PLAME UPDATE: Just got this press release from the folks at Time:
Contact: Diana Pearson, FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Tues., Aug. 24, 2004I. Lewis Libby Waives Confidentiality
TIME Reporter Gives Deposition to Special Counsel
New York — TIME magazine announced today that its reporter, Matthew Cooper, has given a deposition to Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald in connection with the leak investigation involving Valerie Plame.
Mr. Cooper, who has been held in contempt of court for refusing to disclose his confidential sources, agreed to give a deposition because the one source specifically asked about by the Special Counsel, I. Lewis Libby, the vice president’s chief of staff, gave a personal waiver of confidentiality for Mr. Cooper to testify. Mr. Libby also gave TIME permission to release this information to the public.
The deposition, which took place yesterday in the Washington, D.C. office of Mr. Cooper’s attorney, Floyd Abrams, focused entirely on conversations Mr. Cooper had with Mr. Libby, one of Mr. Cooper’s sources for the articles he helped author about the leak in July 2003. Following the deposition, the contempt orders against both Time Inc. and Mr. Cooper were vacated.
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Waived confidentiality, eh? Interesting. I don’t pretend to understand what’s going on here, but I have a feeling we’re moving toward some sort of a conclusion.
UPDATE: Here’s a story from tomorrow’s Washington Post, with a lot more background but without much more clarity on what’s going on. Perhaps there’ll be a surprise ending. Interestingly, Josh Marshall, who used to be Plame Central, hasn’t posted on this yet, though he’s posted on some other items since the story broke.