Unbelievable. Talk about stretching incredibility:

“Dr. James Knodell, director of the Office of Security at the White House, told a congressional committee today that he was aware of no internal investigation or report into the leak of covert CIA agent Valerie Plame.

The White House had first opposed Knodell testifying but after a threat of a subpoena from the committee yesterday he was allowed to appear today.

Knodell said that he had started at the White House in August 2004, a year after the leak, but his records show no evidence of a probe or report there: “I have no knowledge of any investigation in my office,” he said.

Rep. Waxman recalled that President Bush had promised a full internal probe. Knodell repeated that no probe took place, as far as he knew, and was not happening today.

Knodell said he had “no” conversations whatsoever with the president, vice president, Karl Rove or anyone about the leak.

Asked by chairman Rep. Henry Waxman if he knew this was an issue of concern, he said “yes.” Asked if he learned this from the White House or the press, he said, “through the press.”

Knodell testified that those who had participated in the leaking of classified information were required to own up to this and he was not aware that anyone, including Karl Rove, had done that.

Rep. Elijah Cummings said all of this was “shocking” and said that Knodell’s office’s lack of action was a “breach within a breach.” Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton called this a “dereliction of duty.”

Knodell, who is a career employee and not a Bush appointee, said he would go back and “review this with senior management.” He admitted that leaking classified information called for action, whether the leak was accidental or on purpose.

Democrats challenged his assertion that no probe was necessary since a criminal investigation was underway. They said that the criminal probe was narrowly focused, started well after the leak — during which the White House apparently did nothing — and that in any case, the White House was required to carry out its own probe and deny security clearances to anyone who had leaked classified information.”

Ok, lets go back in time via the TM’s timeline:

“Sept 26, 2003: “CIA seeks probe of White House”, MSNBC.com, Alex Johnson and Andrea Mitchell:
Reports the CIA’s request of a Justice Department probe, which means that the CIA admits that she is an undercover employee, and that a crime may have been committed.

“Bush Administration Is Focus of Inquiry,” The Washington Post, Mike Allen and Dana Priest, 9/28/03 (alternate - scroll down)
The story that made the scandal. It reported a senior administration official as stating that Novak’s sources had called 6 other reports before the story broke, and that their motives had been either to smear him or for revenge. The Sr. Official modifies his story as to motive in a subsequent WaPo appearance (DATE? Pincus/Allen, Oct 12).

At CIA Director George J. Tenet’s request, the Justice Department is looking into an allegation that administration officials leaked the name of an undercover CIA officer to a journalist, government sources said yesterday.

The operative’s identity was published in July after her husband, former U.S. ambassador Joseph C. Wilson IV, publicly challenged President Bush’s claim that Iraq had tried to buy “yellowcake” uranium ore from Africa for possible use in nuclear weapons. Bush later backed away from the claim.

Sept 29, 2003: “Bush Aides Say They’ll Cooperate With Probe Into Intelligence Leak”, The Washington Post, Mike Allen:
This article quotes Joseph Wilson as claiming that several reporters called him to tell him that they were contacted by admin. officials about his wife—later, he would clarify that they called him after Novak column ran. It also reports that Plame was “a case officer in the CIA’s Clandestine Service,” which apparently came from a senior intelligence official, or the administration source from its earlier article.”

Ok, let’s let this sink in. The White House has no inherant ability to “probe itself” and in fact as soon as they became the “focus” they had to recuse themselves. Additonally as Tom notes, “Sept 30, 2003: via a message from White House Counsel Alberto R. Gonzales directed WH employees to turn over all evidence relating to the case, although Democrats said there was an improper delay in the counsel’s request. Oddly, the message tells staffers to turn over any documentation of Newsday reporters Knut Royce and Timothy M. Phelps, who did not disclose Plame’s position until after Novak had written his column.

Again remember that the White House staff cooperated fully with the investigation fully (Libby is the possible exception, although I don’t buy it), while the MSM (including figures such as Corn, Pincus, Mitchell, Cooper, Miller) stonewalled.

Interestingly enough Senator Schumer in July of 2003 with amazing foresight of the facts of the case calls for an investigation a mere three weeks after Novak’s story. Maybe that’s he looked so chummy with Wilson on the podium. Much more on Chuck to come.

So the assertion that a secondary probe was needed, because an investigation took two years, jailed a reporter and convicted a White House advise was too “narrow” and occured well after the leak, is not only idiotic but reveals the ignorance (or willful blindness) the Demcorats have.