Posted on 10/05/2005 6:57:48 PM PDT by dogbyte12
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The federal prosecutor investigating who leaked the identity of a CIA operative is expected to signal within days whether he intends to bring indictments in the case, legal sources close to the investigation said on Wednesday.
As a first step, prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald was expected to notify officials by letter if they have become targets, said the lawyers, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.
Fitzgerald could announce plea agreements, bring indictments, or conclude that no crime was committed. By the end of this month he is expected to wrap up his nearly two-year-old investigation into who leaked CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity.
The inquiry has ensnared President George W. Bush's top political adviser, Karl Rove, and Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff, Lewis "Scooter" Libby. The White House had long maintained that Rove and Libby had nothing to do with the leak but reporters have since named them as sources.
Rove's attorney, Robert Luskin, declined to say whether his client had been contacted by Fitzgerald. In the past, Luskin has said that Rove was assured that he was not a target.
Libby's lawyer was not immediately available to comment.
"It's an ongoing investigation and we're fully cooperating," said Cheney spokeswoman Lea Anne McBride.
The outcome of the investigation could shake up an administration already reeling from criticism over its response to Hurricane Katrina and the indictment of House Republican leader Tom DeLay on a conspiracy charge related to campaign financing.
New York Times reporter Judith Miller testified to the grand jury on Friday about the conversations she had with Libby.
Plame's diplomat husband, Joseph Wilson, has accused the administration of leaking her name, damaging her ability to work undercover, to get back at him for criticizing Bush's Iraq policy.
Fitzgerald's agreement to limit the scope of Miller's testimony to her conversations with Libby -- a proposal he rejected a year earlier -- suggested that Libby had become "the focus of interest," said one of the lawyers involved in the case.
After initially promising to fire anyone found to have leaked information in the case, Bush in July offered a more qualified pledge: "If someone committed a crime they will no longer work in my administration."
the best outcome from this - no indictments at all. had Fitzgerald been using this grand jury to desconstruct this whole plot to use Wilson to smear the president - recommended for the job by his wife, her role protected by her "covert" status - I honestly believe we would have seen the Dems/MSM positioning themselves these last months, getting out in front of this with stories, etc - setting the stage in advance to counter attack it, or discredit it. we've seen none of that, that tells me this GJ has not been about that.
I can't really blame Libby's lawyer for that. Translating from the legalese, Fitzgerald basically ordered him to contact her when it finally dawned on Fitzgerald that Miller was sitting in jail for no solid legal reason, but rather to play the martyr.
I don't believe Fitzgerald has such powers - since when can a prosecutor "order" a citizen to provide a release for someone in jail on a contempt charge? If Fitzgerald really believed that Miller was sitting in jail for 3 months over that - then we really are in a heap of trouble.
Rove said he first heard about Plame's status from a reporter, so maybe one or more reporters lied about what he or she said and/or who was talked to and when.
What would they be indicted for?
Treason? Conspiracy to Undermine a sitting president in a time of war with false information? What I do know is that this SOB Wilson put out wrong and false information that he knew about before the administration in an obvious attempt to undermine the the USA in a time of war. I don't know if it meets the legal standards of treason but in my view it should. I think of him , The Democrats, and the MSM as solidly anti American and has become so treasonous on daily basis that it is no longer thought of as serious charge. This piece of scum along with his incompetent wife has done enormous harm to America. They should go down hard. ...Add Wilson my "I'd like to punch him right in mouth" list.
Read the letters again. This from Libby's letter to Miller:
In case you have any concerns about this letter, I note that the Special Counsel wrote to my attorney last week. In his letter, the Special Counsel offered that he would welcome my reaching out to you to reaffirm my earlier waiver. As you may know by now, my counsel responded to the Special Counsel, repeating all that we had done over a year ago, but offering to do so again.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1494864/posts?page=20#20
Believe me, the last thing Libby and his lawyer want to do is to unnecessarily piss off the Special Counsel. They're going to exactly what he suggests in this situation.
From the tone and tenor of the letter, it sounds to me that Fitz is not interested in Libby, but Miller.
I think Libby and Rove will be indicted.
Check out the NY Sun article the Fitz letter came from. It's titled "Prosecutor Thought Libby Deliberately Failed To Intervene On Reporter's Behalf"
http://www.nysun.com/article/20936?access=785492
Rove? Why Rove???
"I think Libby and Rove will be indicted."
My first guess (hope?) would be no indictment on key WH staff (I'm excluding Ari).
My second guess is maybe Libby, but not Rove. Libby seems to be the WH staff person to get calls from reporters (July 8).
The fact that he accepted Miller's proposal that he rejected a year later tells me he has nothing and he's going to offer up a goat to save his own skin to live another political day.
"Libby seems to be the WH staff person to get calls from reporters (July 8). "
I meant "Libby seems to be the FIRST WH staff person..."
I can hardly believe he won't indict SOMEBODY, after that Judith Miller sat in jail for months.
Welcome to FRee Republic.
I think you are right. It's seems like Fitz felt that Libby was letting Miller rot, but then it sounded like Fitz thought it was just a disconnect. I still find it very strange that he did not make Miller discuss other sources. Unless he felt no crimes were committed and needed her to verify Libby's story.
Indicted for what?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.