California Senator Barbara Boxer, a Democrat, issued the following statement on Friday, October 28, following the indictment of Vice President Dick Cheney’s Chief of Staff Scooter Libby on two counts of perjury and two counts of making false statements.
“The most disturbing part of this White House leak scandal is that it involves a personal, vicious attack on an undercover CIA agent because her husband exposed the lies behind the Bush Administration’s premise for the Iraq war.
“This despicable incident brings back echoes of the worst political scandals, when political ‘enemies’ were targeted for personal destruction. This isn’t the first time this Administration has tried to discredit or punish those who disagreed with them or stood up to them on the Iraq war and other Bush priorities.
“But, this CIA outing case, where an indictment has been issued against the Vice President’s top man, is particularly egregious because a deep undercover agent’s career was completely destroyed, putting her life and the lives of others in extreme jeopardy.
“The first President Bush said, ‘I have nothing but contempt and anger for those who betray the trust by exposing the name of our sources. They are, in my view, the most insidious of traitors.’
“Now his son should show the same outrage and moral disgust with those who were involved in this treasonous activity. President Bush should act immediately to fire anyone in his Administration who played any role in harming our national security by outing an undercover agent in order to punish her husband.“President George W. Bush said in 2001, ‘We must always maintain the highest ethical standards. We must always ask ourselves not only what is legal, but what is right.’ This case is a matter of right and wrong, and there is no gray area. President Bush needs to apologize for the actions of his Administration and rid his White House of anyone connected to this scandal.”