Glad you solved the mystery before the end of the book. Good for you.
Why was Armitage not indicted? I can only guess, but things that come to mind: the real "guilty" people behind the mess knew he might not be so willing to make a feeble defense and take the jail time quietly. Not every minion is willing to serve the time for their gang leader.
For someone who claims to be very knowledgeable about things you show little understanding of DC politics or clandestine social groups. A fall guy was needed, Libby was chosen because he was a "stand up guy" who would take the bullet for his boss, and so it played out. The masses were deflected and placated, the big bosses were protected, and life goes on.
Marx was wrong, religion is not the opiate of the masses, politics is. All the proof needed is on boards like this. I don't agree with everything COG says, but his underlying postulate isn't far off.
Originally Posted by Old-T
Really simple if you remember your history. The special prosecutor was supposed to get either Karl Rove or Dick Cheney or maybe both. Armitage was a friend of Colin Powell and was hired by Colin Powell. Going after him means going after the first black Secretary of State and they weren't going to get caught doing that. The evidence just wasn't there so they needed someone else to justify the expense. Scooter Libby testified under oath and under interrogation that he did not remember a conversation from earlier. Under cross examination he suddenly recalled the conversation. This lead to a perjury, obstruction, and false statements charges. He was not convicted of "outing" the analyst safely in Virginia but Senator Barack Obama believed that a special prosecutor was necessary at the time to sort things out. On a lighter note, Senator Hillary also warned the White House about releasing the names of any CIA operatives promising constitutional legal actions.