There is nothing we citizens can do. Bush is rampant, and there is no one to protect the Constitution, our liberties, our history, our principles. We cannot or will not help ourselves. We are passive in the face of his inexorable will. We have no leadership, and we cannot lead ourselves.

America. Fun while it lasted.

... then why did the White House make his destruction a priority, even if it meant risking the lives of an unknown number of covert agents and dismantling a mission to keep Iran nuclear-free that had been running for decades? Why was it worth the cost of lives, money spent and time invested, and possible peace if Joe Wilson was somebody who was never right?

Never mind -- we're dealing with the ignoramus elite, so those are rhetorical questions.

If Joe Wilson is a political hack and an opportunist...

... then why did the White House make his destruction a priority

But they didn't. As even Fitzgerald was forced to admit, the "leaking" of Plame's name came about accidentally during inside gossip by Richard Armitage.

No one was ever charged with this crime, because no crime was committed, at least with regard to how Plame's name became public.

Now that Bush has insulated himself from the routine operations of all branches of government (excluding the Cheney branch) - using the pardon power to emasculate the judiciary, his appointive powers to subvert the Department of Justice, and executive privilege to block Congress' oversight role - perhaps, perhaps the Democrats will realize that the only route that he may not be able to block is an impeachment investigation. Even this Supreme Court should have trouble accepting an argument that executive privilege trumps impeachment. Although with this gang I do unfortunately have to say "should".

Susan McDougal, charged with contempt,served eighteen months in jail, with murderers, because she refused to give Starr a proffer. She was afraid the out of control prosecuter would trump up perjury charges against her if she didn't testify against the Clintons. In the end she did testify and Starr was unable to bring any charges against her or the Clintons Unlike Rich, she served time and received a well deserved pardon.

First question: When did Republicans become Clintonistas? I missed the ceremony. They sure like to cite his precedent whenever they want leniency in the court of public opinion. What a useful tool. Will Republicans vote Democrat in the future to set up another straw man?

Second question: There is no question on what Libby was charged with -- perjury and obstructing justice. Even clear-headed conservatives agree on this (and can agree that Clinton is a weasel). What was being obstructed? The obstruction is about who gave the initial orders to clean Wilson's house. Who gave those orders? If the president was in any way involved in those orders, and the trail leads to his door, then his commuting and/or pardoning Libby is a big constitutional problem, since the only case where a president is forbidden to commute any sentence or pardon anyone is when he's involved. His involvement just hasn't been proved (or disproved). That's what Fitzgerald was trying to get at, and what Libby wouldn't let him have.

Third question: Will a federal prosecutor be appointed to investigate commuting the sentence, like one was appointed to investigate Marc Rich's pardon? And does anyone in Washington have the brass to do that and tell Bush they've got bigger ones than he?

By converting Libbys sentence, king George has silently admitted his involvement in the outing of Valerie Plame as a CIA secret agent. What more proof is needed? Libby covered both Bushes and Cheneys asses by not divulging information he certainly possessed. Not only did he lie but did so under oath and as a lawyer he should have known better. Afterall this administration is based on lies and deceit and in starting the war of aggression in Iraq did not serve the interests of the USA but of another country alltogether. Any doubts about this are squelched by the behaviour of Senator Liebermann, who contrary to the point of view of his former party supports this distastruous gang of neo-cons. The status of the country in the world has been badly damaged and is more so day by day. The coalition of the willing was with few exceptions a group of minor importance, contrary to the first reaction after Sept 11 when all allies enthusiastically supported America. All this bending of laws achives is lowering the possibilty of a republican victory in 2008, as a matter of fact it will help to create a democratic majority. Thankfully this may be a plus to whoever suceeds the shrub to restore some semblance of law and order and most of all sanity in the country.

His [Bush's] involvement just hasn't been proved (or disproved). That's what Fitzgerald was trying to get at, and what Libby wouldn't let him have.

This is so over the top it needs a response. The only perjury Fitzgerald could pin on Libby was a differing recollection of a conversation with Tim Russert. That's a far cry from what you say here.

He and Dick Cheney are guilty of even more heinous crimes.

A sphere of uranium no larger than a baseball can murder hundreds of thousands of innocent people.

Because of the behavior of Cheney and Libby, a sphere the size of a basketball has gone unaccounted for. This would be in addition to the quantity that was unaccounted for prior to the outing of Valerie Plame and her covert operation.

Libby has been economically tied to an Israeli-Russian cabal who traffic in fissionable uranium. But these are more on the order of well-founded allegations. What Fitzgerald succeeded in convicting Libby of was the obstruction of justice in the investigation of a case of treason.

Treason. The same crime Bushes' grand-daddy was convicted of -- prior to his successful run as Senator from Connecticut. Back in those days, news travelled too slowly to mount an effective response to Prescott Bushes' conviction. Basically, the funding of the Nazi's -- something the upper class in this country fervently believed in -- was a treasonable offense that went unpunished to this very day.

It is time we arrest and convict the neo-fascists of treason against the United States of America.

Downplaying the severity of the Libby conviction and Bushes' commutation of Libby's jail time would be laughable were it not so tragically, horribly misguided.

This was not Beltway gossip. This was a political hatchet job initiated by Dick Cheney and approved by El Presidente. And, if my suspicions are correct, the outing of Valerie Plame had more to do with squelching Plame's global uranium tracking operation than it did with punishing Joe Wilson. The punishing of Joe Wilson was just icing on the cake.

Joe Wilson is not a political hack, he is a career diplomat who is well respected in his field and always has been. To typify his government service otherwise is patently false and stupendously disingenuous.

Dear Titus, you speak in defense of the Big Lie.