Jewish World Review Feb. 13, 2006 / 15 Shevat, 5766

Don't blame me; Cheney made me do it

By Tucker Carlson

http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | A very odd story crossed the wires on Thursday night. Here's the gist: Scooter Libby, the former top aide to Vice President Dick Cheney who was indicted late last year, has reportedly told prosecutors that his superiors asked him to leak classified information to reporters. This appears to be the smoking gun that enemies of the White House have spent the last two years looking for, evidence that the outing of CIA officer Valerie Plame's identity came from the top.

And maybe it is. But it also raises a few questions. Among them: Has Scooter Libby broken with Dick Cheney? That's what it looks like. Libby's admission is apparently part of his forthcoming defense strategy: Don't blame me; Cheney made me do it. This makes sense, except for two things. First, according to people who know, there is no break between Cheney and Libby. Scooter Libby remains devoted to his former boss. If Libby is blaming Cheney, he's doing it with Cheney's permission.

Why would the vice president encourage Libby to blame him? Because the revelation can't hurt Cheney and it might help Libby. Telling an aide to pass on information to journalists isn't illegal, as long as that information is declassified. Cheney, as vice president, has the power to declassify information. Moreover, Cheney may be the only person in the Bush White House who honestly doesn't care about how he's perceived by the public. If the New York Times editorial page attacks him tomorrow morning, Cheney will likely enjoy it. So maybe he did give Libby permission to mount such a defense.

But here's the second thing about the story: Scooter Libby isn't charged with passing classified information to reporters. The charges against him have nothing directly to do with the leak of Valerie Plame's name (a non-crime for which no one has been charged and no one ever will be). Libby is accused of lying, both to the grand jury and to federal agents, about conversations with the press and White House officials. So why is he telling prosecutors about a conversation that has no bearing on the charges against him?

Good question. I don't even have a plausible theory, except that there's a lot to this story we still don't know. I can't wait to find out. Stay tuned.