Executive Branch Job Description Includes Treason

Today the lawsuit against Cheney, Rove, Libby and Armitage brought by Valerie Plame and Joseph Wilson was dismissed because, according to Judge John Bates, Plame and Wilson "failed to show the case belongs in federal court."

I don't see how a case of treason, in which a covert agent's cover was blown in an extremely public manner by members of the current administration, could possibly NOT belong in federal court. But I'm not a Bush appointed judge who worked for Kenneth Starr during the Clinton impeachment debacle, so maybe my grasp of conservative legalese is a little off.

As is, it would seem, my knowledge of what is included in the job description of members of the executive branch as, according to the defense lawyers and Judge Bates,"federal law protects Cheney and the other top administration officials from being sued for actions taken as part of their official duties."

Who'da known that treason was part of their official duties? Guess all those former members of the executive branch over the last 200+ years were just not performing their jobs in a satisfactory manner.

I hope future administrations take note of this.

Matter of When, Not If

The fact that Libby isn't going to jail comes as no surprise to anyone with two brain cells to rub together. I think most of us knew it was merely a matter of when, not if.

However, there is some surprise that the form this deus ex machina took was one of commutation, not pardon. It's a savvy move, though. Pardoning a criminal convicted of obstruction of justice in a case of treason whilst the defense is still appealing the conviction shows that, high-handed as Bush's administration tends to be, they're still trying to give the appearance that they believe in following the at this stage than an outright pardon.

Of course, once the appeal is rejected (and trust me, it will be rejected), Bush will play the pardon card.

Unless the appeal makes it to the U.S. Supreme Court. Chances are damned good that another 5-4 decision would be handed down by those unjust justices.

Either way, Libby will never see the inside of a prison.

Guess treason just ain't as serious as it used to be.

Next Up: Pardon!

Libby Found Guilty in CIA Leak Trial:

Vice President Dick Cheney's former chief of staff, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, was convicted Tuesday of lying and obstructing a leak investigation that reached into the highest levels of the Bush administration.

Libby is the highest-ranking White House official to be convicted of a felony since the Iran-Contra scandal of the mid-1980s. The case brought new attention to the Bush administration's much-criticized handling of weapons of mass destruction intelligence in the run-up to the Iraq war.

This is a good first step, but it is only a step. It's obvious that Libby was covering for his boss, which is why he ended up Cheney's scapegoat. So the next step must be for investigations to start in Cheney's role in this treason against Valerie Plame.

Any bets as to when the presidential pardon will be?