<p>Anyone want to do a pool on how many White House and Vice Presidential personnel get indicted this week, and on how many charges? Maybe a separate pool on whether Fitzgerald convenes another grand jury to go after the Vice President?</p>
<p>How about another pool on how many Democratic senators say they would have supported the war anyway?</p>
<p>Any conspiracy to “out” Valerie Wilson is like a conspiracy to void a parking ticket. What a waste of time over nothing. But the boys should have been smarter than to fall into this Democrat trap.</p>
<p>Pool?? mini now you are talking. I place my e-beta as follows:</p>
<p>e$1000 - Long Shot Bush
e$5000 - daily double - Bush, Chenney
e$100,000 - trifacta - Bush, Chenny, Rove</p>
<p>I’m betting -
– Perjury/Obstruction/Outing an Operative - Libby 12/1
– Perjury/Obstruction - Libby 6/1
– Perjury - Libby - 5/1
– Obstruction - Libby 3/1
– Perjury/Obstruction/Outing an Operative - Rove 25/1
– Perjury/Obstruction - Rove - 11/1
– Obstruction - Rove - 9/2
– Obstruction - Chaney 50/1
– Keep open investigation (for Chaney) - 8/1</p>
<p>1 Charge - 75/1
2 Charges 12/1
3 Charges - 5/2
4 Charges - 8/1
5 Charges - 15/1</p>
<p>Number of Democratic Senators who say they would have supported the War anyway - 18</p>
<p>Number of Democratic Senators who say “whoops, I goofed” - Zero</p>
<p>Number of Democratic Senators who speak out against the war - 2</p>
<p>Number of Republican Senators who speak out against the war - 5</p>
<p>Number of Republicans who say it was a Democratic plot all along - uncountable</p>
<p>So you don’t think anyone will be charged with knowingly revealing the identity of an undercover CIA agent? Libby gets charged with that and/or obstruction. Anyone else seems doubtful at this point.</p>
<p>Barrons, it was a trap of their own making. You can’t pin this one on the Dems - they had nothing to do with it. Fitzgerald was appointed by Repbublicans all the way.</p>
<p>My guess is that no one will be indicted although there will severe censure for borderline unethical behavior.</p>
<p>Judith Miller will depart from the Times and do well as a right-leaning columnist. After a respectable interim Bill Keller will be out as well.</p>
<p>Information gathering and news reporting in Washington will never be the same again.</p>
<p>“So you don’t think anyone will be charged with knowingly revealing the identity of an undercover CIA agent?”</p>
<p>My bookmaking odds say no. I think they did, but I don’t think they can prove it. To me, perjury and obstruction are much more serious charges, as they go to the very core of the judicial system. </p>
<p>Hey, we’ll see. Any other bettors?</p>
<p>I’d go as far as to bet on indictments for Rove and Libby. Cheney will get off scot-free.</p>
<p>The question in my mind is: when will Bush can Rove? </p>
<p>And my cynical answer is: only when he actually goes to jail.</p>
<p>I am betting on perjury and obstruction…Rove & Libby…I would love to see more but my guess is that will be it. Is tomorrow the day? Will we see TurdBlossom kiss Rove goodby on the driveway? Will he slink out the back door? I guess the next bet is how soon will Harriett withdraw??</p>
<p>momrath:: Bill Keller is just not the right man at the right time. A disaster.
I love the Times and read it faithfully but it is sure in a slump.</p>
<p>Odds that some slimeball will get away with something? Excellent.</p>
<p>barrons:
</p>
<p>Why do you say that this is a Democrat trap? </p>
<p>My understanding is that this probe started in Bush’s Justice Dept, after Plame was outted. Fitzgerald is known to be a highly respected, non-partisan prosecutor. </p>
<p>Are you implying that somehow the Democrats have an “in” with him? Or, perhaps the Democrats should have attempted to “influence” the justice department into backing off the investigation?</p>
<p>I’m sure Bush is MOST concerned about getting to the bottom of this issue (didn’t he once say something to the effect? Do you not believe him perhaps?). Plus, didn’t he promise the MOST ethical administration ever! (Oh, please don’t tell me you think he didn’t mean that.)</p>
<p>Not only that, but the Bush Justice Department has already set a nice precedent for punishing “leakers.” Do a google on Jonathan Randel.</p>
<p>Simply for nostalgia’s sake I’m going to plunk down a virtual wager that Cheney is named as an unindicted co-conspirator.</p>
<p>As to whether anyone gets tagged for the leak, I am an agonostic.</p>
<p>But I think Rove & Libby both get nailed with perjury and obstruction of justice.</p>
<p>Mini, I’ve got one to add to your list:</p>
<p>Number of Republicans who say “But Clinton lied under oath about sex”—almost all of 'em.</p>
<p>I want to add a 750 to 1 longshot - the White House prosecuted under the RICO statute.</p>
<p>“The question in my mind is: when will Bush can Rove?”</p>
<p>Well, we can make odds on that one, too! ;)</p>
<p>Time to place your bets!</p>
<p>Number of Democrats who say perjury and obstructing justice is OK if it is a Democrat doing it, but a criminal offense warranting prosecution if a Republican does it - almost all of 'em.</p>
<p>Well there you go, FF is the first one to bring up Clinton. </p>
<p>The difference is Clinton lied to protect his hide. Cheney, Rove and Libby lied to cover up the lie about going to war. National Security Issues that involve endangering people’s lives seems like a far better rational to investigate, indict or impeach. I never defended Clinton and won’t start now, but to compare that to this is ludicrous and shows how desperate you true believers are.</p>
<p>Any set of indictments includes Plame and/or Wilson. Any indictments (doubtful) of WH officials for “memory lapses” go to trial, and the lid finally gets blown off what was a CIA attempt to swing the 2004 election to Kerry. There was never any chance that anyone would be indicted for “outing” Valery Plame.</p>
<p>Libby, perjury and obstruction. No indictment for Rove (at least based on the “inconsistencies” about his conversation with Cooper).</p>
<p>“The difference is Clinton lied to protect his hide. Cheney, Rove and Libby lied to cover up the lie about going to war.”</p>
<p>Yup. The one thing Clinton didn’t lie about was the killing of a million Iraqis, including half a million children. In fact, Albright was very open and honest about the whole thing. </p>
<p>Wish he’d spent more time having sex with “that woman” (or any other woman, or man, who struck his fancy.)</p>
<p>If Libby gets charged with perjury and obstruction - very, very serious charges - Cheney’s got a lot of explaining to do. </p>
<p>I still think it is 5/2 there are no charges at all.</p>
<p>I think the grand jury will find enough evidence to charge Libby with the outing of Plame, as well as perjury and obstruction of justice, and maybe consipiracy. I think Rove will be indicted with perjury and obstruction of justice. I’d also bet that Hannah or Hadley will be named, and others as unindicted co-conspirators.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the case is left open, as well, to allow for further indictments after the first set.</p>