QUESTION: Has the President either asked Karl Rove to assure him that he
had nothing to do with this; or did Karl Rove go to the President to assure him
that he . . .

McCLELLAN: I don't think he needs that. I think I've spoken clearly to
this publicly . . . I've just said there's no truth to it.

QUESTION: Yes, but I'm just wondering if there was a conversation between
Karl Rove and the President, or if he just talked to you, and you're here at
this . . .

McCLELLAN: He wasn't involved. The President knows he wasn't involved.

QUESTION: How does he know that?

McCLELLAN: The President knows.

Scott McClellan Press Gaggle September 29, 2003

QUESTION: Weeks ago, when you were first asked whether Mr. Rove had the
conversation with Robert Novak that produced the column, you dismissed it as
ridiculous. And I wanted just to make sure, at that time, had you talked to
Karl?

McCLELLAN: I've made it very clear, from the beginning, that it
is totally ridiculous. I've known Karl for a long time, and I didn't even need
to go ask Karl, because I know the kind of person that he is, and he is someone
that is committed to the highest standards of conduct.

QUESTION: Can you say for the record whether Mr. Rove possessed the
information about Mr. Wilson's wife, but merely did not talk to anybody about
it?

McCLELLAN: I don't know whether or not -- I mean, I'm sure he probably saw
the same media reports everybody else in this room has.

QUESTION: When you talked to Mr. Rove, did you discuss, did you ever have
this information?

McCLELLAN: We're going down a lot of different roads here. I've made it
very clear that he was not involved, that there's no truth to the suggestion
that he was.

Scott McClellan Press Briefing September 29, 2003

QUESTION: Yesterday we were told that Karl Rove had no role in it. . .

THE PRESIDENT: Yes.

QUESTION: Have you talked to Karl and do you have confidence in him . . .

THE PRESIDENT: Listen, I know of nobody -- I don't know of anybody in my
administration who leaked classified information. If somebody did leak
classified information, I'd like to know it, and we'll take the appropriate
action.

George W. Bush Remarks to Reporters September 30, 2003

QUESTION: Scott, you have said that you, personally, went to Scooter Libby,
Karl Rove and Elliot Abrams to ask them if they were the leakers . . . Why did
you do that, and can you describe the conversations you had with them?

McCLELLAN: They're good individuals, they're important members of our White
House team, and that's why I spoke with them, so that I could come back to you
and say that they were not involved. I had no doubt of that in the beginning,
but I like to check my information to make sure it's accurate before I report
back to you, and that's exactly what I did.

QUESTION: So you're saying -- you're saying categorically those three
individuals were not the leakers or did not authorize the leaks; is that what
you're saying?

McCLELLAN: That's correct.

Scott McClellan Press Briefing October 7, 2003

QUESTION: Scott, earlier this week you told us that neither Karl Rove,
Elliot Abrams nor Lewis Libby disclosed any classified information with regard
to the leak. I wondered if you could tell us more specifically whether any of
them told any reporter that Valerie Plame worked for the CIA?

McCLELLAN: I spoke with those individuals, as I pointed out, and those individuals assured me they were not involved in this. And that's where it stands.

QUESTION: So none of them told any reporter that Valerie Plame worked for
the CIA?

McCLELLAN: They assured me that they were not involved in this.

Scott McClellan Press Briefing October 10, 2003

Question: Do you want to retract your statement that Rove -- Karl Rove was
not involved in the Valerie Plame expose? -- involved?

McClellan: This is -- no, I appreciate the question. This is an ongoing
investigation at this point. The President directed the White House to cooperate
fully with the investigation, and as part of cooperating fully with the
investigation, that means we're not going to be commenting on it while it is
ongoing.

Question: But Rove has apparently commented, through his lawyer, that he
was definitely involved.

McClellan: You're asking me to comment on an ongoing investigation.

Question: I'm saying, why did you stand there and say he was not involved?

McClellan: Again, while there is an ongoing investigation, I'm not going to
be commenting on it, nor is --

McClellanN: -- any remorse?

McClellan: -- nor is the White House, because the President wanted us to
cooperate fully with the investigation, and that's what we're doing.

Question: That's not an answer.

Question: It's not an answer. And you were perfectly willing to comment
from that podium while the investigation was going on, and try to clear Karl
Rove. Why the double standard? Why were you willing to say Karl Rove was not
involved when -- and talk at length about it, when the investigation was going
on, and now that he's been caught red-handed, all of a sudden you've got a new
line?

McClellan: No, I don't think it is the way you characterize it, as new,
because I have said for quite some time that this is an ongoing investigation,
and we're not going to get into discussing it while it's an ongoing
investigation. I've really said all I'm going to say on it.

Question: But you did -- you did discuss it while it was an ongoing
investigation. You stood there and told the American people Karl Rove wasn't
involved.

McClellan: I've said all I'm going to say on it. Go ahead, April.