PLUGGING A LEAK

Suddenly, Washington finds itself tangled in a brand new puzzle: Who leaked the fact that the wife of an embarrassing whistleblower was a CIA agent? At its worst, the leak could ruin her career or even endanger her life. It could also mean felony charges against the leaker.

The Justice Department has opened a full-blown FBI investigation. President Bush has called it “a very serious matter” and directed his White House staff to cooperate fully and preserve phone logs, e-mails, notes and other documents. Democrats are pressing for an independent investigation, contending that the Justice Department faces an obvious conflict of interest.

Known facts of the burgeoning scandal are simple enough. The CIA in 2002 had sent former Ambassador Joseph Wilson to Africa to check on reports of alleged Iraqi uranium purchases. Mr. Wilson reported privately that he had been unable to substantiate the reports. President Bush later used the reports in a speech despite CIA objections. Mr. Wilson in July went public with his doubts in a newspaper opinion piece. A week later, syndicated columnist Robert Novak reported that the CIA assignment had been suggested by Mr. Wilson’s wife, Valerie Plame, whom he named and identified as a CIA “agency operative on weapons of mass destruction.”

He wrote that his information came from “two senior administration officials.” The CIA referred the matter to the Justice Department in late July. Attorney General John Ashcroft opened a preliminary inquiry last week and late Monday directed the FBI to head up an investigation.

Some obvious questions and likely answers: Why did it take so long for the White House and the Justice Department to become exercised about the case, while a 1982 statute imposes maximum penalties of 10 years in prison and $50,000 fine for the unauthorized disclosure of a covert agent’s identity by a government employee with access to classified information? The administration had to take the lead and try to head off demands for an independent inquiry.

Was Ms. Plame a covert agent or merely an analyst, as Mr. Novak maintains? On CNN’s “Crossfire,” he asked: “So what’s the fuss about? Pure Bush-bashing.” Mr. Wilson told CNN that his wife was on the clandestine side of the agency.

Where was the national press for weeks and weeks on what is now a major news story? Time magazine’s on-line edition elaborated on Mr. Novak’s report, but five other reporters said to have been given the same information by administration officials didn’t write the story. And why didn’t any of them report on an apparent possible felony by the officials? They were either asleep at the switch or didn’t want to embarrass their news sources.

Why would administration officials leak the name of a clandestine CIA official? It’s a good guess that they wanted to punish an effective critic and send word to future critics that they and their families could face personal attack.

Finally, who in the White House or elsewhere knew about a plan to leak the information about Mr. Wilson’s wife? The White House has dismissed as “ridiculous” the suggestion that Karl Rove, senior adviser to President Bush, was responsible.

Now let’s see how Mr. Ashcroft and the FBI handle a ticklish case and whether an independent investigation would do a better job.