Lies, Leaks -- and Not Much More

March 6, 2007 — -- With the conviction of Vice President Dick Cheney's former chief of staff on perjury, false statement and obstruction of justice charges, all eyes now turn to Cheney. But will Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald move up the next rung of the ladder and make a case against Cheney himself? It's unlikely.

While the Libby trial pulled back the curtain and gave jurors -- and the public -- a somewhat unflattering glimpse into the inner workings of the White House, there was little there that would likely entice Fitzgerald to investigate this matter further.

What we did learn is that Cheney became personally involved in the efforts to discredit former Ambassador Joseph Wilson in response to Wilson's attack on the Bush administration's rationale for going to war in Iraq. When Wilson claimed that he had been sent to Niger by the vice president's office, Cheney set out to correct the record by dispatching others to point out that Wilson was sent by the CIA through his wife's connection.

The problem was, in order to make that case, they had to reveal Wilson's wife's employment at the CIA. It was the leaking of her covert status that touched off the entire investigation by Fitzgerald and, ultimately, led to Libby's indictment.

But now we know who first leaked the identity of Valerie Plame, Wilson's wife; it was Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage, not Cheney.

We also know that while others besides Libby apparently spoke to the press about Plame, evidence at trial implicated White House adviser Karl Rove and former press secretary Ari Fleischer, Cheney never did.

Finally, we know that no one -- not Armitage, not Rove, not Fleischer and not even Libby -- was ever charged with the crime of leaking Plame's identity. To make that case, the prosecution would have had to show not only that someone leaked Plame's identity but also that the leaker knew of her covert status at the time her name was passed along. Presumably, that evidence either didn't exist or at least was insufficient to bring the charge.