theory based on pretty much nothing: here's why Libby lied ...

[welshTerrier2]

see if this makes any sense ...

i'm no lawyer but it seems like Libby had to make a choice when he was called before the Grand Jury ... he could have testified, as he did, or he could have taken the Fifth Amendment on the grounds that his testimony could have incriminated him ...

so why would he choose to testify and then tell such obvious lies? you can quickly rule out the idea he held out some vague hope Fitzgerald wouldn't be able to prove he was lying ... the lies were incredibly clumsy ... he had to know he was setting himself up for a conviction on very serious charges ...

again, why would he do such a stupid thing ???

the theory? perhaps he decided to fall on his sword to protect Cheney ... who knows what kind of millions might have been promised to him and his family ... if he had refused to testify claiming the Fifth Amendment, they could have offered him immunity from prosecution and forced him to testify ... while it's true he still could have lied at that point, that would have only made the charges more severe ... and if he testified and told the truth, he might well have pulled down the entire administration ...

it looks like the plea bargain Libby cut was with Cheney and maybe bush instead of with Fitzgerald ... and, of course, sitting at the back end of all this is the possibility of a presidential pardon ...

so, the theory is that Libby lied knowing that he would become the fall guy to protect Cheney and perhaps bush ... let's hope they don't get away with it ...

[rodeodance]

1. inconcievable to me. as he knew he was risking jail. no.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

5. A promised pardon could go a long way.... perhaps? nt.

[lumberjack_jeff]

7. My fear too.

... but wouldn't pleading the 5th do the same thing?

[HysteryDiagnosis]

10. Dunno..... not a legal type... this stuff amazes me to no end and

I am happy to just breathe it all in... and watch the system work its magic.

[lumberjack_jeff]

11. Magic? Just don't look behind the curtain. n/t

[HysteryDiagnosis]

13. Oh no... wouldn't want to ruin the show.... :) nt.

[BigYawn]

14. Nope..pleading the 5th would have deflected the investigation to

other higher up's such as Cheney & Rove. Scooter agreed to take
the fall for a pardon by Bush. Scooter will never see inside of a jail,
or it will be just a very short time.

[ClintonTyree]

15. These guys see themselves as noble guardians.........

of the American way. Their egos are only overshadowed by their bank accounts. Look at Gordon Liddy, Ollie North and that lot. These guys would do prison time in a nano-second, hell they'd jump on a hand-grenade to save their "mission". :eyes:

They're fucking nuts :silly: and I CAN see Libby doing this, especially if they told him he'd be taken care of monetarily. There's only one thing that can trump their egos, and that's a fat back account.

[lancdem]

2. I think Libby lied to protect Cheney

Plus, he didn't think he'd get caught because he assumed Miller would never testify.

[rodeodance]

3. Tucker Carlson saying Libby is a solid with facts as Fitz--he is asking

this very question also. msnbc now.

[rodeodance]

4. there were at least 7 meetings where Plame was discussed. before

Novak wrote his article.

[bluedawg12]

6. He lied to protect his patron DarthBypass- and perhaps there was

a bigger crime under neath it all, bigger than the 5 counts.

Clearly, Scooter would not reveal why they leaked Plames name, that's a fact (in the Indictment). This was the bigger deal- perhaps it would have exposed many other untruths about the war- the ones we have been talking about for a long time.

The false WMD stories, lies from Chalabi, lies about the Un inspectors finding anything....we went to war for reasons other than stated by shrubco.

[welshTerrier2]

18. "war for reasons other than stated"

this exact phrase sits at the core of my calls for immediate withdrawal ...

but the argument is not historical ... the argument is that if we went to "war for reasons other than stated" initially, why would anyone believe bush has abandoned his original motives?

by supporting even one more day in Iraq, all Democrats are doing, no matter how noble their objectives may be, is enabling bush another day to try to further his "other than stated" objectives ...

[Demoiselle]

8. Conventional political wisdom says that....

it is political suicide for a government official to "take the Fifth" in such an investigation. They, after all, are supposed to be serving us and therefore their behavior is very much the public's business. The Fifth is a perfectly legitimate shelter for private citizens...but not for one of the most powerful officials in the Federal Government.

[Spazito]

9. I think it is much simpler than that

Libby's first lies were told to the FBI BEFORE Fitzgerald was appointed and WHILE Ashcroft was in charge. Libby's hubris and the track record of the bush admin's ability to stop investigations in their tracks as long as the person in charge was a partisan as was Ashcroft.

Once the investigation became truly independent, Libby's lies under oath were already recorded and he continued to stand by his lies in subsequent appearances to testify. Libby is a very arrogant, egotistical man and believed he could carry on lying with impunity. He was wrong as has been proven by the 5 indictments.

[hang a left]

12. ding ding ding.....

get that man a prize!

[blm]

16. i agree with your theory...it matches my own. all you need to know about

the Bushes is they have long required that anyone working for them pledge to lay their body down over any grenade directed at them.

That's not just a tale... they really do say it like that. You have to throw your body at any grenade headed for Bush. BoyBush required that for anyone who would work for his father and later, for him.

[goodhue]

17. makes some sense

Maybe he did realize he was setting himself up to take the fall. But I tend to think that he arrogantly thought he would get away with lie.