Masson's Blog has brought to my attention a disturbing editorial that ran in the Evansville Courier and Press, asserting that
Scooter Libby was given too harsh of a sentence.
The sentence seems awfully harsh for obstructing an investigation into the leak of a CIA agent's name when it was known from the outset that no crime had occurred and who the leakers were.
And right away, the Republic Party memes start. Yes, it WAS a crime, because, as has been covered about fifteen thousand times,
Valerie Wilson was STILL COVERT when she was outed by Bob "I'm Just Doing My Job Putting Us In Danger" Novak. Furthermore, when Libby started lying to Fitzgerald, that's a crime. Impeding an investigation is a crime, for those who didn't know.
The judge indicated he was not disposed to let Libby stay free pending appeal — he said he found the evidence "overwhelming" — meaning Libby, 56, who has two school-age children and an otherwise impeccable reputation, would be heading off to jail around Aug. 1.
So this supposedly "impeccable reputation" isn't broken by the fact that he LIED to a federal investigator and was implicit in the traitorous outing of a CIA agent? Wow. Apparently Scooter Libby is made of the same Teflon as Reagan was.
Much about special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald's investigation is still not public, including why Libby felt compelled to lie. Was it to protect his boss, as administration critics suspect, or simply an overzealous defense of the White House rationale for going to war, as his defenders insist?
So an ongoing investigation should be made completely public just because a few wingnuts are scared that it might not be going all their way? Yeah... no, not happening. And aren't these the same people who screamed about how federal investigations should remain completely secret?
Immediately after the verdict, Libby partisans began clamoring for a presidential pardon. But Bush, while sympathetic, has been noncommittal, saying only that there is a "process" that must go forward. That has provoked venomous attacks on Bush from his erstwhile allies on the right, "cowardice" and "incompetence" being two of the kinder insults directed at the president.
And nobody knows cowardice and incompetence better than far-right justice-haters. After all, they were teh ones who voted for Dubya, they're the ones who vote for shameless liars, cheats, and thieves like Tom DeLay, and they're the ones who listen to chickenhawk losers like Flush Limpballs and Jesus-Boy Hannity. Besides, maybe Bush wants to be seen as not being soft. After all, I thought that traitors were supposed to be executed.
