Trial reveals White House secrets (BBC)

[eppur_se_muova]

By Richard Allen Greene
BBC News, Washington

One of the most remarkable Washington trials in a generation has come to a close with the verdict that a top White House official tried to block a federal investigation into who revealed the identity of a CIA officer.

But by the time the verdict came down, the guilt or innocence of Lewis "Scooter" Libby - once Vice-President Dick Cheney's top aide and one of the highest-ranking White House officials ever to be tried - was almost beside the point.

The important thing was seeing how the Bush administration worked behind closed doors, said Lawrence E Walsh, the special prosecutor who investigated the Reagan administration's Iran-Contra scandal nearly 20 years ago.

"To throw light on this kind of nitty-gritty detail every so often is very important. Otherwise {administrations} get out of hand even more than they already have," he told the BBC News website.
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"He had no faith in his ability to carry off this tale, and no faith in the goodwill of these men," Mr Libby wrote in his book. "Better, he knew, not to be caught."
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more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6391091.stm

(The last para is taken from Libby's novel, "The Apprentice". Most apropo.)