Sunday, April 9, 2006 | 7:33 a.m.
Vice President Dick Cheney's former chief of staff has told federal prosecutors that he received orders to leak U.S. intelligence information from the highest authority - the president of the United States.
Court documents show I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, who stands accused of revealing to the news media intelligence information that included the identity of a covert CIA operative, has said that Cheney told him the president had authorized the information leak to rebut administration critic Joseph Wilson. But it is clear that the leak was about retribution, rather than setting the record straight, as the resulting published reports included the identification of Wilson's wife, Valerie Plame, as a covert CIA agent.
White House Spokesman Scott McClellan on Thursday stopped short of denying Libby's assertions, saying that President Bush "would never authorize disclosure of information that could compromise our nation's security." McClellan also pointed out that the intelligence information to which Libby referred was declassified and made public July 18, 2003. But Libby had disclosed the information to a reporter 10 days earlier.
Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has said the president has the "inherent authority to decide who should have classified information" and, even if Libby's claims are true, would have done nothing illegal in authorizing the release of the report. Granted, Libby's accusation has yet to be proven. But he was one of Cheney's most trusted and loyal advisers, giving credibility to his assertion.
It is disconcerting that neither Bush nor Cheney have fully denied Libby's claims, leaving the American public little choice but to believe that part or all of it could be true. The president of the United States, who has routinely criticized the practice of leaking of government information to the media, may be the source of one of his administration's biggest gushers.
What Bush must do now is publicly explain - and answer reporters' questions about - what role, if any, he played in revealing the intelligence information.
In speaking to reporters in October 2003 about determining the source of the leak, Bush said, "I want to know the truth." The American people want to know it as well, and Bush's silence on the matter does nothing but further damage his credibility.
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