BREAKING:Justice Department launches full investigation into leak

[ShaneGR]

It's up on the CNN homepage right now.

[Junkdrawer]

1. Prediction: Story becomes "classified" - white wash press release...

in about six months.

[SodoffBush]

2. The Justice Dept.....right.

I'm sure Asscroft will put his "all" into it, after he annoints himself with 10-40w.

[NicoleM]

3. correction

Justice Department launches "full investigation" (wink wink) into leak.

[quispquake]

4. Why didn't they do this in July?

When it originally broke? The Justice Dept. will do NOTHING on this...this is all for show...

[KaraokeKarlton]

5. Someone will get the axe over this one

It has to happen if Bush wants to appear strong on national defense. The question is, however, who is going to be the sacrificial lamb? It's an issue now because it's all over the news. If it weren't, it wouldn't be an issue at all, unfortunately.

[farmbo]

6. Ashcroft's definition of "Full Investigation"...

1.Send his receptionist to Andrew Card's office to "...see if he remembers anything about this....and, since its right on the way, how about dropping off my drycleaning?.."

2.Draft an Executive Order for GWB's signature prohibiting the release-- on National Security grounds-- of any information concerning the USDOJ investigation until...November 6, 2004.

3.Hire SAIC and Haliburton on $50 million unbid contracts to 'monitor' the investigation.

4. Send Xmas cards to widows of slain CIA 'human intelligence' operatives executed upon disclosure of undercover Agent's identity.

[janekat]

7. They're thinking that this will "quiet" things down - stop the media

from talking about it.

[Brian Sweat]

8. Translation: Justice Department launches full coverup of leak

But don't worry, the CIA will shovel the dirt away as fast as they can shovel it on.

[Brotherjohn]

9. Nothing in this story that indicates it's more than just the preliminary..

... investigation announced yesterday afternoon.

The impetus for this story is that the White House has acknowledged it and is instructing their staff to preserve all e-mails, etc. (interesting how they resisted doing so before the preliminary investigation was announced).

This story even quotes the FBI as saying they are "waiting for the call, but it hasn't come yet."

Am I wrong on this? I think it's still at the preliminary investigation phase (in fact that started less than a day ago).

[Brotherjohn]

10. No, you're right. A FULL inquiry! Woohoo!!

It's made clear in the MSNBC story.
http://msnbc.com/news/973047.asp?0cv=CA01

Even though it's the Bush Justice Dept., I'm not as pessimistic as you guys. the political pressure is already so intense (from nothing to a prelim to a full inquiry in less than a day) that a special (independent) prosecutor may be in the works.

It may be the only way for Bush to avoid looking REALLY BAD on this one. Yet, of course, it is also our best chance of making him look REALLY BAD on this one.

It's the Catch 22 Bush has put himself into, just as with the Iraq lies in general. Lie often enough and boldly enough with so many people watching, and eventually, you are caught between a rock and a hard place. When the truth eventually catches up to you, you almost have to go along for fear of looking like you're still lying (see Bush's admission that Hussein and 9-11 were not linked). Yet when you go along, you only reveal how untruthful you have been in the past.

[The Backlash Cometh]

11. I've heard this before.

Several decades ago, one branch of the military and another branch of the military were pitted against each other for a contract. One branch's plans were superior to the others, but it was unlikely this information was going to get out where it would make a difference. So a fall-guy was selected to hand-carry the plans to a popular columnist. The fall-guy had no idea he was an inbetween -- didn't know that the papers were marked, "classified," and so, when he got to the newsroom and found the columnist wasn't in, he just left the documents. The columnist did recognize what he had and responsibly called it in to the authorities. The fall-guy took the hit by being relegated to some obscure place out of country. If he had really been guilty, he would have done time.

[Kool Kitty]

12. And they were told to save all

documents that were pertinent to the investigation. Like those weren't destroyed when this story first broke in July, when it first came to light.