Yes indeed, Pat–Elliot Abrams for one. This affair, for me, represents a do-or-die effort on the part of that gang to establish, to the satisfaction of all and sundry, that they ARE the law–i.e. they are the law of the law, by virtue of being above the law. For me, it all goes back to Watergate, when straight-arrow Republicans were regarded as felons, and they’re not about to let any Democrats make this point a second time in a court of law. And as to whether Fitzgerald, himself a Republican, can confront them once again with their compulsive need to flout the law as proof of their superiority to the law, and of the consequences that this attitude sometimes entails….well, this will be interesting to see.

Posted by: alabama | Jul 18 2005 20:53 utc | 3

Couldn’t play Billmon’s game for all kinds of reasons that were in the fine print, including that subliminal message about reserving the right to use my answer as part of a collective honeypot for the good folks from “Esh-A-Lawn”.
And besides, couldn’t answer without an additional category based on figuring out who Mr. Fitzgerald’s stoolie turns out to be.

Posted by: RossK | Jul 18 2005 21:20 utc | 5

Conjecture: Judith F. Miller was spreading CIA materials to government officials and media folks well before Powell’s February UN address. Since no one in the CIA would have given her these materials directly, she must have received them from the most aggressive acquisitors in Cheney’s office. We should also remember that the CIA itself had a few contrarian hawks who were busily twisting stuff in ways congenial to Cheney–the most memorable being those two guys from Oak Ridge (I think) who kept insisting that the aluminum tubes were to be used in some atomic way or other (this was reported in the NYTimes a while ago–Cheney must have loved those guys). So yes: Miller, and those of Cheney’s folks who fed Miller, and those in the government who spinned Miller’s stuff to the press–these people will find themselves indicted, and not just for outing Plame. Cheney himself may be named an “unindicted co-conspirator”. Thus for the secrets themselves: as for “obstruction of justice” charges–perjury, and the like–this would be anyone’s guess. And Fitzgerald will draw blood; too many people, hurt by Cheney’s gang, have surely sung their hearts out to the grand jury.

Posted by: alabama | Jul 18 2005 22:23 utc | 7

Today being poison day I have decided to get my tits in a tangle about the fact that millions of people in the richest society on this planet are obsessing about Niger.
“Wha? That’s a bad thing? but 3.6 million people are starving
there?”
“Wha? those Africans die alla the time. This is serious some politician apparently told a story about another politician’s wife and the story was true!”
” You’re kidding. So everyone’s happy that a politician told the truth?”
“No dummy he outed a CIA agent.”
“Oh you mean one of the mob that have been going around fucking over the rest of the world to make sure the US doesn’t have to pay for what it takes, has been exposed? That’s a good thing isn’t it I mean lookit Niger. That country has one of the largest deposits of yellowcake ore and 3.6 million people are probably going to die of hunger there this year. So this CIA agent was one of those that stops the people of Niger from getting the money from their resources?”
“No dummy! The CIA agents husband was exercising his god given right as a US government operative to make sure that yellowcake was only being sold to places the US allows, and when he showed this was so. another politician said that this wasn’t so, and that the only reason he told these lies was that his wife was a CIA agent!”
“What’s that got to do with it? I mean we’re talking 3.6 million deaths and you’re worried about a couple of liars that got caught telling the truth?”
“Death schmeath! Those damned Arabs
should pay attention to the good we do. We sorted all that out at that meeting when the muslims killed the english. The poor old english I hope they didn’t get the pearly king or my favorite little pub it’s just down the back of Fleet St. Did ya know Johnson and Boswell used to drink….”
“Stop it nothing has been sorted out. The only plan
is to lend food to the starving millions. If they were given food they might start worrying about getting paid for their uranium or even worse they might decide they can afford not to sell something as evil as uranium anymore so we’ve got the stooges I mean Niger government to lend the food and keep the whining black people on their back foot.”
“See I told you it was all good. I reckon 3.6 million is an exaggeration now that they are gonna get some food probably less than half that will die and it the meantime we get to show the world that we don’t tolerate those crooks in the WhiteHouse telling the truth. You watch those horrible repugs will have to run away for at least four years and our mob of honest politicians like John Kerry and the Clintons will show everyone that we are really all good people here. It will be back to business as usual.”

Posted by: Debs is dead | Jul 18 2005 23:53 utc | 9

Today being poison day
hang in there, you’re the bomb

Posted by: annie | Jul 19 2005 1:16 utc | 11

Seems they must have revised the Oath for Army Officer’s as well since Bu$hCo…hell if Bu$h thinks protecting & defending the USA means wandering off when told of imminent attacks, this shouldn’t be too surprising, now should it.
An excellent overview of the klepto-plutocracy’s operation in Iraq can be found in the current edition of the London Review of Books. In Where Has All The Money Gone? Ed Harriman commits the increasingly rare act of journalism – actually examining the reports of the auditors and talking to actual people involved on the ground in Iraq. It’s highly detailed, dispassionate but devastating in the cold, hard truth it lays out. You need to read all of it, but here are a few choice excerpts (plucked randomly, not sequentially):
“An Iraqi hospital administrator told me that, as he was about to sign a contract, the American army officer representing the CPA [Coalition Provisional Authority] had crossed out the original price and doubled it. The Iraqi protested that the original price was enough. The American officer explained that the increase (more than $1 million) was his retirement package.”
link

Posted by: jj | Jul 19 2005 2:10 utc | 13

posting my prediction here instead of at WB.
Cheney indicted after scooter makes deal with fitzgerald. followed by heart attack and state funeral. Fitzgerald gets plumb job in Jeb! administration. Poppy wins the plame game.

Posted by: gylangirl | Jul 19 2005 3:08 utc | 15

Billmon,
Thanks for opening comments, even briefly. It’s nice to see who else is showing up every day!
(Shhh! I think I hear an infiltrator. Ask him the password!)
(Yeah, O.K., here goes…)
“Heeeeey Mothra! Whoooo wona Seconol World War, you soooo smart?!?”

Posted by: jexter | Jul 19 2005 4:18 utc | 17

I actually have a suggestion for a new game. Maybe it could be an office pool.
The game: name the date that any parties indicted will be pardoned by GWB?
My guess would be Dec. 26, 2007. Just to follow poppy’s lead on Abrams, Poindexter, North et al.
HW also pardoned some previously unkown Pakistani herion trafficker for apparently no reason. No one ever really brought that up, except for if I remember correctly Cockburn in the Nation.

Posted by: Bubb Rubb | Jul 19 2005 10:44 utc | 19