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Wednesday, March 07, 2007

It's very simple, really...you don't prosecute Republicans
Posted by Jill | 7:32 AM
Victoria Toensing does her best Pilobilus imitation on The Situation Room:

BLITZER: He, according to this jury, men and women of his peers, he's convicted of lying to the FBI, lying to a federal grand jury. Presumably he's going to jail, at least for some period of time.

Was justice served?

TOENSING: Well, I didn't think justice was served by bringing the case in the first place.

I had never heard...

BLITZER: But you can't justify lying to a federal grand jury...

TOENSING: Well, wait a minute...

BLITZER: ... or obstructing justice.

TOENSING: That's not (UNINTELLIGIBLE) -- but, Wolf, there's a difference between lying and two witnesses' memories differing. I mean look at how the inconsis...

BLITZER: These aren't just two witnesses. These were like 10 wit -- nine witnesses...

TOENSING: (UNINTELLIGIBLE)...

BLITZER: ... said they discussed her identity with him...

TOENSING: Right.

BLITZER: ... before he claims he learned about it from...

TOENSING: And he...

BLITZER: ... Tim Russert.

TOENSING: The charges were only, because -- trust me, Fitzgerald would have brought more if he had had that kind of -- any kind of inconsistency with someone else -- were Matt Cooper and Tim Russert. And so those are two people.

And guess what?

They had all kinds of problems with what they remembered.

BLITZER: Yes, but there was a lot of...

TOENSING: Witnesses at the trial...

BLITZER: ... other witnesses -- there were a lot of other witnesses...

TOENSING: But witnesses at the trial just...

BLITZER: ... who said that -- prosecution witnesses -- who said they discussed her identity with him...

TOENSING: Right.

Guess what?

Let's just take Ari Fleischer, who is a fine man, an honest man. And he said that he remembered talking about it with "Scooter" Libby. But he said he never talked about it with Walter Pincus, the "Washington Post" reporter.

And what did Walter testify to?

I'm sure you know. He said oh my goodness, in the middle of the conversation, Ari Fleischer interrupted me and said, hey, you know, his wife works for the CIA.

This is why prosecutors -- and, Wolf, I don't know of another case where it's just a memories differ kind of case...

BLITZER: But...

TOENSING: You usually have to have something else, like Martha Stewart, there was witnesses there that she asked me to lie. You have none of that in this case and...

BLITZER: But are you questioning Patrick Fitzgerald, his integrity?

TOENSING: Oh, absolutely.

I'm not questioning...

BLITZER: He wasn't... TOENSING: I questioned his judgment because...

BLITZER: But, you know, he was named the special counsel by John Ashcroft, the attorney general.

TOENSING: Well, I wrote an article that questioned this...

BLITZER: He's an attorney...

TOENSING: ... his capability.

BLITZER: And he's a U.S. attorney in Chicago.

TOENSING: That's right.

BLITZER: So he comes with a really credible reputation.

TOENSING: Yes, well, I'm not alone in questioning his judgment in pursuing a case where you don't have evidence more than just some other witnesses...

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