The Coverup Worked!

Writing for the Washington Post, under the headline, "What the 'Shield' Covered Up," E. J. Dionne, Jr. asserts that timing is everything, once again. By creating an oilslick and smokescreen which delayed the heavy indictment that finally landed on I. L. 'Scooter' Libby -- from October 2004 to October 2005 -- the Bush administration may not have gotten what it wanted. But it seems likely it got what it needed.

Last year George Bush faced and won reelection well before having his Vice President's hidden methods -- which appear to have been ruthless and truthless, when it came to his war policy for Iraq -- questioned under oath for public consumption. Now, does Libby already know he has a presidential pardon waiting for him when he needs it?

"...In his impressive presentation of the indictment of Lewis 'Scooter' Libby last week, Patrick Fitzgerald expressed the wish that witnesses had testified when subpoenas were issued in August 2004, and 'we would have been here in October 2004 instead of October 2005.' Note the significance of the two dates: October 2004, before President Bush was reelected, and October 2005, after the president was reelected. Those dates make clear why Libby threw sand in the eyes of prosecutors, in the special counsel's apt metaphor, and helped drag out the investigation."

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Update: Click here to read Sen. Harry Reid's stirring Nov. 1 address which called for a secret session of the Senate:

“This past weekend, we witnessed the indictment of I. Lewis Libby, the Vice President’s Chief of Staff and a senior Advisor to President Bush. Libby is the first sitting White House staffer to be indicted in 135 years. This indictment raises very serious charges. It asserts this Administration engaged in actions that both harmed our national security and are morally repugnant. The decision to place U.S. soldiers in harm’s way is the most significant responsibility the Constitution invests in the Congress. The Libby indictment provides a window into what this is really about: how the Administration manufactured and manipulated intelligence in order to sell the war in Iraq and attempted to destroy those who dared to challenge its actions.”