iraq Invasion and the Death of Her Son
Lila's son Michael was 26 when he was killed in Iraq. Lila
shared her story with filmmaker Michael Moore and became a
central character in Fahrenheit 9/11. She spoke recently at
the national convention of Peace Action.
One of the stars of Michael Moore's new film Fahrenheit 9/11
is now the subject of a Marine Corps investigation and could
face court-martial. Lance Corporal Abdul Henderson told Moore
in the film he would not return with his unit to fight in
Iraq. USA Today revealed last week that the Marine Corps is
conducting a preliminary inquiry into Henderson's appearance
in Fahrenheit 9/11. A Marine spokesperson says if he refuses
to return to Iraq, he could face prison. Meanwhile, another
person featured in the film, Lila Lipscomb, has been travelling
across the country speaking to antiwar groups, community groups
and churches. Lipscomb's 26 year old son Michael was killed
in Iraq. She spoke recently at the national convention of
Peace Action in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
For a copy of today’s program, call 1 (800) 881 2359.
Our website is www.democracynow.org.
Our email address is mail@democracynow.org.
Democracy Now! is produced by Mike Burke, Sharif Abdel Kouddous,
Ana Nogueira, Elizabeth Press, Jeremy Scahill and Parvez Sharma.
Mike Di Filippo is our engineer.
Thanks also to Uri Galed, Angela Alston, Orlando Richards,
Simba Russeau, Johnny Sender, Rich Kim, Joe Murgio, John Randolph,
Chris Zucker, Karen Ranucci, Denis Moynihan, Eric Rweyemamu,
Jenny Filipazzo and Isis Phillips.
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