Valerie Plame Wilson
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Valerie Elise Plame (born August 13, 1963) is an American writer, spy novelist, and former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) officer. As the subject of the 2003 Plame affair, also known as the CIA leak scandal, Plame's identity as a CIA officer was
leaked A leak is a way (usually an opening) for fluid to escape a container or fluid-containing system, such as a tank or a ship's hull, through which the contents of the container can escape or outside matter can enter the container. Leaks are usuall ...
to and subsequently published by Robert Novak of '' The Washington Post''. In the aftermath of the scandal, Richard Armitage in the U.S. Department of State was identified as one source of the information, and Scooter Libby, Chief of Staff to Vice President Dick Cheney, was convicted of lying to investigators. After a failed appeal, President George W. Bush commuted Libby's sentence and in 2018, President Donald Trump pardoned him. No one was formally charged with leaking the information. In collaboration with a ghostwriter, Plame wrote a memoir detailing her career and the events leading up to her resignation from the CIA. She has subsequently written and published at least two spy novels. A 2010 biographical feature film, '' Fair Game'', was produced based on memoirs by her and her husband. Plame was an unsuccessful candidate for New Mexico's 3rd congressional district in 2020, placing second behind Teresa Leger Fernandez in the June 2, 2020 primary.


Early life and education

Valerie Elise Plame was born on August 13, 1963, on Elmendorf Air Force Base, in
Anchorage, Alaska Anchorage () is the largest city in the U.S. state of Alaska by population. With a population of 291,247 in 2020, it contains nearly 40% of the state's population. The Anchorage metropolitan area, which includes Anchorage and the neighboring Ma ...
, to Diane (née McClintock) and Samuel Plame III. Associated Press
"The Real Valerie Plame"
, reposted in '' Editor and Publisher'', May 30, 2005, accessed August 12, 2007.
Plame says that her paternal grandfather was Jewish, the son of a
rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as '' semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form o ...
who emigrated from Ukraine; the original family surname was "Plamevotski". The rest of Plame's family was Protestant (the religion in which Plame was raised); she was unaware, until she was an adult, that her grandfather was Jewish. She graduated in 1981 from Lower Moreland High School, in Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania, and in 1985 from
Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvan ...
, with a B.A. in advertising. While attending Penn State, she joined Pi Beta Phi sorority" Fair Game: My Life as a Spy, My Betrayal by the White House". and worked for the business division of the ''
Daily Collegian The ''Daily Collegian'' is a student-produced news outlet, with a newspaper and website, that is published independently at the Pennsylvania State University. The newspaper is printed twice a week during the fall and spring semesters, and once ...
''
student newspaper A student publication is a media outlet such as a newspaper, magazine, television show, or radio station produced by students at an educational institution. These publications typically cover local and school-related news, but they may also repor ...
.Alt URL
/ref>Former Spy Accused Of Anti-Semitism Eyeing Senate Run
March 29, 2019 By Aiden Pink, The Forward


Career

After graduating from college and moving to Washington, D.C., Plame worked at a clothing store while awaiting results of her application to the CIA. She was accepted into the 1985–86 CIA officer training class. Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald affirmed that Plame "was a CIA officer from January 1, 2002, forward" and that "her association with the CIA was classified at that time through July 2003.""Transcript of Special Counsel Fitzgerald's Press Conference"
'' The Washington Post'', October 28, 2005, accessed July 15, 2006.
Details about Plame's professional career are still classified, but it is documented that she worked for the CIA in a non-official cover capacity relating to counter-proliferation. Patrick Fitzgerald
"August 27, 2004 Affidavit of Patrick J. Fitzgerald
Placed in Public File Pursuant to Opinion Released February 3, 2006", online posting, '' The Wall Street Journal'', February 3, 2006: 28 n. 15, accessed August 7, 2007.
 , "Exhibit A" in sentencing memorandum exhibits,
United States v. Libby ''United States v. Libby'' was the federal trial of I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, a former high-ranking official in the George W. Bush administration, for interfering with special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald's criminal investigation of the Plame ...
, online posting of public document, ''The Next Hurrah'' (blog), May 26, 2007: 2–3.
Cf
"Valerie Plame, Covert After All"
("Though some on the right have denied it, Plame was a covert CIA operative when she was exposed by Robert Novak. Read the document that proves It."), ''
Salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon, a venue for cosmetic treatments * French term for a drawing room, an architectural space in a home * Salon (gathering), a meeting for learning or enjoyment Arts and entertainment * Salon (P ...
'', May 30, 2007, accessed August 12, 2007. Includes screen shots of the
PDF Portable Document Format (PDF), standardized as ISO 32000, is a file format developed by Adobe in 1992 to present documents, including text formatting and images, in a manner independent of application software, hardware, and operating systems. ...
(three pages).
Plame served the CIA at times as a non-official cover (or NOC), operating in Athens and Brussels. While using her own name, "Valerie Plame", her assignments required posing in various professional roles in order to gather intelligence more effectively.
Larry C. Johnson Larry C. Johnson is an American blogger and former analyst at the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency. He is the co-owner and CEO of BERG Associates, LLC (Business Exposure Reduction Group). Background Johnson worked at the CIA for four years as an ...

"The Big Lie about Valerie Plame"
, ''tpmcafe.com'' (Special Guest blog), June 13, 2005, accessed July 15, 2006. (Johnson is "a former CIA analyst who was in Plame's officer training class in 1985–86" and Deputy Director for Special Operations, Transportation Security, and Anti-Terrorism Assistance in the U.S. State Department's Office of Counter Terrorism until October 1993.)
Two of her covers include serving as a junior consular officer in the early 1990s in Athens and then later as an energy analyst for the private company (founded in 1994) " Brewster Jennings & Associates," which the CIA later acknowledged was a front company for certain investigations. A former senior diplomat in Athens remembered Plame in her dual role and also recalled that she served as one of the "control officers" coordinating the visit of President
George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; pr ...
to Greece and Turkey in July 1991. The matter of whether she actually had covert status is disputed. After the Persian Gulf War in 1991, the CIA sent her first to the London School of Economics and then the College of Europe, in Bruges, for Master's degrees. After earning the second degree, she stayed on in Brussels, where she began her next assignment under cover as an "energy consultant" for Brewster-Jennings. Beginning in 1997, Plame's primary assignment was shifted to the CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia. During this time, part of her work concerned the determination of the use of aluminum tubes purchased by Iraq.David Corn
"What Valerie Plame Really Did at the CIA"
'' The Nation'' (web only), September 6, 2006. citing information in the book ''Hubris: The Inside Story of Spin, Scandal, and the Selling of the Iraq War'', co-written by Corn and Michael Isikoff.
CIA analysts prior to the Iraq invasion were quoted by the White House as believing that Iraq was trying to acquire
nuclear weapons A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bomb ...
and that these aluminum tubes could be used in a centrifuge for nuclear enrichment.
Attachment A:
Unclassified Report to Congress on the Acquisition of Technology Relating to Weapons of Mass Destruction and Advanced Conventional Munitions, July 1 Through 31 December 200 ', Office of the Directorate of Central Intelligence (ODCI), CIA, Dec. 2002, accessed October 27, 2006.

Unclassified Report to Congress:
on the Acquisition of Technology Relating to Weapons of Mass Destruction and Advanced Conventional Munitions, January 1 Through June 30, 2002'', Office of the Directorate of Central Intelligence (ODCI), CIA, June 2002, accessed October 27, 2006.
David Corn and Michael Isikoff argued that the undercover work being done by Plame and her CIA colleagues in the Directorate of Central Intelligence
Nonproliferation Nuclear proliferation is the spread of nuclear weapons, fissionable material, and weapons-applicable nuclear technology and information to nations not recognized as "Nuclear Weapon States" by the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weap ...
Center strongly contradicted such a claim.


"Plamegate"

On July 14, 2003, Robert Novak, a journalist for '' The Washington Post'', used information obtained from Richard Armitage,
Karl Rove Karl Christian Rove (born December 25, 1950) is an American Republican political consultant, policy advisor, and lobbyist. He was Senior Advisor and Deputy Chief of Staff during the George W. Bush administration until his resignation on August 3 ...
, and Scooter Libby, to reveal Plame's identity as a CIA operative in his column. Legal documents published in the course of the CIA leak grand jury investigation, ''
United States v. Libby ''United States v. Libby'' was the federal trial of I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, a former high-ranking official in the George W. Bush administration, for interfering with special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald's criminal investigation of the Plame ...
'', and
Congressional A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...
investigations, established her classified employment as a covert officer for the CIA at the time when Novak's column was published in July 2003. , "Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Hearing on Disclosure of CIA Agent Valerie Plame Wilson's ldentity and White House Procedures for Safeguarding Classified Information", online posting,
United States House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform The Committee on Oversight and Reform is the main investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives. The committee's broad jurisdiction and legislative authority make it one of the most influential and powerful panels in the ...
, ''oversight.house.gov'', March 16, 2007: 2, accessed March 19, 2007
"Investigations: Disclosure of CIA Agent Identity"
an
"Disclosure of CIA Agent Identity:
Hearing Examines Exposure of Covert CIA Agent Valerie Plame Wilson's Identity",
United States House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform The Committee on Oversight and Reform is the main investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives. The committee's broad jurisdiction and legislative authority make it one of the most influential and powerful panels in the ...
(Oversight Committee), March 16, 2007, accessed July 10, 2007. (Hyperlinks in menu, including streaming video of hearing; box with "Documents and Links", featuring documents chart  .)
In his press conference of October 28, 2005, Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald explained the necessity of secrecy about his
grand jury A grand jury is a jury—a group of citizens—empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought. A grand jury may subpoena physical evidence or a pe ...
investigation that began in the fall of 2003—"when it was clear that Valerie Wilson's cover had been blown"—and the background and consequences of the indictment of then high-ranking Bush Administration official Scooter Libby as it pertained to her. Fitzgerald's subsequent replies to reporters' questions shed further light on the parameters of the leak investigation and what, as its lead prosecutor, bound by the rules of grand jury secrecy, he could and could not reveal legally at the time. Official court documents released later, on April 5, 2006, reveal that Libby testified that "he was specifically authorized in advance" of his meeting with Judith Miller, reporter for '' The New York Times'', to disclose the "key judgments" of the October 2002
classified Classified may refer to: General *Classified information, material that a government body deems to be sensitive *Classified advertising or "classifieds" Music *Classified (rapper) (born 1977), Canadian rapper *The Classified, a 1980s American roc ...
National Intelligence Estimate National Intelligence Estimates (NIEs) are United States federal government documents that are the authoritative assessment of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) on intelligence related to a particular national security issue. NIEs are pr ...
(NIE). According to Libby's testimony, "the Vice President later advised him that the President had authorized defendant to disclose the relevant portions of the NIE
o Judith Miller O, or o, is the fifteenth Letter (alphabet), letter and the fourth vowel letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the English alphabet, modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in ...
" , as posted online in '' The Smoking Gun'' (blog), April 5, 2006, accessed July 15, 2006. According to his testimony, the information that Libby was authorized to disclose to Miller "was intended to rebut the allegations of an administration critic, former ambassador Joseph Wilson." A couple of days after Libby's meeting with Miller, then– National Security Advisor
Condoleezza Rice Condoleezza Rice ( ; born November 14, 1954) is an American diplomat and political scientist who is the current director of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. A member of the Republican Party, she previously served as the 66th Uni ...
told reporters, "We don't want to try to get into kind of selective declassification" of the NIE, adding, "We're looking at what can be made available."Michael Isikoff
"The Leaker in Chief?"
'' Newsweek'', April 4, 2006, accessed July 15, 2006.
A "sanitized version" of the NIE in question was officially declassified on July 18, 2003, ten days after Libby's contact with Miller, and was presented at a White House background briefing on weapons of mass destruction (WMD) in Iraq."Iraq's Continuing Programs for Weapons of Mass Destruction"
''fas.org'' (blog), accessed July 15, 2006.
The NIE contains no references to Valerie Plame or her CIA status, but the Special Counsel has suggested that White House actions were part of "a plan to discredit, punish or seek revenge against Mr. Wilson."David E. Sanger
"Special Prosecutor Links White House to CIA Leak"
''San Francisco Gate'' (blog), April 11, 2006, accessed July 15, 2006.
President Bush had previously indicated that he would fire whoever had outed Plame. A court filing by Libby's defense team argued that Plame was not foremost in the minds of administration officials as they sought to rebut charges—made by her husband—that the White House manipulated intelligence to make a case for invasion. The filing indicated that Libby's lawyers did not intend to say that he was told to reveal Plame's identity. The court filing also stated that "Mr. Libby plans to demonstrate that the indictment is wrong when it suggests that he and other government officials viewed Ms. Wilson's role in sending her husband to Africa as important," indicating that Libby's lawyers planned to call
Karl Rove Karl Christian Rove (born December 25, 1950) is an American Republican political consultant, policy advisor, and lobbyist. He was Senior Advisor and Deputy Chief of Staff during the George W. Bush administration until his resignation on August 3 ...
to the stand. Fitzgerald ultimately decided against pressing charges against Rove.Don Gonyea
Rove Won't Be Charged in CIA Leak Case
NPR, ''Morning Edition'' (June 13, 2006).
The five-count indictment of Libby included perjury (two counts), obstruction of justice (one count), and
making false statements Making false statements () is the common name for the United States federal process crime laid out in Section 1001 of Title 18 of the United States Code, which generally prohibits knowingly and willfully making false or fraudulent statements, or ...
to federal investigators (two counts). There was, however, no count for disclosing classified information, i.e., Plame's status as a CIA operative.


Libby trial

On March 6, 2007, Libby was convicted of obstruction of justice, making false statements, and two counts of perjury. He was acquitted on one count of making false statements. He was not charged for revealing Plame's CIA status. His sentence included a $250,000 fine, 30 months in prison and two years of probation. On July 2, 2007, President George W. Bush commuted Libby's sentence, removing the jail term but leaving in place the fine and probation, calling the sentence "excessive." In a subsequent press conference, on July 12, 2007, Bush noted, "...the Scooter Libby decision was, I thought, a fair and balanced decision." The Wilsons responded to the commutation in statements posted by their legal counsel,
Melanie Sloan Melanie Sloan (born December 16, 1965) is an attorney, former counsel for the House Judiciary Committee, and the former Executive Director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a nonprofit government ethics and accountability wa ...
, executive director of
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) and nonpartisan U.S. government ethics and accountability watchdog organization.''Washington Information Directory 2017-2018''; CQ Press; 2017; Pg. 327 Founded ...
(CREW), and on their own legal support website. President Donald Trump pardoned Libby on April 13, 2018.


''Wilson v. Cheney''

On July 13, 2006, Joseph and Valerie Wilson filed a civil lawsuit against Rove, Libby, Vice President
Dick Cheney Richard Bruce Cheney ( ; born January 30, 1941) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 46th vice president of the United States from 2001 to 2009 under President George W. Bush. He is currently the oldest living former U ...
, and other unnamed senior White House officials (to whom they later added Richard Armitage)"Armitage Added to Plame Law Suit"
''
CBS News CBS News is the news division of the American television and radio service CBS. CBS News television programs include the ''CBS Evening News'', ''CBS Mornings'', news magazine programs '' CBS News Sunday Morning'', '' 60 Minutes'', and '' 48 H ...
'', September 13, 2006, accessed September 25, 2006; includes PDF. Cf
Amended complaint
at ''FindLaw.com''.
for their alleged role in the public disclosure of Valerie Wilson's classified CIA status. Judge John D. Bates dismissed the Wilsons' lawsuit on jurisdictional grounds on July 19, 2007; Associated Press
"Valerie Plame's Lawsuit Dismissed"
'' USA Today'', July 19, 2007, accessed July 19, 2007.
Carol D. Leonnig Carol Duhurst Leonnig is an American investigative journalist. She has been a staff writer at ''The Washington Post'' since 2000, and was part of a team of national security reporters that won the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for reporti ...

"Plame's Lawsuit Against Top Officials Dismissed"
'' The Washington Post'', July 20, 2007, accessed July 20, 2007.
"Memorandum Opinion"
in "Valerie Wilson, et al., Plaintiffs, v. I. Lewis Libby, Jr., et al., Defendants", "Civil Action No. 06-1258 (JDB)", '' United States District Court for the District of Columbia'', July 19, 2007, accessed July 20, 2007.
the Wilsons appealed. On August 12, 2008, in a 2-1 decision, the three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit upheld the dismissal.Susan Decker and Cary O'Reilly
"Cheney, Rove, Libby Win Plame Suit Dismissal Appeal (Update2)"
'' Bloomberg.com'', August 12, 2008, accessed August 13, 2008.
"DC Circuit Court Opinion"
at ''
FindLaw FindLaw is a business of Thomson Reuters that provides online legal information and online marketing services for law firms. FindLaw was created by Stacy Stern, Martin Roscheisen, and Tim Stanley in 1995, and was acquired by Thomson West in 2001. ...
'', August 12, 2008, accessed August 13, 2008.
Melanie Sloan Melanie Sloan (born December 16, 1965) is an attorney, former counsel for the House Judiciary Committee, and the former Executive Director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a nonprofit government ethics and accountability wa ...
, of
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) and nonpartisan U.S. government ethics and accountability watchdog organization.''Washington Information Directory 2017-2018''; CQ Press; 2017; Pg. 327 Founded ...
, which represents the Wilsons, "said the group will request the full D.C. Circuit to review the case and appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.""Wilson's (sic) Response to D.C. Circuit Court Upholding Bates Decision
, ''The Joseph and Valerie Wilson Legal Support Trust'', August 12, 2008, accessed August 14, 2008.
Agreeing with the Bush administration, the Obama Justice Department argued the Wilsons have no legitimate grounds to sue. On the current justice department position, Sloan stated: "We are deeply disappointed that the Obama administration has failed to recognize the grievous harm that Bush White House officials inflicted on Joe and Valerie Wilson. The government's position cannot be reconciled with President Obama's oft-stated commitment to once again make government officials accountable for their actions.""Obama Administration Opposes Joe and Valerie Wilson's Request for Supreme Court Appeal in Suit Against Cheney, Rove, Libby and Armitage"
,''
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) and nonpartisan U.S. government ethics and accountability watchdog organization.''Washington Information Directory 2017-2018''; CQ Press; 2017; Pg. 327 Founded ...
'' (CREW), May 20, 2009, accessed May 22, 2009.
On June 21, 2009, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear the appeal."Supreme Court will not revive Valerie Plame lawsuit"
, '' The Washington Examiner'', June 21, 2009. Retrieved May 26, 2012.


House Oversight Committee hearing

On March 8, 2007, two days after the verdict in the Libby trial, Congressman Henry Waxman, chair of the
United States House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform The Committee on Oversight and Reform is the main investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives. The committee's broad jurisdiction and legislative authority make it one of the most influential and powerful panels in the ...
, announced that his committee would ask Plame to testify on March 16, in an effort by his committee to look into "whether White House officials followed appropriate procedures for safeguarding Plame's identity.""Disclosure of CIA Identity"
, online posting,
United States House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform The Committee on Oversight and Reform is the main investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives. The committee's broad jurisdiction and legislative authority make it one of the most influential and powerful panels in the ...
, ''oversight.house.gov'', March 16, 2007, accessed March 19, 2007.
On March 16, 2007, at these hearings about the disclosure, Waxman read a statement about Plame's CIA career that had been cleared by CIA director Gen.
Michael V. Hayden Michael Vincent Hayden (born March 17, 1945) is a retired United States Air Force four-star general and former Director of the National Security Agency, Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence, and Director of the Central Intelligenc ...
and the CIA, stating that she was undercover and that her employment status with the CIA was classified information prohibited from disclosure under
Executive Order 12958 Executive Order 12958 created new standards for the process of identifying and protecting classified information, and led to an unprecedented effort to declassify millions of pages from the U.S. diplomatic and national security history. In 1995, Un ...
. Subsequent reports in various news accounts focused on the following parts of her testimony: * "My name and identity were carelessly and recklessly abused by senior government officials in the White House and state department"; this abuse occurred for "purely political reasons." * After her identity was exposed by officials in the Bush administration, she had to leave the CIA: "I could no longer perform the work for which I had been highly trained."Richard Allen Greene
"Ex-spy Makes Tough Bush Critic"
BBC News, March 16, 2007, accessed March 19, 2007.
* She did not select her husband for a CIA fact-finding trip to Niger, but an officer senior to her selected him and told her to ask her husband if he would consider it: "I did not recommend him. I did not suggest him. There was no
nepotism Nepotism is an advantage, privilege, or position that is granted to relatives and friends in an occupation or field. These fields may include but are not limited to, business, politics, academia, entertainment, sports, fitness, religion, an ...
involved. I did not have the authority .."


''Fair Game''

Plame's husband Joseph Wilson announced on March 6, 2007, that the couple had "signed a deal with Warner Bros of
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...
to offer their consulting services—or maybe more—in the making of the forthcoming movie about the Libby trial," their lives and the CIA leak scandal.Matt Frei
"Washington diary: Libby, the Movie"
'' BBC News'' (Washington), March 7, 2007, accessed March 18, 2007; cf. transcript of Larry King interview with Joseph C. Wilson, Nicole Kidman will play Valerie Plame
"Ex-Cheney Aide Found Guilty"
'' Larry King Live'', CNN, broadcast March 6, 2007, accessed March 18, 2007.
The feature film, a co-production between Weed Road's Akiva Goldsman and Jerry and Janet Zucker of
Zucker Productions Zucker is a German word meaning "sugar" and may refer to: * Zucker (surname) * Zücker, an album by the Fastbacks * ''Zucker'' (Rosenstolz album), an album by Rosenstolz * ''Zucker'' laboratory rat breed See also * Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker, ...
with a screenplay by Jez and John-Henry Butterworth to be based in part on Valerie Wilson's memoir ''Fair Game'' (contingent on CIA clearances) originally scheduled for release in August 2007, but ultimately published on October 22, 2007. In May 2006, ''The New York Times'' reported that Valerie Wilson agreed to a $2.5 million book deal with Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House. Steve Ross, senior vice president and publisher of Crown, told the Times that the book would be her "first airing of her actual role in the American intelligence community, as well as the prominence of her role in the lead-up to the war." Subsequently, the ''New York Times'' reported that the book deal fell through and that Plame was in exclusive negotiations with Simon & Schuster. Ultimately, Simon and Schuster publicly confirmed the book deal, though not the financial terms and, at first, no set publication date.Hillel Italie ( Associated Press)
"Ex-CIA Officer Finds New Memoir Publisher"
, '' The Mercury News'' July 13, 2006, accessed July 15, 2006. (Free registration required.)
On May 31, 2007, various news media reported that Simon and Schuster and Valerie Wilson were suing J. Michael McConnell,
Director of National Intelligence The director of national intelligence (DNI) is a senior, cabinet-level United States government official, required by the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 to serve as executive head of the United States Intelligence Commu ...
, and
Michael V. Hayden Michael Vincent Hayden (born March 17, 1945) is a retired United States Air Force four-star general and former Director of the National Security Agency, Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence, and Director of the Central Intelligenc ...
, Director of the CIA, arguing that the CIA "is unconstitutionally interfering with the publication of her memoir, '' Fair Game'', ... set to be published in October
007 The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...
by not allowing Plame to mention the dates that she served in the CIA.""Valerie Plame Wilson Suing CIA"
'' WNBC'' (Channel 4, New York City), May 31, 2007, accessed June 10, 2007.
Kimberly Maul
"Simon and Schuster and Valerie Plame Wilson Sue CIA"
, ''
The Book Standard ''The'' () is a grammatical Article (grammar), article in English language, English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite ...
'', May 31, 2007, accessed June 10, 2007.
Judge Barbara S. Jones, of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, in Manhattan, interpreted the issue in favor of the CIA. Therefore, the ruling stated that Plame would not be able to describe in her memoir the precise dates she had worked for the CIA. In 2009, the federal court of appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed Judge Jones's ruling. On October 31, 2007, in an interview with
Charlie Rose Charles Peete Rose Jr. (born January 5, 1942) is an American former television journalist and talk show host. From 1991 to 2017, he was the host and executive producer of the talk show '' Charlie Rose'' on PBS and Bloomberg LP. Rose also co-an ...
broadcast on '' The Charlie Rose Show'', Valerie Wilson discussed many aspects relating to her memoir: the CIA leak grand jury investigation; ''United States v. Libby,'' the civil suit which she and her husband were at the time still pursuing against Libby, Cheney, Rove, and Armitage; and other matters presented in her memoir relating to her covert work with the CIA.
Charlie Rose Charles Peete Rose Jr. (born January 5, 1942) is an American former television journalist and talk show host. From 1991 to 2017, he was the host and executive producer of the talk show '' Charlie Rose'' on PBS and Bloomberg LP. Rose also co-an ...

"A Conversation with Valerie Plame Wilson"
, '' The Charlie Rose Show,'' PBS, WNET (New York), recorded October 29, 2007, broadcast October 31, 2007, 12:30 a.m. ET–1:00 a.m. ET, accessed November 6, 2007 (video clip).
The film, ''Fair Game'', was released November 5, 2010, starring Naomi Watts and Sean Penn. It is based on two books, one written by Plame, and the other by her husband. The ''Washington Post'' editorial page, led by editor Fred Hiatt, a vocal supporter of the Iraq War, who blamed Wilson for Plame's identity being leaked, described the movie as being "full of distortions—not to mention outright inventions", while news reporters Walter Pincus and Richard Leiby at ''The Washington Post'' disagreed, saying "The movie holds up as a thoroughly researched and essentially accurate account—albeit with caveats". In May 2011, it was announced that Plame would write a series of spy novels with mystery writer Sarah Lovett. The first book in the series, titled ''Blowback'', was released on October 1, 2013, by Blue Rider Press, an imprint of the Penguin Group.


Anti Trump fundraiser

In August 2017, Plame set up a GoFundMe fundraising page in an attempt to buy a majority interest in Twitter and kick U.S. President Donald Trump off the network.Buy Twitter, ban Trump: former CIA agent tries to crowdfund $1bn purchase
Associated Press in Washington Thursday 24 August 2017 15.50 BST
Valerie Plame Wilson, former CIA operative, wants to buy Twitter and ban President Trump
Jessica Estepa, ''USA Today'', August 22, 2017
She launched her campaign because she believes that Donald Trump 'emboldens white supremacists' and encourages 'violence against journalists'.Valerie Plame Raised $88K to 'Ban Trump' Because He 'Emboldens White Supremacists' and 'Violence Against Journalists'
by Pardes Seleh, ''Independent Law Journal'', September 9, 2017
Titled "Let's #BuyTwitter and #BanTrump", she set the campaign's goal to $1 billion; her campaign raised $88,000.


Antisemitism controversy

In September 2017, Plame tweeted a link to an article from '' The Unz Review'' website posted by Philip Giraldi, titled "America's Jews Are Driving America's Wars", repeating the title of the article in her tweet. The article said that certain "American Jews who lack any shred of integrity" should be given a special label when appearing on television: "kind-of-like a warning label on a bottle of rat poison." Amid criticism, Plame first defended her posts, replying on Twitter that "Many neocon hawks ARE Jewish."Valerie Plame tweets story blaming 'America's Jews' for foreign wars
''The Hill'', by Mallory Shelbourbe, 09/21/17
She also said that people should “read the entire article” without “biases”, writing in defense of herself after the initial backlash: “read the entire article, just for a moment, to put aside your biases and think clearly." Within two hours, she deleted her initial post and apologized, tweeting "OK folks, look, I messed up. I skimmed this piece, zeroed in on the neocon criticism, and shared it without seeing and considering the rest. I missed gross undercurrents to this article & didn't do my homework on the platform this piece came from. Now that I see it, it's obvious. Apologies all. There is so much there that's problematic AF and I should have recognized it sooner. Thank you for pushing me to look again. I'm not perfect and make mistakes. This was a doozy. All I can do is admit them, try to be better, and read more thoroughly next time, Ugh."
Ramesh Ponnuru Ramesh Ponnuru (; born August 16, 1974) is an American conservative thinker, political pundit, and journalist. He has been a visiting fellow at the American Enterprise Institute since 2012. He is the editor of ''National Review'' magazine, a colu ...
and Caleb Ecarma have argued that the incident followed a pattern of her posting antisemitic content, and of Plame making jokes about "rich Jews". She had tweeted at least eight articles from the same website before, in which she previously retweeted links to conspiracy theories of 'dancing Israelis' being behind the 9/11 attacks.


Congressional run

In May 2019, Plame announced her candidacy for the United States House of Representatives for in the
2020 elections The following elections were scheduled to occur in 2020. The International Foundation for Electoral Systems maintains a comprehensive list of upcoming elections on its E-Guide Platform. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calend ...
.Stephanie Saul
Valerie Plame, Outed C.I.A. Agent, Will Run for Congress in New Mexico
''New York Times'' (May 9, 2019).
The seat, in northern New Mexico, was being vacated by Democratic Representative Ben Ray Luján, who ran for Senate instead. She outspent her rivals with funding from outside her district.Jennifer Medina
"Teresa Leger Fernandez Beats Valerie Plame in New Mexico House Primary"
''New York Times'' (June 3, 2020).
On June 2, 2020, she was defeated in the seven-way Democratic primary election by Teresa Leger Fernandez. Fernandez received 44,480 votes, Plame 25,775 votes, and
Joseph L. Sanchez Joseph Louis Sanchez is an American politician who served in the New Mexico House of Representatives from January 17, 2019 to January 19, 2021. Prior to entering state politics, Sanchez was an electrical engineer. He is a member of the Democrat ...
12,292 votes.


Personal life

After graduating from Penn State in 1985, Plame married Todd Sesler; the marriage ended in divorce in 1989. In 1997, while working for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Plame met former Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson.Joseph C. Wilson, ''
The Politics of Truth ''The Politics of Truth: Inside the Lies that Led to War and Betrayed My Wife's CIA Identity: A Diplomat's Memoir'' is a book by Joseph C. Wilson, first published by Carroll & Graf in a hardcover edition in 2004. A paperback edition was issued the ...
: Inside the Lies that Led to War and Betrayed my Wife's CIA Identity: A Diplomat's Memoir'' (2004; New York: Carroll & Graf, 2005) 240–42. (Additional page references appear within parentheses in the text.)
They were married on April 3, 1998. At the time they met, Wilson related in his memoir, he was separated from his second wife Jacqueline. They divorced after 12 years of marriage so that he could marry Plame. Wilson and Plame divorced in 2017. Wilson died in 2019. Plame married Dr. Joseph Shepard, President of Western New Mexico University, in 2020. Prior to the disclosure of her CIA job, the family lived in
The Palisades, Washington, D.C. The Palisades, or simply Palisades, is a neighborhood in Washington, D.C., along the Potomac River, running roughly from the edge of the Georgetown University campus (at Foxhall Road) to the D.C.-Maryland boundary (near Dalecarlia Treatment Pl ...
After she resigned from the CIA following the disclosure of her CIA position, in January 2006, the family moved to
Santa Fe, New Mexico Santa Fe ( ; , Spanish for 'Holy Faith'; tew, Oghá P'o'oge, Tewa for 'white shell water place'; tiw, Hulp'ó'ona, label=Tiwa language, Northern Tiwa; nv, Yootó, Navajo for 'bead + water place') is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. ...
,Andrew Buncombe and Joe Wilson
"The Valerie Plame Case: My Wife, the CIA Agent, by Joe Wilson"
, '' The Independent'', March 18, 2007, accessed August 7, 2007. (Interview.)
where Plame served as a consultant to the Santa Fe Institute until 2016. In a 2011 interview, Plame said she and Wilson had received threats while living in the D.C. metro area, and that the New Mexico location was calm. Plame endorsed Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton in the run-up for the 2016 U.S. presidential election.Richman, J
The Mercury News
September 1, 2015.


Explanatory notes


References



FindLaw.com, September 13, 2006.
"Armitage's Leak Poses More Questions"
'' Townhall.com'', September 8, 2006. Accessed June 17, 2007.
"End of an Affair: It Turns Out That the Person Who Exposed CIA Agent Valerie Plame Was Not Out to Punish Her Husband"
'' The Washington Post'', September 1, 2006. * Corn, David
"Explosive New Rove Revelation Coming Soon? Update: It's Here"
'' The Huffington Post'' (blog), July 9, 2005. Accessed September 24, 2006. *Corn, David
"Toensing and WSJ: Corn Outed Plame (Here We Go Again)"
''DavidCorn.com'' (journalist's blog), September 15, 2006. Accessed November 20, 2006. (Reply to Toensing.) *Corn, David
"A White House Smear"
'' The Nation'' (''Capital Games'' blog), July 16, 2006. Accessed September 24, 2006. * Crewdson, John
"Internet Blows CIA Cover"
'' The Chicago Tribune'', March 13, 2006. Accessed November 16, 2006. *Ensor, David, et al
"Novak: 'No great crime' with Leak"
'' Inside Politics'' on CNN. '' CNN.com'', October 1, 2003. Accessed September 24, 2006. *Finn, Ed
"How Deep Is CIA Cover?"
''
Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...
'', September 30, 2003. Accessed November 16, 2006. *
Isikoff, Michael Michael Isikoff (born June 16, 1952) is an American investigative journalist who is currently the Chief Investigative Correspondent at Yahoo! News. He is the co-author with David Corn of the book titled '' Russian Roulette: The Inside Story of ...

"Leak Investigation: The Russert Deal – What It Reveals"
'' Newsweek'', August 1, 2006. Accessed November 13, 2006. *Isikoff, Michael
"Matt Cooper's Source:
What Karl Rove Told Time Magazine's Reporter". '' Newsweek'' June 18, 2005. Accessed November 13, 2006. *Isikoff, Michael, and David Corn. ''Hubris: The Inside Story of Spin, Scandal, and the Selling of the Iraq War''. New York: Crown, 2006. . * Johnston, David, and Richard W. Stevenson, with David E. Sanger
"Rove Reportedly Held Phone Talk on C.I.A. Officer"
'' The New York Times'', July 15, 2005. Accessed November 16, 2006. * Leonnig, Carol D
"Papers Say Leak Probe Is Over"
'' The Washington Post'', April 6, 2005: A12. * Novak, Robert
"Armitage's Leak"
'' The Washington Post'', September 13, 2006. Accessed September 24, 2006. *Novak, Robert
"My Role in Plamegate"
Online posting. ''RealClearPolitics.com'' (blog), July 12, 2006. Accessed September 25, 2006. * Pincus, Walter, and Mike Allen
"Leak of Agent's Name Causes Exposure of CIA Front Firm"
'' The Washington Post'', October 4, 2003: A03. *Smyth, Frank
CPJ Statement: Commentary: U.S. Sends the Wrong Message to the World"
''
IFEX Ifosfamide (IFO), sold under the brand name Ifex among others, is a chemotherapy medication used to treat a number of types of cancer. This includes testicular cancer, soft tissue sarcoma, osteosarcoma, bladder cancer, small cell lung cancer, cer ...
'' (International Freedom of Expression Exchange), June 30, 2005, updated July 1, 2005. Accessed September 24, 2006. * Toensing, Victoria
"The Plame Kerfuffle: What a Load of Armitage!
What Did Patrick Fitzgerald Know, and When Did He Know It?" '' The Wall Street Journal'', September 15, 2006, Editorial. Accessed November 20, 2006. (Reply by Corn, "Toensing and WSJ.") * Waas, Murray S
"Cheney Authorized Libby to Leak Classified Information"
''National Journal'', February 9, 2006. Accessed September 10, 2007. *Waas, Murray S.
"Exclusive: Plame Game Over?"
'' American Prospect'', April 6, 2005. Accessed September 10, 2007. *Waas, Murray S., with research assistance by Thomas Lang
"Plame Gate: Did Robert Novak Willfully Disregard Warnings That His Column Would Endanger Valerie Plame? Our Sources Say 'Yes
'' American Prospect'', February 12, 2004. Accessed September 25, 2006. (Web-exclusive feature article.) * Wheeler, Marcy. ''Anatomy of Deceit: How the Bush Administration Used the Media to Sell the Iraq War and Out a Spy''. Berkeley: Vaster Books (Dist. by Publishers Group West), 2007. .
"White House Counsel Questioned in CIA Leak"
''
Las Vegas Sun The ''Las Vegas Sun'' is one of the Las Vegas Valley's two daily Subscription business model, subscription newspapers. It is owned by the Greenspun family and is affiliated with Greenspun Media Group. The paper published afternoons on weekdays ...
'', June 18, 2004. *Wolf, Christopher
"Plame Investigation Is Not a 'Game'."
Letter to the Editor. '' The Washington Post'', January 18, 2005: A16. neighbor of Valerie E. Wilson, Wolf is also a lawyer representing her.


External links


Official website
* compiled by CNN; incl. interactive timeline of ''Main Events'' and "Key Players" (click on photo captioned "Plame"). *
Interactive Graphic: Timeline of a Leak
' compiled by '' The New York Times'' (double-click on photo captioned "Ms. Wilson"). * and . U.S. House Committee on Government Reform (Oversight Committee). March 16, 2007. Accessed October 22, 2007. Hyperlinked menu with streaming video of hearing and "Documents and Links" (box), featuring documents chart,  .
"Patrick J. Fitzgerald"
U.S. Department of Justice Office of Special Counsel The Office of Special Counsel was an office of the United States Department of Justice established by provisions in the Ethics in Government Act that expired in 1999. The provisions were replaced by Department of Justice regulation 28 CFR Part ...
. * United States Senate Democratic Policy Committee Hearing, United States House of Representatives Government Reform Committee Minority
"A Special Joint Oversight Hearing
on the National Security Consequences of Disclosing the Identity of a Covert Intelligence Officer", with link to "Hearing Transcript". July 22, 2005. Accessed November 5, 2010. *
Valerie Plame Wilson Blog
' at '' The Huffington Post''.
''New York Times'' 26 September, 2010 feature article about Plame and ''Fair Game''

"Valerie Plame, in spotlight again"
Associated Press, 11/4/10. {{DEFAULTSORT:Plame, Valerie 1963 births Alumni of the London School of Economics American memoirists American people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent American spies College of Europe alumni Iraq and weapons of mass destruction Living people New Mexico Democrats Smeal College of Business alumni People of the Central Intelligence Agency Post–Cold War spies Writers from Anchorage, Alaska Writers from Pennsylvania