Patrick Fitzgerald, Valiant Defender For Justice ?

[kentuck]

He is just one man. He does not live in a vacuum. He has ideas about policy issues. He either believes this war is fair and just or he believes it is illegal and is being fought on a mountain of lies, just as does any other citizen. If he believes the latter, then he is surely aware that the Rove leaks about Valerie Plame were "leaked" in connection with that "illegal" war. It is only a small component of that war. Unless he is living in a vacuum or unless he is a partisan Bush Republican, he knows that.

As much as anything, it is fate that has put Mr. Fitzgerald in this unenviable position of uncovering the truth and bringing to justice those that may have committed crimes. He has taken off his shoes, rolled up his pants, and stepped into the murky waters. He had no idea it would be up to his neck.

He has no choice but to sink or swim. He does not have the choice of ignoring what he may discover in his search. Does he have the courage to stand up for justice? Will he pursue the truth as far as it goes?

That is the difficult position that Mr. Fitzgerald finds himself. Entwined amongst the sharpest political divisions our nation has seen in many years, he has to decide how much he is willing to fight for justice. Because justice is the only friend America has at this time. Mr. Fitzgerald is standing on the threshhold of history.

[Oversea Visitor]

1. For Flag and Country

[bryant69]

2. So far it seems like he might have what it takes

It's hard to say, of course, but so far he's doing good.

The tricky part is that unless he finds that Karl Rove committed Treason some are going to question his committment to justice.

Bryant
Check it out --> http://politicalcomment.blogspot.com

[Jackpine Radical]

4. No matter what the outcome,

some will question his commitment to justice. He needs to ignore the natterers from all sides & pursue the truth as best he is able. I think he's doing that.

[punpirate]

3. Fitzgerald's situation is greatly similar...

... to that of Lawrence Walsh, the prosecutor in Iran-Contra. Walsh was pummeled by the right for years because of his determination to follow through on the evidence. Of that experience, he said he was reminded of the old man in Hemingway's story, "The Old Man and the Sea," the story of the poor fisherman who snags a giant marlin only to come to ruin as he tries to bring both fish and boat to shore as sharks rip the flesh from the fish he's caught.

"I often felt like the old man," he said in his book recounting his experiences, "but most of the time, I felt like the marlin."

[kentuck]

5. Excellent analogy, punpirate!

I'm sure he's starting to feel like the marlin already...

[snippy]

6. I don't know how far Fitzgerald will go, but he apparently has gone beyond

just the leak of Plame's identity. The Court of Appeals opinion in the Cooper/Miller case implies that Fitzgerald is investigating not just the leaks, but also a plot against Wilson.

In that opinion Judge Tatel referred to "the plot against Wilson" as though such a plot was an established fact. That reference by Judge Tatel followed the several pages of redacted material in his opinion. That redacted material certainly contained a great deal of Fitzgerald's arguments and evidence which were filed under seal.

Since Judge Tatel distinguished a hypothetical situation in which Cooper could have reported about the "plot against Wilson" I doubt that Tatel based his statement concerning the existence of such a plot on Cooper's or Miller's arguments and evidence. Instead, I think Judge Tatel based the statement on Fitzgerald's arguments and evidence.

It is possible that Fitzgerald argued that only the two leakers referred to by Novak participated in "the plot against Wilson." However, it is much more likely that such a plot was a WHIG operation carried out as part of the WHIG's responsibility to "fix" the intelligence to justify the invasion of Iraq as set out in the DSM. In that case, Fitzgerald would have to choose to ignore the participation by other members of the WHIG in the "plot against Wilson." Based on everything I have read about Fitzgerald this seems unlikely.

[nevergiveup]

7. I am from Illinois

and I can tell you this guy is one tough bastard. Once he is focused you can forget about him being persuaded by politics.......if a law has been broken he will be f..king relentless in finding the truth.

[Cocoa]

8. I'd bet Fitzgerald supports the war

but he's a very professional cop, and he's leaving his politics out of doing his job.