As for Bullet-taking - i don't think so. Libby is no mere minnow. As chief aide to Vice-President Dick Cheney, Libby had been involved in almost every major decision made by the Bush administration. With trial in the works, a lot of questions can be asked in a court of law, possibly with Dick Cheney in the witness box on oath...
Yeah, and you would think that Watergate and Iran-Contra would have netted bigger fish than it did, too, but they didn't, because people like Cheney have no shortage of people willing to fall on their swords for them.
Perjury's not a problem if you can get everyone to stick to the same story. I'm not saying it's impossible, but I think it's going to be a hard uphill climb.
feh. I'd wager that loyalty tack doesn't stand up very long when you're looking at a possible 30 year prison sentence. And after reading the indictment, they've sure as hell got a strong case.
I don't know about that. First of all, Bush can and probably will issue an 11th hour pardon at the end of his term for anyone involved in this, so we're talking about, at most, 2-3 years in a minimum security facility for Libby or anyone else who takes the fall for the big guys.
Second, not to be too conspiratorial, anyone in Libby's position who rolled over on the Bush family and its allies would have a lifespan measurable in months. They don't fuck around.
Alright, I really would like to understand what is going on, but I'm confused. Could someone please summarize what has happened? Yes, I suppose I've been under a rock, but I don't know how the events are related, or how they've unfolded. This dude's wife is a spy? For the Bush Administration? And Libby, Novak, and Turd Blossom are in trouble for telling a reporter? Help me.
Valerie Plame is a CIA operative. Her husband Joseph Wilson is a retired diplomat, and he helped blow the lid on the Niger yellowcake memo, basically revealing that the evidence that Bush presented in his State of the Union that Iraq was developing a nuke was forged.
Then, someone, somewhere blew Plame's cover. This unidentified leaker talked to Robert Novak, who in turn mentioned in her column that Wilson's wife, Valerie Plame, was a CIA operative.
Now, obviously, the identity of an undercover CIA operative is classified information, and blowing someone's cover while they're in the field could endanger the agent's life and jeopardize US intelligence-gathering operations. Plus, it's a violation of security clearances.
The leaker is speculated to have done this in retaliation for Wilson criticizing the administration. Of course, whoever leaked the info could be in serious trouble. The speculation of those "in the know" inside the Beltway fell immediately on Karl Rove and Dick Cheney. Now Dick Cheney's top aide, Scooter Libby, has been indicted by a grand jury in connection with the independent counsel's investigation. |
