Western Oregon Journal

First of all, I would like to state the one political concept I abhor is politicians who refuse to engage in political discourse. To recap last month: Cindy Sheehan applied for a permit; however, it is illegal to sit in front of the White House regardless of what the First Amendment says. Gas prices are so high in Europe because they voluntarily tax themselves to deter people from driving. Bush took responsibility for FEMA's failure in Louisiana. Unemployment for this month is 5.1 percent compared to Clinton's final September 3.9 percent, and let's not mention that the unemployment rate is going down because when one is unemployed for more than a year they are no longer calculated in the unemployment rate.

Now, our Republican administration has sent us into another quagmire. One of the most powerful staffers in the Bush Administration has been charged with five felonies, as part of a corrupt endeavor that included lying to FBI agents and making materially false and intentionally misleading statements and representations to the grand jury. The charges filed Friday, Oct. 28 against I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby are serious and appear to be backed by substantial evidence.

Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald was investigating whether any official violated a law by knowingly disclose the identity of an undercover agent. Libby and Karl Rove believed that Plame's involvement was an important part of their story of why Wilson was sent to investigate claims that Iraq sought uranium ore from Niger, and why his subsequent allegations that the administration twisted that small part of the case against Saddam Hussein should not be credited.

Plame's identity was exposed in neoconservative, Robert Novak's article regarding Wilson and his wife. Libby originally told the FBI that he first heard about Plame's connection to the CIA via several reporters. However, we know that was a lie. Fitzgerald testified that, "at least four people within the government told Mr. Libby about Valerie Wilson, often referred to as Wilson's wife, working at the CIA-.

At least seven discussions involving government officials prior to the day when Mr. Libby claims he learned this information as if it were new from Mr. Russert-. In fact when he spoke to Mr. Russert they never discussed it-Libby discussed Plame's involvement on at least three occasions." Now, Libby is claiming that he forgot and he cannot remember meetings because he has so many. The fact that he's saying this makes me sick.

Of course Robert Novak has been claiming that Fitzgerald is "criminalizing politics." However, leaking the names of CIA agents, lying to Congress about evidence for a war, failing to tell a grand jury the truth about meeting with reporters and a CIA agent and deceiving the American public to support a bloody invasion in Iraq are not political actions; they are abhorrently wrong and criminal.

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