Bobby Ray Inman’s claims are “BS”, claimed one very prominent Washington insider after reading TWN‘s report on Inman’s claim that Richard Armitage would be indicted in the Valerie Plame Wilson outing probe.
Another well-placed insider who has interacted directly with many of the key personalities involved in the investigation wrote this to me:
I’m sure Inman is wrong on Armitage. But I am also sure we’ll hear more about Armitage’s direct involvement. I am additionally sure we will hear about Armitage as a witness against Rove if he is indicted.
Another person whom I can’t identify but has direct knowledge of the direction of Fitzgerald’s investigation as it pertains to Armitage and Rove stated that what Inman claims “is not the case”. This source offered further that one “would be on 100 percent solid ground” with the claim that Armitage would NOT be indicted.
I can’t disclose this source, but I completely trust the veracity of this comment.
That said, I have learned from several other sources that Richard Armitage was neck deep in the Valerie Plame story. According to several insiders, as soon as Armitage realized mistakes he had made, he marched into Colin Powell and laid out “everything” in full detail.
As others have written and reported, Richard Armitage is a major part of the story and engaged in indiscreet discussions regarding Valerie Plame Wilson and her alleged role in the Joe Wilson trip to Niger.
However, unlike what Admiral Inman asserted, Richard Armitage is in no legal jeopardy — none.
Two sources have reported that Richard Armitage has testified three times before the grand jury and has completely cooperated and has been, as one source reported, “a complete straight-shooter” and “honest about his role and mistakes”.
Another person with deep knowledge about this investigation called to say that Fitzgerald seems to have abandoned any interest in securing indictments regarding the “outing” of Plame and has invested his efforts in challenging the “white collar cover-ups” involved. According to this source, the information provided by Richard Armitage is — more than any other information — what has put Karl Rove at major risk of indictment.
I felt that these other insider perspectives are important as they are so uniformly consistent that Inman’s claims are wrong, that Armitage made mistakes and immediately owned up to them, that Armitage has been completely forthcoming in the investigation, and that Karl Rove remains a prime indictment target for Patrick Fitzgerald.
More soon.
— Steve Clemons
