March 6, 2007, So this is Fitzmas...
Former Vice-Presidential Chief of Staff I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby was convicted on four of five counts arising from his lying to federal investigators in the investigation of the outing of former CIA operative Valerie Plame Wilson. If When Libby is sentenced in June, he will probably face 20-27 months in prison. His overpriced legal team will appeal, hopefully keeping it in play until after the November 2008 election, when, if appeals and other maneuvers aren't successful, Mr. Libby will receive a Presidential pardon.
Some of the jurors commented that they were annoyed that Karl Rove and Dick Cheney weren't also in the dock, based on their own knowledge of the case. Well... what can I say? The whole Plame-gate thing proved maddening; we all at least were hoping that Rove would go down for his obvious crimes-- pretty much the same misleading of federal investigators as Libby. But, it seemed, Rove had a gutsy defense lawyer in Robert Luskin who had him testify before a grand jury ad nauseam, until he convinced Fitzgerald that he would never get a conviction. (That... or something...)
Well, what can you do? Frankly, Libby is karmically guilty, and indeed, while, sadly, everyone involved in the disastrous PNAC venture won't go to jail (though in a perfect world-- or even a marginally good one-- they would), at least Libby will might.
For which chance, we are grateful.