GOP Trifecta: TreasonGate, AttorneyGate, & Walter Reed
The verdict is in - the TreasonGate jury returns 4 of 5 guilty counts against Scooter Libby. Now, when does Scooter’s defense team begin bargaining with Patrick Fitzgerald for a reduced sentence? This isn’t even close to over. Libby could go away for a long time - or perhaps, fry himself some [...]
The verdict is in - the TreasonGate jury returns 4 of 5 guilty counts against Scooter Libby. Now, when does Scooter’s defense team begin bargaining with Patrick Fitzgerald for a reduced sentence? This isn’t even close to over. Libby could go away for a long time - or perhaps, fry himself some bigger fish in a plea deal. Or, could a presidential pardon be in the works?
WASHINGTON - Jurors found I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby, a former White House aide, guilty of four out of five charges in his trial following an investigation into the leak of a CIA operative’s identity.
The verdict came on the 10th day of deliberations by a panel of seven women and four men. The announcement was made by Randall Samborn, a spokesman for special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald. It was read in the courtroom where jurors heard 19 witnesses during the five-week trial in the perjury and obstruction trial of Libby.
More as this develops…
Adding… There’s just too much bad GOP news to follow today - it’s like a “perfect political shitstorm”. Scooter takes a fall. Walter Reed hearings continue. AttorneyGate hearings commence. Scores dead in Iraq. And Bush’s base is still in abject denial.
Please use the comments (or community forum) to chime in with updates and observations. Is congress yet ready to introduce articles of impeachment?
Adding… CREW reminds us that even with the Libby guilty verdict, the civil suit by Joe and Valerie Wilson against Cheney, Libby, Armitage, and Rove continues. As with the OJ Simpson trial, it wasn’t necessarily the criminal trial that brought out all of the worms or clearly showed guilt. It was the civil trial against Simpson that made it clear, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Simpson did it.
Finally a crook gets caught. Dick Cheney should hold his hand all the way to the cell.
The pardon pen is being stenciled as I type.
Firedoglake (the best source for everything Libby) is getting hammered today, and is currently down. DKos is being updated continuously, and has been up and down. I’m not linking to either right now, as I don’t want to unnecessarily add to their server load.
Again, use this thread to discuss any/all aspects of the Perfect Political Shitstorm™ - coming soon to a theater near you.
…and, how long now before Cheney is forced to step down? Is his little blood clot problem from yesterday a smokescreen for laying the groundwork for a Cheney departure?
The speculation will continue to grow.
just a small bone to pick. The civil trial in the Simpson matter did not impose a criminal burden of proof, which is “beyond a reasonable doubt.” The standard met in the civil case was a “preponderance of evidence,” in other words, a finding that it is more likely than not that he did it.
While people may have independently concluded based on information released in the press, on television and by word, that he did the crime, the legal standard that the civil jury was required to meet is far more lax than the stringent criminal standard.
I. Lewis Libby’’s nick-name, ““Scooter,”” is taken from the Yankee great, Phil Rizzuto.
During 13 seasons, Rizzuto helped the Yanks win 10 pennants and 8 World Series. A five-time All-Star with a .273 lifetime batting average, he was the American League’s MVP in 1950, when he turned in a .324 average, 200 hits and .439 slugging percentage. After his retirement, he was the beloved radio announcer of Yankee games for four decades.
Scooter Libby’s chosen namesake was a consummate team player. Forty-nine times he advanced to first base by getting hit by a pitch, which places him 358th on the all-time list. From 1946 to 1956, Rizzuto was hit by a pitch more than any other short stop. Clearly, Scooter Rizzuto wasn’t afraid to take one for the team.
If Scooter Libby hadn’t been willing to take one for the team, the nation might have been subjected to an election in which issues were debated on the facts.