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Banned
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If Rove is Indicted, Will Media Mention Bush's Criminal Defense Attorney Jim Sharp?
A little background to refresh your memory. There are posters here who are convinced that the "media" is this "liberal" bastion that "has it in" for Bush. If this is true, with all of the coverage of Rove's involvement in the outing of CIA covert agent Valery Plame, and with rumors that Rove's indictment is imminent, how do you explain the total absence of any coverage that contain details that I am posting here:
1.)The WH press spokesman McClellan was evasive when Bush consulted D.C. criminal defense attorney Jim Sahrp on June 3, 2004.
2.)McClellan reluctantly admitted that Bush had retained Jim Sharp during a June 24, 2004 announcement and Q&A with reporters that Bush had met with Patrick Fitzgerald, federal prosecutor who is investigating the Plam outing. Bush was accompanied by his new attornery Jim Sahrp, and he was questioned without making a sworn statement.
3.)Sharp has a secretive background that includes an accusation by a former friend and client (see findlaw.com excerpt below), that Sharp was involved in a plan for his client to make false statements at the client's criminal trail. MCClellan would not confirm Sharp's legal, fuull name when reporters questioned him about it on June 3, 2004.
4.)The media has all but ignored the admission by indicted former Enron CEO and major Bush campaign donor, last july 12, 2004 that Jim Sharp was also the D.C. lawyer on Lay's defense team. Sharp also represented retired Gen. Richard Secord who was complicit with Oliver North in the Iran-Contra crimes.
Wouldn't the controversy of the jailing of NY Times reporter Judith Miller and the publication today in Newsweek related to the Plame leaks to reporters by Bush admin. officials be the predictable moment for a "liberal" press, using the excuse that it was "only keeping the public informed" to publish this info?
Is their any possibility that this "omission" could influence you to reconsider what you think that you know about "liberal bias" of the press?
Quote:
http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:4...62.html+&hl=en
Bush consults attorney over inquiry into CIA leak
From news reports NYT, AP
Friday, June 04, 2004
"In terms of whether or not I need advice from counsel, this is a criminal matter, it's a serious matter," the
president said. "I have met with an attorney to determine whether or not I need his advice, and if I deem I need
his advice, I'll probably hire him."
Earlier, Bush's chief spokesman, Scott McClellan, confirmed that Bush had been in contact with a Washington
attorney, Jim Sharp. "In the event the president needs his advice, I expect he probably would retain him,"
McClellan said.
There was no indication that Bush had been questioned.
A federal grand jury has questioned numerous White House and administration officials to learn who leaked the name
of the CIA operative, Valerie Plame, wife of former Ambassador Joseph Wilson, to the media. Wilson has charged that
officials made the disclosure in an effort to discredit him.
Bush's decision to consider hiring his own lawyer in the case surprised many law enforcement officials and
political figures who have followed the politically charged case for months.
Sharp, who represented Air Force General Richard Secord in the Iran-contra affair but is not widely known in
Washington legal circles, could not be reached for comment late Wednesday.
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Quote:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/relea...0040624-3.html
MR. McCLELLAN: All right, let's get started. We'll release this transcript, as well.
I told you I'd keep you informed at the appropriate time. The President met with Pat Fitzgerald, the U.S. Attorney
in charge of the leak investigation, as well as members of his team. The meeting took place in the Oval Office. It
lasted for a little more than an hour, probably about an hour and 10 minutes.
Q This morning?
MR. McCLELLAN: This morning. He also recently retained a lawyer, Jim Sharp, who you all have reported about before.
I would just say that -- what I've said previously, and what the President has said: The leaking of classified
information is a very serious matter. The President directed the White House to cooperate fully with those in
charge of the investigation. He was pleased to do his part to help the investigation move forward. No one wants to
get to the bottom of this matter more than the President of the United States, and he has said on more than one
occasion that if anyone -- inside or outside the government -- has information that can help the investigators get
to the bottom of this, they should provide that information to the officials in charge.
And I think because this is an ongoing investigation that further questions are best directed to the officials in
charge of the investigation.
Q When did he actually retain Sharp? Meaning, when was he informed that this interview would take place?
MR. McCLELLAN: Recently.
Q Like, when was this interview set up?
MR. McCLELLAN: I don't know the exact time when it was set up, but it occurred earlier today. But --
Q Did the President answer every question put to him?
......................
Q Can you refresh my memory?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, this is an ongoing investigation, John, and I'm going to direct further questions to the
officials in charge of the investigation.
Q Yes, but this would be a White House matter. I mean, would the President fire a person if they had -- if it's
found that they leaked this information? Would he admonish them, reprimand them -- what would he do?
MR. McCLELLAN: I think that we made that clear previously -- I made that clear previously in briefings, you can go
back and look exactly at what I said. It still stands.***
Q Do you just want to reiterate it now, just so that we've all got it straight?
MR. McCLELLAN: John, I think you can refer further questions to the people in charge of the investigation.
Q Scott, could you, for us -- I know that you may not know now, but can you, for us, find out when the President
retained Sharp?
MR. McCLELLAN: I think I would just describe it as recently.
Q Can you find out for us?
MR. McCLELLAN: I will look into it, but that's probably the extent to --
Q The President of the United States is retaining a private attorney --
MR. McCLELLAN: -- how I would characterize it.
Q I'm putting the inquiry in, then. When he retains -- the President is retaining a private attorney, we'd like to
know what day it was.
MR. McCLELLAN: I appreciate that and if I have more on this, I'll let you know, I'll put it on the end of the
gaggle transcript.
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Quote:
http://www.legalunderground.com/2004...ents_lawy.html
June 04, 2004
Who Is the President's Lawyer?
From USA Today: "Bush consults lawyer in CIA leak case." The USA Today article identifies the President's lawyer as
"Jim Sharp." Reportedly, Jim Sharp is James E. Sharp of Washington. Although little about James E. Sharp is
available on the Internet (he keeps a low profile), Sharp represented Richard Secord in the Iran-Contra scandal. An
article at Bloomberg.com confirms that the Sharp who's representing President Bush is also the Sharp who
represented Secord. Details are in a cached article here.
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Quote:
http://cnnstudentnews.cnn.com/TRANSC...12/lkl.00.html
CNN LARRY KING LIVE
Interview With Ken Lay
Aired July 12, 2004 - 21:00 ET
(NEAR THE BOTTOM OF WEB PAGE)
KING: Who's your -- who's the main lawyer?
LAY: Mike Ramsey, as far as the activities...
KING: He's criminal...
LAY: ... here in Houston. He's criminal. He's here in Houston. But we have a whole team -- Earl Silbert in
Washington, D.C...
KING: You have Earl?
LAY: We have him. And...
KING: Former prosecutor.
LAY: Former U.S. prosecutor for over 20 years. Jim Sharp, former assistant U.S. prosecutor for a long time. We have
Carrington, Coleman in Dallas, which has some excellent lawyers on the civil side. So, we have a number of really
key advisers here that are involved.
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Quote:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...2004Jul14.html
Bush Twins in Vogue
By Dan Froomkin
Special to washingtonpost.com
Wednesday, July 14, 2004; 11:22 AM
.....Blogger Joshua Micah Marshall points to the BeatBushBlog, which spotted evidence in the transcript of Larry
King's interview with former Enron chairman Ken Lay that one of Lay's lawyers appears to be James E. Sharp -- the
same man who's representing Bush in the Plame case.......
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Quote:
http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/cgi-bi...&no=9911287MAN
U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals
PEGG v US
Joe Harry PEGG, Petitioner-Appellant,
v.
UNITED STATES of America, Respondent-Appellee.
No. 99-11287.
United States Court of Appeals,
Eleventh Circuit.
June 12, 2001.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida.(No. 97-00064-CIV-FTM-17),
Elizabeth A. Kovachevich, Chief Judge.
Before CARNES and RONEY, Circuit Judges, and ALAIMO*, District Judge.
1. The Facts Concerning the Guilty Plea.
The facts of this case unfolded over a sixteen-year period. Pegg became acquainted with Washington, D.C. attorney
James E. Sharp in 1981 when Sharp represented Pegg in a joint federal and state marijuana prosecution. Pegg and
Sharp became good friends thereafter, and Sharp continued to represent Pegg on and off through their friendship. In
March 1994, a federal grand jury in Tampa, Florida returned the indictment that is the subject of this appeal. Pegg
was charged as one of several individuals who conspired to import marijuana into the United States in 1988 and
1989. Pegg asked Sharp and Tom Lankford, Sharp's law partner, to represent him in the matter, and both Sharp and
Lankford agreed. Sharp engaged John Fitzgibbons, a Tampa attorney, to be local counsel for Pegg in the case.
Cynthia Collazo, the Assistant United States Attorney ("AUSA") assigned to prosecute Pegg's case, frequently
discussed the possibility of a plea agreement with all three of Pegg's attorneys. They also discussed the
likelihood that Pegg could receive a reduced sentence if he entered into a plea agreement and cooperated with the
government......
........a. The Attorney's Conflict of Interest.
As to the first prong of the showing Pegg had to make, the district court found and the government does not deny
that Sharp labored under an actual conflict of interest created by co-conspirator Baxter's allegations that Sharp
had engaged in unethical and criminal activity in connection with his representation of Pegg......
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