Given that the anthrax case is an active investigation, ABC News may have been informed by DOJ that if it exposes its sources it may be prosecuted for obstruction of justice.

I don't think that's a realistic threat, but DOJ warns people about obstruction all the time, and people usually comply.

That's ludicrous. The DOJ can't do anything to press organizations for revealing what they know about a fraud like this, nor could they credibly threaten any such thing.

More importantly, ABC News -- when I asked why they won't reveal what they know -- said they were protecting their sources. Not even they claim that they DOJ is preventing them from disclosing that.

http://abcnews.go.com/print?id=5368813

Cheney Thought He Had Lethal Anthrax Dose
Scare Prompted Veep to Take Hard Line on Terror Suspects, New Book Contends

By MARK MOONEY
July 14, 2008

In the days after 9/11, when fears of another terrorist strike were at their peak, Vice President Dick Cheney was convinced that he had been subjected to a lethal dose of anthrax, according to a new book.

White House insiders from that white-knuckle time told author Jane Mayer, who authored "The Dark Side, The Inside Story of How the War on Terror Turned into a War on American Ideals," that the scare contributed to Cheney's insistence on hard-line tactics for fighting terror.

Mayer, a writer for the New Yorker, claims that the vice president became the driving force in pushing for tougher interrogation tactics that critics charge went over the legal line and constitute torture.

In the days after the horror of 9/11, the country seemed to be under assault from many sides, with anthrax letters showing up in Congress and newsrooms.

On Oct. 18, 2001, a White House alarm went off indicating that sensors had detected dangerous levels of radioactive, chemical or biological agents. According to Mayer, anyone who had entered the White House situation room, including Cheney, had been exposed.

"They thought Cheney was already lethally infected,"

said a former administration officer who had kept the White House secret until now, according to the book.

Despite the unnerving news, Cheney calmly reported the emergency to the National Security Council. It turned out that the detection system had malfunctioned and there was no hazard.

But in the days after the incident, Cheney was taking no chances. Eleven days later, Cheney insisted on leaving the White House and retreating to one of his "secure, undisclosed locations," the book claims.

Cheney and other Cabinet members took turns hunkering down in one of several cold war era bunkers built to survive a nuclear attack. The bunkers, deep underground, were crammed with communications gear and Cheney would stay in what was dubbed the "The Commander in Chief's Suite," Mayer writes.

When vice president wasn't in the bunker, Mayer claims that "a sense of constant danger followed Cheney everywhere." The route was altered daily during the veep's commute to his above-ground office. On the back seat next to him would be a duffel bag stuffed with a gas mask and biochemical survival suit. And a doctor nearly always traveled with him, "The Dark Side" claims.

Cheney's deputy press secretary Megan Mitchell told ABC News,

"On-the-record, we have not seen the book, so we really can't comment on it."

Mayer suggests that the shock of 9/11 coupled with his anthrax scare changed Cheney and made him an overpowering force in the administration arguing for significantly tougher interrogation techniques.

"The Dark Side" claims that former White House legal counsel and later attorney general Alberto Gonzales confided to colleagues that he agreed with administration lawyers who claimed the tactics were torture and illegal.

Gonzales reportedly told James Comey, the former deputy attorney general, that he was under too much pressure from Cheney to oppose him on the issue.

The book also reveals that a Red Cross report submitted to the CIA concluded that the treatment of 9/11 suspects, admitted mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and Abu Zubaydah, amounted to torture and war crimes.

The Red Cross made its report after being granted access to the detainees when they were transferred to the prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Among the tactics the detainees said they were subjected to: kept naked in a frigid room and doused with water, kept in a small box called the "coffin" for hours at a time, arms shackled over their heads so they had to stand on tiptoes for up to eight hours straight.

Those claims by the 9/11 detainees could not be confirmed, but Mayer said several detainees told consistent versions of the tactics to the Red Cross although they were not allowed to communicate with each other.

- - ABC News' Ann Compton contributed to this report

http://abcnews.go.com/print?id=5368813

It's so obvious that the corporate owned media wanted an invasion of Iraq in the worst possible way and was pulling all stops promoting the invasion. An invasion of Iraq meant huge profits to the corporate owners and a double bonanza to media owning corporations who were also part of the military/industrial complex.

The most likely explanation is that the four sources never existed. ABC News is probably just covering up its own role on propagating administration propaganda.

I, and many others, have sent reasonable, civil emails to Brian Ross over the past several years, asking him to divulge his sources for these lies, for the sake of the country. There have been no replies from Ross, as far as I know.

More productive to focus on creating an outcry for a congressional investigation. (I know, I know... but what else is there to do?)

I'm pretty sure Scooter Libby was told that he was going to be prosecuted before the charges were filed. I also think Rove was told that it could happen, but of course it hasn't yet.

Obviously, Ivins knew that he was under investigation. He undoubtedly was asked many questions by the FBI and the LATimes article quotes family members who were questioned and mentions the stress Ivins was feeling. Given that Ivins was committed for depression, presumably because of his impending prosecution, and that he had told his therapist he was considering suicide (both points from the LATimes article), it is hard for me to accept that the government did not put him into some form of protective custody and suicide watch when he was released from the mental health facility on July 24.