At 2:20, the jury is finally led in to the courtroom for the first time today. Judge Walton apologizes profusely for the delays and tells the jury “If you’re angry, don’t be angry at them — be angry at me.”

Prosecution then introduces into evidence a series of short video clips and written transcripts of White House press spokesman Scott McClellan from the fall of 2003. In them, McClellan tells the WH press corps that Libby, Rove and Eliot Abrams were not involved in the leaking of classified information. “I’ve spoken with those individuals and the have assured me they were not involved,” he says.

Another clip shows McClellan saying, “No one wants to get to the bottom of this matter more than the President of the United States,” and further, “If someone in this Administration leaked classified information, they will no longer be a part of this Administration.”

Before we get far, however, the jury is dismissed again, and further bench conferences ensue.

There’s a palpable feeling of frustration and impatience here in the Media Room at today’s lack of testimony thus far…

The argument now concerns newspaper articles from the same time period that the prosecution wants to enter into evidence. Defense attorney Jeffress argues the articles are prejudicial, as they cover in part the damage caused by the leaking of Plame’s identity among other matters.

Fitzgerald argues that the articles show Libby’s state of mind, and they should be entered. “The jury is entitled to know what was in his head — and this shows what was in his head,” says Fitzgerald.

“The government is trying to prejudice the jury,” contends Jeffress. “I submit to your honor it should be excluded.”

“This is what Mr. Libby read,” counters Fitzgerald. “These come from his own file.”

Fitzgerald argues that Libby feared he may have put himself in jeopardy by revealing the classified information about Plame’s identity, and thus changed his story to protect himself.

“Libby was about to be interviewed by the FBI,” notes Fitzgerald. “What is in his files are articles about the underlying issues. He is reading articles about an investigation which he is about to obstruct.”

Walton says he will decide later about the articles, and the jury is let back in, as Agent Bond finally takes the stand at 2:50.

Will Libby be shaken or stirred by Bond’s testimony?

Sorry, I couldn’t resist—it’s been a long slog so far today…

Bond looks “severe,” as Amy Goldstein of the WaPo sitting next to me offers. Not surprising, I suppose, for a female FBI agent.

Bond has been with the Bureau for nineteen years. She has been involved in this case since October 2003. She took charge of it about a year ago.

The investigation, she says, tried to determine how it happened the Plame’s name and CIA employment got to the media. FBI tried to find out identities of those who disclosed her CIA status to the media, whether they knew that it was classified, and what their intent was in disclosing it, as well as the source of the information.

What were the names of the people who knew her name and CIA status, how they learned it, and if they discussed it with others, as well as if anyone told them to disclose it to the media.

Bond was present on October 14, 2003, along with other FBI officials and Libby’s attorneys, when the FBI interviewed Libby.

Libby had a document about Wilson’s ‘claims’ that he prepared for the FBI interview. It had several bullet points: first that the Vice President asked the CIA to investigate the Niger report by Wilson; also that the report shows Iraq did not seek to acquire uranium from Niger; and further that the VP would have seen report. None of these claims, said Libby, were in fact true.

Prosecution then methodically leads Agent Bond through the content of the interview with Libby. First Libby told of a conversation he had with VP Cheney in June of 2003, wherein, according to Libby, the Vice President told him Valerie Plame worked in the counter-proliferation part of the CIA. He said the VP learned this information from someone at CIA. Libby believed that person was CIA Director George Tenet. This was the first time Libby ever heard that Plame worked for CIA, he said.

Libby also said the first time he learned the name of Joseph Wilson was when he read Wilson’s op-ed piece in the NY Times on July 6, 2003.

He then told FBI about his meeting on July 8 with Judy Miller at the St. Regis hotel. They spoke about the NIE, which the vice president had told him to ‘get to the public.” (Libby first checked, he said, with David Addington, to see if this was legal, since the NIE was classified. Addington said it was, so Libby spoke to Miler about it. They also discussed Miller’s book “Germs,” as well as WMD in Iraq, as well as — in general — “the Joe Wilson matter.”

But he said he had “no recollection” of mentioning Valerie Plame.

Libby said he forgot about Vice President Cheney having told him of Plame’s CIA status for a month, until he spoke with Tim Russert of NBC News on or about July 11, 2003. He had no knowledge of Plame’s CIA status during that time, because he had forgotten the mention by the Vice President on June 12.

He spoke with Russert because of dissatisfaction with Chris Mathew and MSNBC “Hardball” for criticisms of Cheney and the Office of the Vice President on that program on July 8 and 9. He wanted Russert to help straighten out Mathews and have him “tell both sides “ of the story.

Russert told Libby he couldn’t do anything about Mathews or his program. Then, at least according to Libby, Russert asked him if he knew that Plame worked for the CIA. Libby said no. Russert then said, ”All the reporters know that,” Libby said. Libby replied, “I didn’t know that either!”

He expressed surprise, since he believed this was the first time he had ever heard about Plame’s CIA status—having forgotten (conveniently, from the prosecution point of view) about his conversation a month earlier with VP Cheney.

Libby also told the FBI he spoke with Karl Rove on 7/11/03 as well. Rove told him Robert Novak had told Rove he was going to write an article about Joe Wilson. Rove also said it was his understanding that Novak knew Plame was CIA – a fact Rove said he learned form Novak.

Libby then told Rove about his conversation with Russert.

The following day there was the big trip to Norfolk, Virginia for the christening of the USS Ronald Reagan. On the return trip, VP Cheney told him to speak on the record to the press about “the Joe Wilson matter.”

Libby and two White House staffers then began calling the press. Among the reporters they spoke to — Matt Cooper of Time.

Libby said he told Cooper off the record that reporters were saying that Plame worked for CIA, but that he didn’t know if it was true.

He also said he spoke with Andrea Mitchell of NBC News, most likely on July 14, 2003. He may have also told her about reporters saying that Plame was CIA.

Libby noted that he didn’t speak to the press often, and did not speak to Robert Novak at all during the week of July 7-14, 2003.

The FBI interviewed Libby a second time on November 26, 2003. Libby’s told them essentially the same story at that time.

The prosecution then offers a note by Libby of the telephone conversation with the Vice President during which Cheney disclosed that Ambassador Wilson’s wife worked in the counter-proliferation division of CIA. Libby now recollected that he had first learned this from Cheney then—although he had forgotten it for at least a month.

The handwritten note refers to a “Telephone conversation w/Vice President re Uranium and Iraq—Kristof NYT article.” These notes are from the telephone conversation that Libby says he forgot, wherein Cheney told him Joe Wilson’s wife worked at CIA. Libby brought a copy of this note to the second interview.

Libby also told the FBI he spoke with CIA employees Bob Grenier, (who testified earlier in the case for the government) and that they may have spoken about the New York Times column by Nick Kristof. And he spoke of his lunchtime meeting with Ari Fleischer on July 7, 2003. He said that the matter of Plame and the CIA never came up, however, since he claimed to have forgotten he Cheney meeting and thus learned of it from Tim Russert on July 11. (Fleischer has testified already that Libby told him of Plame’s CIA status in that meeting.)

The defense then gets a turn in trying to shake Agent Bond’s testimony. She is, however, unflappable—neither shaken nor stirred. The very essence of a tough federal agent –and a very hostile witness for the defense.

A little before five pm, with still more evidentiary matters to discuss, Judge Walton dismisses the jury for the weekend. No court tomorrow, then back next week with Russert himself to testify. Walton says it appears likely the government will finish its case sometime next week. Then the defense gets a turn to present its side of this tangled, tawdry tale.