Fitzgerald said he wasn’t able to uncover the conspiracy because of all the sand thrown in his eyes by Libby to obstruct the investigation. Looking back at the trial, it was as inevitable as night following day that President Bush would find a way to get Libby off the hook. The fix was in when Libby’s high-priced legal team mounted a curiously passive defense. After pointing to Vice President Cheney as an instigator in the Plame naming, hinting they might even call the veep to testify, they abruptly backed off, slow-walking Libby toward conviction with no alibi for his lies other than that he didn’t remember. As legal eagles, they didn’t impress, but they did preserve the pardon option. [Highlighting mine - Editor WTF-o]So. Libby's lawyers threatened the White House with an aggressive defense. The White House agreed to a deal that said "Libby will never do one day in prison." Libby's lawyers then backed off, Libby was convicted, and Bush came through to protect his own ass and that of Cheney and Rove by providing clemency.
Libby does no prison time.
The clemency instead of a Pardon not only ensures that Libby still retains the fifth amendment if called to testify before Congress, the promise of a Pardon at the end of Bush's term ensures his silence until them.
Looks like an interesting piece of lawyering on both sides by two parties who need each other to do certain things yet do not particularly trust each other. Libby, of course, immediately went on wingnut welfare drawing $160,000 a year from the Hudson Institute, a right-wing think tank, as soon as he resigned his White House position. The $160,000 will be roughly what he was getting as Cheney's Chief of Staff and as an Assistant tot the President.
Do we hear faint strains of a song from Libby? Something like "Don't cry for me, dear wingnuts. I got mine." perhaps?
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