[September 30, 2003]
The following notice was sent to all White House employees:
PLEASE READ: Important Message From Counsel's Office
We were informed last evening by the Department of Justice that
it has opened an investigation into possible unauthorized
disclosures concerning the identity of an undercover CIA
employee. The Department advised us that it will be sending
a letter today instructing us to preserve all materials that
might be relevant to its investigation. Its letter will
provide more specific instructions on the materials in
which it is interested, and we will communicate those
instructions directly to you. In the meantime, you must
preserve all materials that might in any way be related
to the Department's investigation. Any questions concerning
this request should be directed to Associate Counsels Ted Ullyot
or Raul Yanes in the Counsel to the President's office.
The President has directed full cooperation with this investigation.
Alberto R. Gonzales
Counsel to the President
_______________________________________________________________________
[September 30, 2003]
The following notice was sent to all White House employees:
IMPORTANT FOLLOW-UP MESSAGE FROM COUNSEL'S OFFICE
This communication is a follow-up to the directive I sent you
this morning regarding the preservation of certain materials in
the possession of the White House, its staff, or its employees.
Pursuant to a request from the Department of Justice, I am
instructing you to preserve and maintain the following:
“[F]or the time period February 1, 2002 to the present, all
documents, including without limitation all electronic records,
telephone records of any kind (including but not limited to
any records that memorialize telephone calls having been made),
correspondence, computer records, storage devices, notes,
memoranda, and diary and calendar entries, that relate in any way to:
1. Former U.S. Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson, his trip to
Niger in February 2002, and/or his wife’s purported
relationship with the Central Intelligence Agency;
2. Contacts with any member or representative of the news
media about Joseph C. Wilson, his trip to Niger in February 2002,
and/or his wife’s purported relationship with the Central
Intelligence Agency; and
3. Contacts with reporters Knut Royce, Timothy M. Phelps,
or Robert D. Novak, or any individual(s) acting directly or
indirectly, on behalf of these reporters.”
You must preserve all documents relating, in any way,
directly or indirectly, to these subjects, even if there would
be a question whether the document would be a presidential or
federal record or even if its destruction might otherwise be
permitted.
If you have any questions regarding any of the foregoing,
please contact Associate Counsels Ted Ullyot or Raul Yanes in
the Counsel to the President’s Office.
Alberto R. Gonzales
Counsel to the President
_______________________________________________________________________
[October 3, 2003]
The following notice was sent to all White House employees:
On September 30, 2003, you received two memoranda from me directing
you to preserve and maintain certain documents. In a letter
received yesterday evening, the Department of Justice has requested
that we provide those documents to prosecutors and FBI agents
assigned to this investigation.
To ensure compliance with the time deadlines imposed by the
Department of Justice, you are directed to provide to the Counsel's
Office, by no later than 5 p.m. on October 7, 2003, copies of
the following documents, created during the time period February 1,
2002, through September 30, 2003, inclusive:
1. All documents that relate in any way to former U.S. Ambassador
Joseph C. Wilson, his trip to Niger in February 2002, or his wife's
purported relationship with the Central Intelligence Agency; and
2. All documents that relate in any way to a contact with any
member or representative of the news media about Joseph C. Wilson,
his trip to Niger in February 2002, or his wife's purported
relationship with the Central Intelligence Agency; and
3. All documents that relate in any way to a contact with any
or all of the following: reporters Knut Royce, Timothy M. Phelps,
or Robert D. Novak, or any individual(s) acting directly or
indirectly on behalf of them.
For purposes of this memorandum, the term "documents" includes
"without limitation all electronic records, telephone records of
any kind (including but not limited to any documents that memorialize
telephone calls having been made), correspondence, computer records,
storage devices, notes, memoranda, and diary and calendar entries"
in the possession of the Executive Office of the President, its
staff, or its employees, wherever located, including any documents
that may have been archived in Records Management. However, at
this time, you do not need to provide to Counsel's Office copies
of the following, provided that they have not been marked upon in
any way and are not accompanied by any notes or other commentary:
(a) press clips or articles, whether in hard copy or e-mail or
electronic form, or (b) either of the two memoranda I sent on
September 30, 2003, regarding document preservation.
You are also directed to complete and return the attached
Certification by 5 p.m. on October 7, 2003. Note that you must
complete the Certification whether or not you have responsive
documents. All documents and Certifications should be hand-delivered
to EEOB Room 214. Room 214 will be staffed from 2 p.m. to
8 p.m. today; from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday October 4 and
Sunday October 5; from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Monday October 6;
and from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Tuesday October 7. Appropriate
procedures will be in place to handle classified documents.
If you have any questions, please call Associate Counsels
Ted Ullyot or Raul Yanes in the Counsel's Office.
ALBERTO R. GONZALES
COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT
CERTIFICATION
(To be returned by no later than 5 p.m. on October 7, 2003)
I certify, to the best of my knowledge, that
____ I have produced to the Office of the Counsel to the President
all documents in my possession that are required to be produced
by the memorandum to which this Certification was attached.
____ I have no such documents.
I further understand that this Certification is for purposes
of a federal criminal investigation and that intentional false
statements may result in criminal penalties or other sanctions.
NAME (please print):
SIGNATURE:
DATE:
OFFICE:
PHONE NUMBER:
Note: The attorneys in the Office of the Counsel to the President are
attorneys for the President in his official capacity and are not
private attorneys for anyone. The attorney-client privilege does not
extend to communications by government employees to government
attorneys, including attorneys in the Office of the Counsel to the
President, when such communications are sought for a Federal criminal
investigation.
All documents and Certifications should be hand-delivered to
EEOB Room 214
_______________________________________________________________________
[October 7, 2003]
The following memo was sent to all White House employees:
IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM THE WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF
On October 3, 2003, every employee in the Executive Office of the President
received instructions from Counsel's office about obligations to search
for and provide documents that may be related to the Justice Department's
investigation. Employees are to deliver all such documents -- or a
certification that they have no documents -- to Room 214 in the EEOB
by no later than 5 pm today. Copies of the October 3 instructions
from the Counsel's Office and the accompanying certification form are
attached. The President has made clear how important it is to him
that everyone should comply with this request. The sooner we complete
the search and delivery of documents, the sooner the Justice
Department can complete its inquiry -- and the sooner we can all
return our full attention to doing the work of the people that
the President has entrusted to us.
I expect each and every employee to do what it takes as a professional
to comply by the deadline, and I expect the senior staff at the
White House to make sure those under your supervision are
thorough, diligent, and timely in this effort.
Counsel's office is available to answer any questions you might
have, and will be staffing Room 214 until 5 pm tonight to receive
documents.
The level of cooperation has been outstanding. Thank you - especially
to those who have already complied with the above mentioned request.
Andrew H. Card
White House Chief of Staff
