Good for Bush. Libby was almost certainly guilty of at least
some of what he was convicted for, but there's a good chance that
he would have been convicted on fewer counts if Judge Walton had
let the jury hear from a memory expert or see the Tim Russert clips
that I mentioned near the end of this
column. Under the circumstances, it makes perfect sense to
reduce, but not eliminate, Libby's punishment.
It's worth noting, by the way, that the argument William Otis
made in a Washington Post op-ed last month seems to have reached
the President's ear; Bush has done for Libby exactly what Otis
suggested.