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com Trial Could Pit Libby's Interests Against Bush's By Jim VandeHei and Carol D Leonnig Washington Post Staff Writers Tuesday, November 1, 2005; A02 Vice President Cheney's former chief of staff, I Lewis "Scooter" Libby, is expected to plead not guilty to charges that he lied and obstructed j ustice in the CIA leak probe when he is arraigned Thursday, setting the stage for a possible courtroom fight in which Libby's interests could co llide with those of the Bush White House, according to several Republica n officials. Libby, who was charged with five felonies, is putting the finishing touch es on a new legal and public relations team. It will argue in court and in public that he is guilty of nothing more than having a foggy memory a nd a hectic schedule, according to people close to him. He is scheduled to appear in US District Court before Judge Reggie B Walton. As Libby prepared for a court battle, Cheney made plans for life without his closest adviser. Cheney yesterday named longtime counsel David Addin gton as his new chief of staff and John Hannah as national security advi ser. If Libby's case goes to trial, Addington and Hannah are only two of the m any White House officials -- including Cheney himself -- who could be fo rced to testify about how they handled intelligence, dealt with the medi a and built the argument for the Iraq war, according to people close to the case. Republicans worry that Libby's court fight will force Presiden t Bush to deal with the prospect of top officials testifying and embarra ssing disclosures of how the White House operates and treats critics. It is also possible, they note, that Libby will strike a plea agreement a nd avert a public trial. "But at the end of the day, you cannot ask a guy who all of us think is an upstanding and honorable guy to give up his legal rights." Special Counsel Patrick J Fitzgerald initially set out to determine whet her any administration official had illegally disclosed the identity of undercover CIA operative Valerie Plame as part of an effort to discredit her husband, former ambassador Joseph C Wilson IV. Wilson had harshly criticized the administration's use of intelligence in the run-up to the Iraq war. After a 22-month investigation, a federal grand jury charged Libby with lying and obstructing justice during the probe. Criminal defense lawyers say Cheney would probably be called as a witness in any trial, to verify and recount the conversation he had with Libby on June 12, 2003. At that time, Cheney allegedly told Libby that Plame w orked in the CIA's Counterproliferation Division. A senior White House adviser, speaking on the condition of anonymity to d iscuss the sensitive topic, said the Bush team believes it dodged a bull et when Fitzgerald charged only Libby on Friday and then pointedly said in his news conference that the indictment should not be read as a conde mnation of the war or its run-up. The aide said a trial would be "mostly contained" to Cheney's office, add ing that most senior Cheney aides "will have to testify." Still, a numbe r of White House aides will probably be summoned to testify, which could be a political and practical distraction for Bush well into 2006, anoth er person close to the White House said. The senior adviser said the situation will become a much bigger problem i f Rove is indicted. Fitzgerald appeared prepared to indict Rove heading into last week for ma king false statements, according to three people close to the probe. But that changed during a private meeting last Tuesday between Fitzgerald a nd Rove's attorney, Robert Luskin. It's not clear precisely what happene d in that meeting, but two sources briefed on it said Luskin discussed n ew information that gave Fitzgerald "pause." That evening, Fitzgerald's investigative team called Adam Levine, a membe r of the White House communications team at the time of the leak. An inv estigator questioned Levine about an e-mail Rove had sent Levine on July 11, 2003 -- the same day Rove discussed Plame with Time magazine report er Matthew Cooper, according to Dan French, Levine's attorney. The e-mail, which did not mention Plame, ended with Rove telling Levine t o come see him. The investigator wanted details of that conversation, wh ich took place within an hour or so of the Cooper-Rove chat, according t o a person familiar with the situation. Part of Rove's defense has been that he was very busy man who simply forg ot to tell investigators about his conversation with Cooper. If the e-ma il "was exculpatory at all, it was most likely a small piece of a much l arger mosaic of information," French said. A source familiar with the discussion between Rove and Fitzgerald said th e Tuesday meeting was about a lot more than "just an e-mail from Levine. He has told friends it is pos sible he still will be indicted for providing false statements to the gr and jury. "Everyone thinks it is over for Karl and they are wrong," a source close to Rove said. The strategist's legal and political advisers "by no means think the part of the investigation concerning Karl is closed." Cooper's attorney, Dick Sauber, said Fitzgerald certainly meant it when h e told Luskin last week that Rove remains in legal jeopardy and under in vestigation.
and seeing if they can be verified or not," Sauber said. "But no prosecutor wants to be embarrassed in court by something he didn' t know. And no prosecutor, especially Pat Fitzgerald, wants to be seen a s unfair -- especially in this kind of matter with so much at stake." Yesterday, Wilson delivered a speech in which he said Rove should lose hi s job regardless of whether he knowingly used Plame's name or revealed h er CIA connection. White House spokesman Scott McClellan rejected that idea and said Rove wa s at work, engaged in meetings and enjoying Bush's full confidence. McCl ellan said the White House will not comment on the leak because the inve stigation is ongoing and it does not want to prejudice the Libby case. McClellan, who famously told reporters and the public in 2003 that Libby and Rove had assured him they had no roles in the leak, also defended hi s own credibility. McClellan said he wishes he could say more, but that he is confident he has been honest and forthcoming. People close to the investigation said Libby and Rove misled the White House spokesman. Fitzgerald's original grand jury was released from service Friday, after its term expired. Courthouse officials said he is likely to "borrow" a g rand jury already convened to investigate additional crimes if needed, a nd could wrap up his investigation in less than two weeks. It is not unc ommon for a prosecutor to quickly present his case to a new grand jury a nd ask for an indictment, they said.
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