I hope this hearing is on C-Span tomorrow.

WASHINGTON Valerie Plame’s life changed the day her name appeared in a newspaper column, her job as a CIA officer exposed in black and white.

She goes before a House committee Friday as both a shadowy figure and a celebrity, with lucrative book and movie deals in the works, a magazine cover in her past and her unceremonious unmasking four years ago the subject of persistent intrigue.

Now she is lifting the veil by her own hand, and to maximum effect.

The House is not in session Friday and Plame’s only competition for attention in Washington is a Senate subcommittee hearing on next year’s budget for smaller federal agencies, and the annual St. Patrick’s Day exchange of shamrocks at the White House between President Bush and Ireland’s prime minister. In other words, it’s no contest.

She’s telling her story to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, where Democrats are eager to explore the circumstances of her outing and how the White House responded to the leak of her identity.

Although she’s had little to say publicly, Plame has made more than a few splashy appearances with her husband, former Ambassador Joe Wilson (news, bio, voting record). Last month alone, the Wilsons attended a book party for Terry McAuliffe, the former Democratic Party chairman, and were spotted having lunch with actress Morgan Fairchild at the Four Seasons.

More at Editor & Publisher

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