Oct. 3, 2003 – The White House gives staff until 5 p.m. on Tuesday, October 7, to turn over all documents including phone logs, etc., relating to Joseph Wilson’s Niger trip and the CIA leak. White House counsel estimates that it will take two weeks to review the collection and turn it over to the Justice Department.

Oct 3, 2003 – Emails from the Office of the Vice President for this day are missing, as discovered later by the House Government Reform and Oversight Committee chaired by Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.).

Oct. 4, 2003 – Conservative pundit Bob Novak writes about Valerie Plame again in his syndicated column, this time also including the name of Plame’s CIA front company:

 
“In making her April 22, 1999, contribution, Valerie E. Wilson identified herself as an "analyst" with "Brewster-Jennings & Associates." No such firm is listed anywhere, but the late Brewster Jennings was president of Socony-Vacuum oil company a half-century ago. Any CIA employee working under "non-official cover" always is listed with a real firm, but never an imaginary one.”

Oct. 4, 2003 – Emails from the Office of the Vice President for this day later turn up missing.

Oct. 5, 2003 – Bob Schieffer on Face the Nation interviews Joseph Wilson about who might have leaked the information of his wife’s being in the CIA:

“Mr. WILSON: At the time that I made that now-infamous comment, I was responding to a question about how I would support the investigation. And I said that my objective would be to s--as supportive as possible because, after all, it would be better to see Karl Rove frog-marched out of the White House in handcuffs. Since then, and since the revelations in The Washington Post, it's now clear to me that there were two waves of leaks: one the potentially criminal wave, the two officials who leaked to six reporters; and then there was a pushing of the story that took place the following weekend, the weekend after Mr. Novak's story came out. That pushing of the story is probably not illegal, even though--even by Washington's bare-knuckle standards one normally does not drag an opponent's family into the public square. So I've kind of amended and extended my remarks to I'd like to see the two who leaked frog-marched out of the White House in handcuffs, and those who then pushed the story and gave it legs just frog-marched out, not necessarily in handcuffs.”

Oct. 5, 2003 – Long Island Newsday reports that another new company hoping to profit from Iraq reconstruction, the Iraqi International Law Group, has been co-founded by Salem Chalabi, a nephew of controversial Iraqi exile Ahmad Chalabi, and L. Marc Zell, formerly a law partner of Douglas Feith in the Defense Department.

Oct. 5, 2003 – Emails from the Office of the Vice President are missing for this day.

Oct. 6, 2003 – Scott McClellan conducts a White House press briefing, 1:15-1:54 p.m., at which McClellan is grilled about the Niger uranium story and about White House statements that the leaker will be fired.

Oct. 7, 2003 – The White House press briefing conducted by Scott McClellan, 12:58 – 1:46, is all about the memo to White House personnel on the CIA leak. The memo does not include Gannon/Guckert among journalists named, but later similar requests from the Office of Special Counsel do name him.

Same day -- White House personnel turn in documents by the 5:00 deadline.

Same day – At the White House, newly credentialed journalist Jeff Gannon/James Guckert again has an editorial question about the Wilsons at a McClellan press briefing:

“Jeff, you're on this topic.

Q Okay. Let's go back to the CIA. Is the White House looking for an explanation from that agency about why Joe Wilson was sent and who sent him and the process under which --

MR. MCCLELLAN: I think that explanation was provided by the director of Central Intelligence in a statement on July 11th.

Q And what was that?

MR. MCCLELLAN: He spelled it out in his statement. He talked about -- there -- he said that the counterproliferation arm of the CIA were the ones who decided to send him on that mission.

Q Does that include the ambassador's wife?

MR. MCCLELLAN: I'm sorry?

Q Does that include the ambassador's wife?

MR. MCCLELLAN: I don't know. You'd have to ask CIA. I don't know that. I don't know the answer to that question.”