White House woes.On October 28, a grand jury in Washington, D.C., indicted INDICTED, practice. When a man is accused by a bill of indictment preferred by a grand jury, he is said to be indicted. I. Lewis "Scooter scooter: see motorcycle. " Libby, one of the highest-ranking officials at the White House. Libby, Vice President Dick Cheney's Chief of Staff, was charged with tire felony counts of lying to investigators and trying to obstruct ob·struct v. To block or close a body passage so as to hinder or interrupt a flow. ob·struc  tive adj. justice. The day he was charged, Libby resigned from his
post.
The indictment was the product of a 22-month investigation by Special Counsel Patrick J. Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald, who is a prosecutor, has been attempting to find the person who leaked the name of an undercover Central Intelligence Agency (CIA CIA: see Central Intelligence Agency. (1) (Confidentiality Integrity Authentication) The three important concerns with regards to information security. Encryption is used to provide confidentiality (privacy, secrecy). ) agent to the press. Knowingly exposing undercover intelligence agents is a violation of federal law. Washington observers had expected Karl Rove  The external links in this article or section may require cleanup to comply with Wikipedia's content policies. , one of President
George W. Bush's top advisers, to be charged at the same time. He
was not. But Fitzgerald said that the investigation is ongoing.
Hiding the Truth? The facts of the case are complex. In July 2003, former Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson wrote a New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of Times article claiming that the White House had "twisted" intelligence about Iraq's nuclear-weapons program to justify starting the Iraq war Iraq War: see under Persian Gulf Wars. Iraq War or Second Persian Gulf War Brief conflict in 2003 between Iraq and a combined force of troops largely from the U.S. and Great Britain; and a subsequent U.S. . He said that information he had gathered for the CIA that did not fit the White House's agenda had been ignored. A week later, newspaper columnist Noun 1. newspaper columnist - a columnist who writes for newspapers agony aunt - a newspaper columnist who answers questions and offers advice on personal problems to people who write in columnist, editorialist - a journalist who writes editorials Robert Novak Robert David Sanders Novak (born February 26, 1931) is a conservative American political commentator. Over his career, Bob Novak has become well-known as a columnist (writing "Inside Report" since 1963) and as a television personality (appearing on many shows for CNN, most notably wrote a column intending to discredit Wilson. Novak revealed that Wilson's wife, Valerie Plame Valerie Elise Plame Wilson (born Valerie Elise Plame 19 April 1963, in Anchorage, Alaska), known as Valerie Plame, Valerie E. Wilson, and Valerie Plame Wilson , was a CIA agent. His sources for this classified information, he said, were two senior White House officials. Opponents of the war said that the White House would stop at nothing to silence its critics. Eventually, the Special Counsel was assigned to investigate the leak. Mysteries continue to surround the case. So far, Fitzgerald has not named a specific source of the leaks. Instead, he has charged Libby with lying under oath Noun 1. lying under oath - criminal offense of making false statements under oath bearing false witness, perjury infraction, misdemeanor, misdemeanour, violation, infringement - a crime less serious than a felony , to hide the truth. "[The] truth is the engine of our judicial system," Fitzgerald said. "We didn't get the straight story, and we had to act." Libby has vowed to fight the charges in court. "In our system," President Bush cautioned, "each individual is presumed innocent and entitled to ... a fair trial." Words to Know * agenda: plan of action * indict in·dict tr.v. in·dict·ed, in·dict·ing, in·dicts 1. To accuse of wrongdoing; charge: a book that indicts modern values. 2. (in-DITE): formally charge with a crime. * leak: to reveal confidential information Noun 1. confidential information - an indication of potential opportunity; "he got a tip on the stock market"; "a good lead for a job" steer, tip, wind, hint, lead anonymously. * obstruct: block, hinder, or hide from sight * prosecutor: a lawyer who pursues formal charges in a legal case. * OBJECTIVE Students should understand * how the three branches of the federal government seek to balance power and how citizens hold them to account. * TERMS TO KNOW special counsel: investigator appointed to probe charges of misdeeds by high government officials * simple majority: half the total number of votes plus one (or more) * CRITICAL THINKING COMPREHENSION: For what offense was I Lewis Libby indicted last month? (lying to obscure the truth during investigations into who leaked the identity of a CIA agent to members of the press) MAKING PART-WHOLE CONNECTIONS: What are the problems or issues associated with President Bush's recent nominees to the Supreme Court? (Conservatives objected to Harriet Miers's lack of judicial experience and her written statements on social issues. Liberals are objecting to Samuel Alito's record of conservative rulings as a federal appeals court judge. A possible shift in political balance in the Supreme Court is a matter of great interest to both sides.) * ACTIVITY STAY UP-TO-DATE: Ask students to check newspapers, news-agency Web sites, and/or TV news reports for the latest information on the CIA leak investigation and the debates regarding the nomination of Samuel Alito Samuel Anthony Alito, Jr. (born April 1, 1950) is an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Educated at Princeton University and Yale Law School, Alito served as a United States attorney and a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit to the Supreme Court. Encourage them to discuss and analyze what they find out. Which information is fact and which opinion? How might students' lives be affected by changes in the makeup of the Supreme Court? STANDARDS SOCIAL STUDIES, GRADES 5-8 * Power, authority, and governance: How government officials try to resolve conflicts. * Civic ideals and practices: Why citizens should be aware of how government officials handle their rights and responsibilities. RESOURCES * Horn, Geoffrey M., The Supreme Court (Gareth Stevens, 2003). Grades 5-8. * Patrick, John J., The Supreme Court of the United States Supreme Court of the United States Final court of appeal in the U.S. judicial system and final interpreter of the Constitution of the United States. The Supreme Court was created by the Constitutional Convention of 1787 as the head of a federal court system, though it was : A Student Companion (Oxford University Press, 2002). Grades 6 & up. WEB SITES * Supreme Court of the United States supremecourtus.gov/about /about.html * U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the Special Counsel www.usdoj.gov/usao/iln/osc QUICK QUIZ * Match each person or phrase in the left column with the correct description in the right column.
--1. Samuel A. Alito Jr. A. CIA agent whose
name was revealed
to the news media
--2. Patrick J. B. government official
Fitzgerald indicted in the CIA
leak investigation
--3. I. Lewis Libby C. judge nominated
after the previous
Supreme Court
nominee withdrew
--4. Harriet E. Miers D. Special Counsel
in the CIA leak
investigation
--5. Valerie Plame E. Supreme Court
Wilson nominee who
withdrew from
consideration
ANSWERS 1. C 2. D 3. B 4. E 5. A ANSWERS 6. false 7. true 8. false 9. opinion 10. true ANSWERS 11. nicotine 12. rebel 13. bored or short-sighted 14. lung cancer lung cancer, cancer that originates in the tissues of the lungs. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the United States in both men and women. Like other cancers, lung cancer occurs after repeated insults to the genetic material of the cell. 15. medical costs ANSWERS 16. A 17. C 18. A 19. B 20. A |
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