Leak Prosecutor: 'It's Not Over'

Libby Indicted In CIA Leak Case; Rove Still Under Investigation

(CBS/AP) 
Fitzgerald's investigation is nearing an end, and the grand jury he used for the past two years expired Friday. But he declined to address Rove's fate. The prosecutor is still weighing whether to charge Mr. Bush's closest adviser with false statements, lawyers said.

Friday's charges stemmed from a two-year investigation into whether Rove, Libby or any other administration officials knowingly revealed Plame's identity in summer 2003 to punish her husband, Joseph Wilson, for his criticism of the Bush administration's use of prewar Iraq intelligence.

In the end, like so many other Washington scandals, prosecutors zeroed in on an alleged cover-up.

Libby, 55, was charged with five felonies alleging obstruction of justice, perjury to a grand jury and making false statements to FBI agents. He could face a maximum of 30 years in prison and $1.25 million fines if convicted.

Fitzgerald suggested that proving Libby lied to the grand jury would be an easier case to make than showing he intentionally revealed a secret officer's cover. Specifically, the prosecutors alleged Libby concocted a false story that he got Plame's name from reporters and passed it on to others when in fact he got the information from classified sources.

"Mr. Libby's story that he was at the tail end of a chain of phone calls, passing on from one reporter what he heard from another, was not true. It was false," the prosecutor said. "And he lied about it afterward, under oath, repeatedly."

The closest to bright news Friday for the White House was the word from Rove's attorney that the presidential confidant was not being indicted along with Libby.

Fitzgerald has been looking for weeks at whether Rove gave false testimony during his four grand jury appearances. Rove's lawyer waged a furious effort in recent weeks to convince the prosecutor that any misstatements were unintentional or were corrected.

"The special counsel has advised Mr. Rove that he has made no decision about whether or not to bring charges," attorney Robert Luskin said. "We are confident that when the special counsel finishes his work, he will conclude that Mr. Rove has done nothing wrong."

Libby's indictment paves the way for a trial that could renew the focus on the administration's faulty rationale for going to war against Iraq — the erroneous assertion that Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction.

Libby is considered Cheney's alter ego, a chief architect of the war with Iraq. A trial would give the public a rare glimpse into Cheney's influential role in the West Wing and his behind-the-scenes lobbying for the war.

Democrats suggested the indictment was just the tip of the iceberg. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said the case was "about how the Bush White House manufactured and manipulated intelligence in order to bolster its case for the war in Iraq and to discredit anyone who dared to challenge the president."

Hoping to contain the damage, some Republicans distanced themselves from Libby. Others said the legal system should run its course.

"It's time to stop the leaks and spin and turn Washington into one big recovery meeting where people say what they mean and mean what they say," said Rep. Jim Ramstad, R-Minn.

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., said through a spokesman that the Senate won't investigate the CIA leak.