The former CIA operations officer whose secret identity was revealed by the White House told her side of the story Wednesday evening.
Valerie Plame Wilson described what she dealt with when her identity was blown.
"It felt as though I had been sucker punched in the gut, and I immediately thought about my family, my covert operations and the operatives and assets in the field," Wilson said. "I felt anger, betrayal and hurt."
Wilson discussed her book, "Fair Game: My Life as a Spy, My Betrayal by the White House," and answered questions from the audience after the speech.
In the book, Wilson goes into depth about how her identity was leaked by the White House and published in a newspaper column by political commentator and journalist Robert Novak.
Wilson claimed the administration was furious with her husband Joe Wilson and sought retribution after he wrote an editorial for The New York Times.
In the editorial, Joe Wilson accused the Bush administration of fabricating evidence that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction. Valerie Plame Wilson said in retaliation "a whole crew of miscreants - including Dick Cheney, Karl Rove, Richard Armitage and Scooter Libby - conspired to leak the true identity my covert identity to the media."
The outing of an undercover spy is a federal crime, and the subsequent investigation by Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald sent Times journalist Judith Miller to jail for contempt of court and earned Libby a perjury conviction.
"I never thought they would seek retribution against me and leak my name, destroying my covert status and damaging all the operations I had been involved with," Wilson said.
Wilson also explained some of the inner workings of the CIA and how it relates to other parts of government and offered unique perspective into intelligence during the war.
"I was extremely happy serving our country in the Counter Proliferation Division of the CIA; I loved the work I was doing," she said.
During the question-and-answer session, Wilson encouraged the young people to look at careers in public service.
"Our country is heading into a dangerous time, and we need committed, bright young people to serve our country and put in the right direction," she said.

Click here for a podcast of Wilson's speech.