Joseph Charles Wilson IV (November 6, 1949 – September 27, 2019) was an American diplomat who was best known for his 2002 trip to Niger to investigate allegations that Saddam Hussein was attempting to purchase yellowcake uranium; his New York Times op-ed piece, "What I Didn't Find in Africa"; and the subsequent leaking by the Bush/Cheney administration of information pertaining to the identity of his wife Valerie Plame as a CIA officer. He also served as the CEO of a consulting firm he founded, JC Wilson International Ventures, and as the vice chairman of Jarch Capital, LLC.
Early life and education Joseph Charles Wilson IV was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, on November 6, 1949, to Joseph Charles Wilson III, and Phyllis (Finnell) Wilson; he grew up in California and Europe.(Wilson, The Politics of Truth 32–33)"Wilson: From Envoy to Accuser: Profile of the Diplomat at the Center of the CIA Leak Dispute", CBS News, October 1, 2003, "Special Report: Iraq After Saddam", accessed July 27, 2007. He was raised in a "proud Republican family" in which "there [was] a long tradition of politics and service to the farm" and for which "[p]olitics was a staple around the table".(The Politics of Truth 31) Wilson's father Joe was a Marine pilot in World War II and narrowly escaped death by taking off immediately before the bombing of the aircraft carrier USS Franklin, in which 700 other American servicemen died.
In 1968, Wilson entered the University of California, Santa Barbara, majoring, he said, in "history, volleyball, and surfing" and maintaining a "C" average.(The Politics of Truth 32) He worked as a carpenter for five years after his 1972 graduation.Richard Leiby, Washington Post October 1, 2003, A01; rpt. in u-r-next.com, accessed September 26, 2006. Later, he received a graduate fellowship, studying public administration. Wilson was influenced by the Vietnam War protests of the late 1960s.
Diplomatic career Having become fluent in French as a teenager, Wilson entered the US Foreign Service in 1976, where he would be employed until 1998.Wilson, The Politics of Truth 451.
From January 1976 through 1998, he was posted in five African nations; as a general services officer in Niamey, Niger, (his first assignment) he was "responsible for keeping the power on and the cars running, among other duties". From 1988 to 1991, he was the Deputy Chief of Mission (to US Ambassador to Iraq April Glaspie) at the US Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq. In the wake of Saddam's invasion of Kuwait in 1990, he became the last American diplomat to meet with Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, sternly telling him in very clear terms to leave Kuwait.(The Politics of Truth 107–127) When Hussein sent a note to Wilson (along with other embassy heads in Baghdad) threatening to execute anyone sheltering foreigners in Iraq as a deterrent, Wilson publicly repudiated the President by appearing at a press conference wearing a homemade noose around his neck and declaring, "If the choice is to allow American citizens to be taken hostage or to be executed, I will bring my own fucking rope."
Despite Hussein's warnings, Wilson sheltered more than 100 Americans at the embassy and successfully evacuated several thousand people (Americans and other nationals) from Iraq. For his actions, he was called "a true American hero" by President George H. W. Bush.Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez, "'He Has Subverted the Rule of Law and the System of Justice' – Former U.S. Ambassador Joseph Wilson Reacts to Bush's Commutation of Lewis 'Scooter' Libby Jail Sentence in Outing of Valerie Plame", "Rush Transcript" of interview with Joseph C. Wilson, IV, on Democracy Now!, July 5, 2005, accessed July 23, 2007. From 1992 to 1995, he served as US ambassador to Gabon and São Tomé and Príncipe.
From 1995 to 1997, Wilson served as Political Advisor (POLAD) to the Commander in Chief of US Armed Forces, Europe (EUCOM), in Stuttgart, Germany. From 1997 until 1998, when he retired, he helped direct Africa policy as Special Assistant to President Bill Clinton and as National Security Council Senior Director for African Affairs.Chaps. 8–10 on 182–210 of Wilson, The Politics of Truth; 261–74.
Subsequent employment After retiring from government service in 1998, Wilson managed JC Wilson International Ventures Corp., an international business development and management company."Joseph Wilson" , biography at Greater Talent Network Inc. (Speakers Bureau), accessed July 26, 2007. Early in 2007, Wilson became vice chairman of Jarch Capital, LLC., to advise the firm on expansion in areas of Africa considered "politically sensitive."Phil Heilberg, Chairman, Jarch Capital, LLC, "Ambassador Joe Wilson Begins Working With Jarch Capital, LLC as Vice Chairman", Jarch Capital press release, The Sudan Tribune, January 19, 2007, accessed January 7, 2008.
Wilson also served as a guest speaker and panelist in conferences and other programs devoted to African business policies and political affairs, as well as on the matters pertaining to the CIA leak scandal.
Political involvement At the midpoint of his career as a diplomat, Wilson served for a year (1985–1986) as a Congressional Fellow in the offices of Senator Al Gore and Representative Tom Foley; he would later attribute his working for the Democratic Party to "happenstance."Vicky Ward, "Double Exposure", Vanity Fair, January 2004, accessed September 23, 2006. That experience helped him gain his position as Special Assistant to President Bill Clinton and Senior Director for African Affairs, National Security Council, in 1997–1998.
Over the years, Wilson made contributions to the campaigns of Democratic candidates, such as Senator Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts and Congressman Charles B. Rangel of New York, and to Republican Congressman Ed Royce of California.Joseph C. Wilson search at opensecrets.org, n.d., accessed September 17, 2006. In 2000, he donated funds both to Gore's and Bush's presidential campaigns.(The Politics of Truth 278–280, 282) Newsmeat: Campaign Contributions Search .
In 2003, Wilson endorsed John Kerry for president and donated to his campaign; in 2003 and 2004, he served as an advisor to and speechwriter for the campaign (410–12).Joseph Curl, "Spouse of Outed CIA Officer Signs On with Kerry," The Washington Times February 14, 2004. Wilson endorsed Hillary Clinton in the 2008 US presidential election."Frm. Ambassador Joseph Wilson Endorses Clinton" , press release, online posting, Hillary Clinton.com (official site), July 16, 2007, accessed July 23, 2007. He made speeches on her behalf and attended fundraisers for the campaign. After the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Wilson supported activist groups like Win Without War, a nonpartisan coalition of groups united in opposition to the Iraq WarPress release , winwithoutwarus.org, September 24, 2003. After the invasion and the publication of his memoir, The Politics of Truth, he spoke frequently in the public media and at colleges and universities.
Trip to Niger In late February 2002, Wilson traveled to Niger at the CIA's request to investigate the possibility that Saddam Hussein had purchased enriched yellowcake uranium. Wilson met with the current US Ambassador to Niger, Barbro Owens-Kirkpatrick (1999–2002) at the embassy and then interviewed dozens of officials who had been in the Niger government at the time of the supposed deal. He ultimately concluded: "it was highly doubtful that any such transaction had ever taken place."
Wilson learned that the Iraqis had in fact requested a meeting to discuss "expanding commercial relations" but that Niger's Prime Minister Mayaki had declined, due to concern about U.N. sanctions against Iraq.According to the United States Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Report on the US Intelligence Community's Prewar Intelligence Assessments on Iraq (2004), on the basis of his trip to Niger, In an interview with Committee staff, the former ambassador [Wilson] was able to provide more information about the meeting between former [Niger] Prime Minister Mayaki and the Iraqi delegation. ... [Wilson] said that Mayaki did meet with the Iraqi delegation but never discussed what was meant by [the two countries] "expanding commercial relations" [being suggested by the Iraqis]. ... [Wilson] said that because Mayaki was wary of discussing any trade issues with a country under United Nations (UN) sanctions, he made a successful effort to steer the conversation away from a discussion of trade with the Iraqi delegation." Report on the U.S. Intelligence Community's Prewar Intelligence Assessments on Iraq, Together with Additional Views |24.1 MiB, July 7, 2004, revised July 9, 2004, (Washington: Government Printing Office, 2004) pp. 36–83, accessed July 29, 2007.See particularly Part B ("Former Ambassador") of Sec. II: "Niger" in United States Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, , July 7, 2004, revised July 9, 2004, (Washington: Government Printing Office, 2004) pp. 36–83, accessed July 29, 2007. Cf. Congressional Reports: Report of the Select Committee on Intelligence on the U.S. Intelligence Community's Prewar Intelligence Assessments on Iraq, Together with Additional Views, online posting, gpoaccess.gov, July 7, 2004, rev. July 9, 2004, accessed July 29, 2007. (Provides PDF links to full texts in "Table of Contents".)Cf. II.B.: "Niger": "Former Ambassador", rpt. globalsecurity.org, accessed July 29, 2007.Cf. "Full Text: Conclusions of Senate's Iraq Report: Report on the Prewar Intelligence Assessments", NBC News, July 9, 2004, accessed July 23, 2007.
"What I Didn't Find in Africa" President Bush's 2003 State of the Union Address included these 16 words: "The British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa.""President Delivers "State of the Union: The U.S. Capitol", press release, The White House, January 28, 2003, accessed July 23, 2007. (Full transcript of the speech.)See, e.g., "16 Words" and "previous" link as provided by CNN.com, March 7, 2003, accessed July 23, 2007. In response, in the July 6, 2003, issue of The New York Times, Wilson contributed an op-ed entitled "What I Didn't Find in Africa," in which he states that on the basis of his "experience with the administration in the months leading up to the war" he has "little choice but to conclude that some of the intelligence related to Iraq's nuclear weapons program was twisted to exaggerate the Iraqi threat."
Wilson described the basis for his mission to Niger as follows: "The vice president's office asked a serious question [about the truth of allegations that Iraq was seeking to purchase uranium yellowcake from Niger]. I was asked to help formulate the answer".
In the last two paragraphs of his op-ed, Wilson related his perspective to the Bush administration's rationale for the Iraq War:
Administration reactions to disclosure
At a press conference on Monday, July 7, 2003, the day after the publication of the op-ed, Colin Powell said: "There was sufficient evidence floating around at that time that such a statement was not totally outrageous or not to be believed or not to be appropriately used. It's that once we used the statement, and after further analysis, and looking at other estimates we had, and other information that was coming in, it turned out that the basis upon which that statement was made didn't hold up, and we said so, and we've acknowledged it, and we've moved on." He also said: "the case I put down on the 5th of February , for an hour and 20 minutes, roughly, on terrorism, on weapons of mass destruction, and on the human rights case ... we stand behind"As reported in "Defending Claims," broadcast on The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, Online NewsHour, PBS, July 10, 2003, accessed September 18, 2006 (Both transcript and streaming video available online).