To Prosecute or Not to Prosecute

Kevin Drum over at The Washington Monthly is at present being roasted for daring to agree with Richard Cohen's article in the Washington Post yesterday, that Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald should avoid bringing any charges against Bush administration officials for anything other then the act of outing Valerie Plame:

"This is why I want Fitzgerald to leave now. Do not bring trivial charges -- nothing about conspiracies, please -- and nothing about official secrets, most of which are known to hairdressers, mistresses and dog walkers all over town. Please, Mr. Fitzgerald, there's so much crime in Washington already. Don't commit another."

I really don't agree with Cohen's reasoning, but I do agree with his ultimate point about not prosecuting for conspiracy, or any acts incidental to the original act of outing Plame. Most of the commentators over at Drum's blog seem to be going bananas over the fact that Bush Administration officials could possibly get away with any crime, no matter how small and seem to believe that the Fitzgerald should chase them to the ends of the Earth on even the most minor charges. Why do I agree with Drum and Cohen? It's simple. Think back to Clinton, and to where that got the Republicans afterwards.

Remember, the whole impeachment saga against Clinton was not for what he actually did, but for what he said about what he did, for committing perjury by lying about his relationship withLewinsky. Some Republicans, smelling the blood in the water, reasoned that politically they could damage Clinton badly enough by pursuing this issue to the fullest extent that he wouldn't be able to get anything done in his second term. And yet by pursuing this issue fanatically, they ended up losing the support of most of the American people and boosting Clinton's numbers in the process, and at the end of the struggle found that Clinton was stronger then when he began.

How does that relate to what's happening now over Plame? Imagine Bush and his loyalists, appealing to the public and framing the issue as one of pure partisan hackery, for Democrats and liberals pursuing prosecution for minor crimes when the whole point of the show, the outing of Plame, is found not to be a crime. Imagine how that would look to the American people, as the indictments and prosecutions over what somebody said to somebody at some time about what the might or might not have done at some earlier point stretch ad infinitum and ad nauseum. Imagine how this could end up boosting Bush's numbers. Can you begin to see why it might be better for Democrats and their allies to simply let the issue drop?

I don't know what's going to happen with this case any better then anyone else. In all liklihood what I believe will happen, that Fitzgerald will bring charges for the outing, will happen. But it would be wise to begin thinking about a strategy for afterwards. Doing so means taking the blinders off, calming down, and figuring out what really works for Democrats. What doesn't is chasing Bush and his officials for minor charges that the public will have little to no patience for.