Valerie Plame ‘considering all options’ amid reported Senate plans

Former CIA officer Valerie Plame says she is considering a potential run for Senate in New Mexico as a Democrat to replace retiring Sen. Tom Udall (D).

Plame, who was famously outed as an undercover CIA operative by Richard Armitage, a State Department employee, told The Hill on Saturday she was “considering all of her options” after The Washington Examiner reported Friday that she was planning a run for Senate.

“I am considering all my options,” the former CIA officer said. “I am grateful for the opportunity to perhaps serve my country again.”

{mosads}Udall, a two-term senator, announced Monday that he would not seek reelection in 2020. 

“I’m confident that we could run a strong campaign next year to earn a third term, because of all the work you and I have done together, along with my wife, Jill, and my incredibly dedicated staff,” Udall said this week.

“But the worst thing anyone in public office can do is believe the office belongs to them, rather than to the people they represent. That’s why I’m announcing today that I won’t be seeking re-election next year,” he added.

Udall’s seat is seen as safely Democratic and the senator won reelection in 2014 by double digits. He initially took office in 2008 and won his seat by more than 20 points.

Plame entered headlines last year when Libby became the recipient of a pardon from President Trump, a move she denounced.

This story was updated on Sunday, March 31, at 3:45 p.m. to correctly note Armitage’s role in outing Plame’s identity. The Hill regrets the error.

“President Donald Trump has granted a pardon to I. Lewis ‘Scooter’ Libby on the basis that he was ‘treated unfairly’. That is simply false,” Plame said in a statement last year.

“President Bush declined to issue a pardon, stating ‘I respect the jury’s verdict.’ He added, ‘And if a person does not tell the truth, particularly if he serves in government and holds the public trust, he must be held accountable,’” Plame added at the time. “President’s Trump’s pardon is not based on the truth.”

Plame was also criticized in 2017 when she tweeted an article that said “America’s Jews are Driving America’s Wars.” She later apologized.