Stalin reads newscrap.com - discovers lie in seconds

It's nothing new that basically every single item of every single right-wing news source is based on falsehoods; but this is pretty far out there even by the low standards of newscrap.com.

Their article claims, in part:

A week after Leakgate Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald announced that his investigation had been unable to establish that Valerie Plame was a "covert" CIA agent at the time she was "outed" by columnist Robert Novak, the press continues to refer to her using the bogus term.

In the last six days, there have been 261 references to Plame's "covert" status in mainstream media accounts, according to a Lexis Nexis search. The wave of erroneous reporting continues despite Fitzgerald's clear denials during his press conference last Friday after announcing Lewis "Scooter" Libby's indictment.

Asked about Plame's "covert" status, Fitzgerald told reporters:

"I am not speaking to whether or not Valerie Wilson was covert. And anything I say is not intended to say anything beyond this: that she was a CIA officer from January 1st, 2002, forward . . . We have not made any allegation that Mr. Libby knowingly, intentionally outed a covert agent. We have not charged that. And so I'm not making that assertion." [END EXCERPT]

Nice try, Newscrap, except that you're offering up exactly the wrong excerpt and ignoring the part of the indictment where he says the following:

At all relevant times from January 1, 2002 through July 2003, Valerie Wilson was employed by the CIA, and her employment status was classified. Prior to July 14, 2003, Valerie Wilson’s affiliation with the CIA was not common knowledge outside the intelligence community.

And in the press conference announcing the first White House indictment in 130 years, Fitzgerald said the following:

Valerie Wilson was a CIA officer. In July 2003, the fact that Valerie Wilson was a CIA officer was classified. Not only was it classified, but it was not widely known outside the intelligence community.

Valerie Wilson's friends, neighbors, college classmates had no idea she had another life.

The fact that she was a CIA officer was not well- known, for her protection or for the benefit of all us. It's important that a CIA officer's identity be protected, that it be protected not just for the officer, but for the nation's security.

Valerie Wilson's cover was blown in July 2003. The first sign of that cover being blown was when Mr. Novak published a column on July 14th, 2003.

In other words, newscrap.com lied, lied knowingly, and did so with the express intent of advancing the partisan goals of the repug party. Now, about those talking points re: 'liberal media bias' - care to revisit that? Oh, and about that 'honor and integrity' conceit...