Firedoglake re Libby Pardon Mania: "Who holds more sway with George Bush — Rove or Cheney?"

[emulatorloo]

There is a really interesting piece up at Firedoglake -- I am lousy at pithy thread titles and writing posts, so this will probably sink like a stone.
But if you have been following the case this is a damn interesting post at firedoglake

http://www.firedoglake.com/2007/03/08/no-pardon-period-and-while-were-at-it/

No Pardon. Period. (And While We’re At It…)
By: Christy Hardin Smith

Ms Hardin Smith excerpt a long piece by Sidney Blumenthal where he suggests that Fitz had a deal with Rove and had more information from Rove about conversations between Rove Libby and Cheney. If Cheney and Scooter had testified and perjured themselves, then Fitz would have whipped Rove out and trapped them. But of course, they decided not to testify and Wells dropped the whole Libby is a scapegoat for Karl Rove.

Hardin Smith then writes

And if the plan was, indeed, to hold Rove in reserve as an impeachment witness for Vice President Cheney and Libby, what, do you think, are the actual odds on a pardon?

Who holds more sway with George Bush — Rove or Cheney?

Think about that for a moment. Is that the balance on which you want to hang your family's future, if you are Libby? If it is Rove, there will be no pardon. He regards the people who fail in their tawdry political missions in the same disdain as the people against whom such smear invectives are launched. And after the offensive lobbed against Rove in the opening statements of the Libby trial, the President's choice for verdict week dining was with Rove? Message sent.

Suddenly, the desperation with which the "pardon me" troops have been dispatched is much more clear, isn't it?

<snip>

Why the desperation? I'd ask Mary Matalin and Barbara Comstock, who have long been the shrill twin harpies of Dick Cheney's PR machine in this matter. Sounds to me like Dick and Lynne are none too happy with the legacy of corrupted stench and vindictiveness that the Libby trial has deposited squarely on the Vice President's doormat.

And I've started to wonder if that won't translate into some pushback against Rove and others in the Bush White House. And whether the Libbys have begun to fully comprehend the fact that Cheney is, first and foremost, going to protect his own reputation — even if that protection comes at the expense of Libby's own interests. Because for Cheney to pushback on Rove or Bush is not going to make either egomaniac happy, and that isn't exactly the best of recipes for begging for a pardon for a former subordinate who has been protecting you, now is it?

[emulatorloo]

1. Kick for a Friday morning. . .EOM

[Bunny]

2. It's an interesting situation, isn't it? Thanks for posting.

I think the women at firedoglake have been excellent in their coverage of the whole Plame outing and Libby trial.

[emulatorloo]

6. I am so grateful to Firedoglake and the reporting of David Schuster on MSNBC

Schuster has been there with all the right questions -- I loved hearing him ask Libby after the verdict if Libby was willing to go to prison for Vice-President Cheney.

And the bloggers at firedoglake have been amazing -- the live blog of the trial plus the really good smart commentaries have made following this case both easy and stimulating.

[Cerridwen]

3. Kick, recommend and you have my sympathy and

understanding about "pithy thread titles and writing posts". I have similar "shortcomings." :toast: w/ :donut: for the morning.

Thanks for bringing this over to our attention.

:hi:

[catmandu57]

4. I think the civil trial and congressional investigations

are going to be very very interesting. The fissures opened by fitz are going to bust wide open, what is now a private civil war in the white house is going to become a full blown internecine nuclear conflict that is going to claim the republic party as it's own, this is going to be fun. :evilgrin:

[myrna minx]

5. I agree with you.

It'll be interesting to see which if the waring factions within the WH will become the victor. What will be more interesting is to see what the GOP cost will be with such a victory.


"Cut off one's nose to spite one's face."

[Ganja Ninja]

7. The best part is that any criminal convictions may well come ...

too late for Bush to use his pardon power. If Libby has to do the time he could get immunity for the outing and turn on them.

[La_Fourmi_Rouge]

8. interesting dynamics....

The entire crew at FDL - posters and commenters, should be commended for their fine work in the past 4 years. Especially emptywheel, Jane, Christy, Swopa, Trex, and the techs who kept the board running whilst getting up to 50,000 hits per hour while the trial was running.

[annabanana]

9. I think Christy has got it exactly!

hmmm
Rove. . . Cheney, Cheney. . . . Rove. Bush can't manage without his brain. If he thinks he's been "the decider" all along, why should he keep Cheney?

[BuyingThyme]

10. I don't buy it. Rove still has a lot to lose. He needs to have

this thing shut down tight. Pardon seems to serve that need.

[Blackhatjack]

11. Libby was willing to accuse Rove at trial, so I think Libby will consider 'cutting a deal' shortly..

... if the pardon does not come soon.

The question for Bush becomes even more difficult.

Should Bush allow this to play out and Fitz to get the worst and most damaging evidence from Libby about not only this but other things? And Fitz is someone who would know exactly how to use it, since he has an encyclopedic collection of evidence to use in that case.

Or should Bush keep his wagon hitched to Cheney/Libby and all the corruption that is bound to come out in Congressional investigations to come?

One possible catastrophic explosion: Libby could give Fitzgerald information that shows that Karl Rove has not been truthful in living up to his 'deal' with Fitzgerald, which would strip Karl of any protection from being indicted.

If that happened, what would Karl use to bargain with Fitz? Why his knowledge of all the dirty things done and known by Bush! IMHO Karl would give up anyone to save his sorry hide.

THis could lead to a spat of 'suicides' and 'small plane accidents.' WHo knows?

[emulatorloo]

12. Interesting speculation -- We could still be in for a wild ride with this stuff

Yours is a great post .

[BR_Parkway]

13. Not to mention, if he were pardoned, Libby can no longer plead

the 5th, and would be facing jail until he answered under contempt of Congress or contempt of court - depending on the civil trial or Congressional hearings

[stonebone]

14. kick

[Uncle Joe]

15. I'm missing something here,

this is a great column but why does this likely eliminate Bush from giving a pardon to Libby?

[AnnInLa]

16. A Different Theory

This whole "Libby is a scapegoat for Rove/others" is maybe bullshit. I think Libby and Rove conspired to bring this theory to light....Rove knows he is retiring when bush goes home, he's pretty much untouchable so far as being the idiot-boy's right hand man, so he told Libby it would be great for Libby to cast himself as Rove's scapegoat. Both Rove and Libby know that Libby will be pardoned, so what the hell?

I think it is a really big fraud, this whole scapegoat thing. When bush pardons Libby, even those at DU will, with 2% of their brains, think that maybe poor Libby deserves the pardon, because after all, he was that evil-rove's scapgoat.

[Uncle Joe]

17. I agree with you analysis AnnInLa,

I see nothing here that will preclude Bush from giving Libby a pardon, I believe this is all a set up.