Tuesday, March 06, 2007

The Libby Verdict

Yes Virginia, there really is a Fitzmas.

Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald is tough, thorough and diligent. He is one of the brightest and the best Federal Prosecutors. And he is an adversary you don't want to face.

Today he served up the guilty verdict against I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, who was Vice President Dick Cheney's former chief of staff. Libby was convicted moments ago of lying under oath and obstructing Prosecutor Fitzgerald's investigation into the release of CIA agent Valeria Plame's identity.

It is worth noting that Libby is the highest-ranking White House official to be convicted of a felony since ....... you guessed it ....... the Reagan era Iran-Contra affair.

I'm already
on record as saying and believing this entire prosecution of Libby was and is a gross miscarriage of justice. I believe that Fitzgerald is yet another Special Prosecutor out of control.

But I'm also a strong believer in the American Justice System and, especially, jury trials. So, while I continue to believe that Fitzgerald should have never even been appointed, let alone allowed to run an extensive Grand Jury investigation that never yielded a single indictment EXCEPT lying to the Grand Jury.....

.....I respect the verdict and believe that Libby is guilty of lying to, and misleading, Fitzgerald's totally non-productive Grand Jury.

My reaction is a far cry from the joy and glee being exhibited over on
MSNBC, especially by Chris Matthews. It's truly Fitzmas over on MSNBC. And that joy will continue throughout the week. I can hardly wait for Hardball (starting in about one minute). The under card will be John Edwards weeping about the gay bashing attack by the very evil Ann Coulter.

But it's Matthew's Main Event celebrating the Libby conviction that will demand all the attention. Edwards has the continuous bad luck of having his few precious moments in the spotlight being eclipsed by meteoric news stories.

And
Olbermann? Could we just go ahead and make Libby the "Worst Person of the New Millennium?" All kidding aside, Keith Olbermann does have Joe Wilson already booked as a guest tonight.

I do have one important point to make and it actually concerns my earlier post
"In Support of the Bush - Petraeus Strategy in Iraq". In that post I made the point that we must separate our battle with President George Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney and the Bush Administration from the actual ongoing military battles in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The "Scooter" Libby verdict provides ample ammunition for the "progressives" to take the fight to the President and, more importantly, onto the floor of the House of Representatives. There is no need to continue to use the military as pawns in their battle with Bush.

Let General Petraeus do his job until you are able to replace the Commander and Chief, by impeachment or election.

Link to the
AP Story about the Libby verdict.

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4 comments:

Vigilante said...

Merry Fitzmas, Wizard.

Your post was disappointing. I was hoping for a recital of all the lies Joe Wilson has told, which you alluded to before you eluded my request for specifics. But that's old and ancient history.

I doubt that Libby is the 'worst person in the world'. Dick Cheney is definitely the center piece in this table setting.

Scooter and Shooter! What an odd couple.

Not Your Mama said...

Made no sense to me.

1. Libby was accused of outing a confidential employee but has never been formally charged for doing so.

2. He WAS charged with lying to investigators of the original accusation. Convicted.

How exactly is this a "miscarriage of justice"? He shouldn't have been called to account for lying?

Hey, if we can spank Clinton for lying about a blow job I figure lying to investigators about ones part in an investigation pertaining to matters of both personal and national security is fair game.

I also do not see how this affects our troops one way or the other.

IF the charges had anything to do with falsifying the intelligence that led to the initial invasion it would have some bearing. Maybe, but then by now everyone has already figured out that the intelligence was at the least flawed and it hasn't changed a darn thing now has it? So how does convicting Libby of lying to investigators have anything at all to do with troop deployments????

Vigilante said...

NY Mama, Wizard's scrambling around trying to cover all of Bush and Cheney's bases appears as pathetic as our troops's occupation of Iraq. The loyalty is the comparable; the resources are equally over-tasked; and it is equally heartbreaking to witness.

Wizard has a fine mind which he has harnessed to a cause that is beneath him.

Vigilante said...

Just wanted you to know that Valerie Plame's testimony is now commencing!