Former Insider Lashes Out

"Miller says she told the grand jury that Libby talked about the wife of Joseph Wilson to her for the first time on June 23, 2003. . . .

"That does not match the Libby version, as described by sources who claim that Libby says he learned that that Wilson's wife worked at the CIA from Russert. But Libby called Russert in early July, more than a week later, and after Miller says Libby had already told her about Plame.

"NBC stand by its previously issued statement, saying in part: 'Mr. Russert told the Special Prosecutor that, at the time of that conversation, he did not know Ms. Plame's name or that she was a CIA operative and that he did not provide that information to Mr. Libby.' "

What motivated the leak of this latest sequence of events? Eric Umansky writes in Slate: "One obvious possibility: Rove's lawyer is trying to save his client's tush."

Bush's View

Bush was asked about his mounting troubles today during a Rose Garden appearance with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

"There's some background noise here," he said. "A lot of speculation, chatter, opining -- but the American people expect me to do my job and I'm going to."

A Revealing Window

Michael Isikoff and Mark Hosenball write for Newsweek: "The lengthy account by New York Times reporter Judy Miller about her grand jury testimony in the CIA leak case inadvertently provides a revealing window into how the Bush administration manipulated journalists about intelligence on Iraq's nonexistent weapons of mass destruction.

"Whatever the implications for special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald's probe, Miller describes a conversation with Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff, Lewis (Scooter) Libby, on July 8, 2003, where he appears to significantly misrepresent the contents of still-classified material from a crucial prewar intelligence-community document about Iraq.

"With no weapons of mass destruction having been found in Iraq and new questions being raised about the case for war, Libby assured Miller that day that the still-classified document, a National Intelligence Estimate (NIE), contained even stronger evidence that would support the White House's conclusions about Iraq's weapons programs, according to Miller's account.

"In fact, a declassified version of the NIE was publicly released just 10 days later, and it showed almost precisely the opposite."

Meet Scooter Libby

Carla Anne Robbins writes in the Wall Street Journal: "As chief of staff for Vice President Dick Cheney, Mr. Libby was known for graciously returning journalists' calls -- and then giving away nothing. His boss's devotion to secrecy and aversion to the media is well-known.

"So why Mr. Libby discussed Iraq-war critic Joseph Wilson and his CIA-operative wife with New York Times reporter Judith Miller, and perhaps others, is just one of the mysteries in the two-year investigation.