Normalcy

On CNN as news broke about the Libby indictment, Paul Begala, Beltway fixture and apologist for all things Clinton, smiled and spoke somewhat excitedly about his time advising Clinton during Monicagate. He said how Clinton's inner-circle decided to attack Ken Starr as a sex-obsessed political partisan, and then offered advice to the current administration on how it can affect some anti-Patrick Fitzgerald spin.

Corruption is the life blood of American politics, esp at the federal level. This is taken as a given by those who benefit and profit from said corruption, so much so that they don't even view it as such. It's simple political normalcy. That Begala can speak so casually and positively about his own experience defending a corrupt president, and then toss a few ideas across the crooked aisle for good measure without anyone on CNN at least questioning his intentions shows just how fixed the whole game is, and that this is totally acceptable to those who presume to "inform" the public.

So, Libby's indicted and forced to resign, and word is that Karl Rove may be next. Huzzah. For the moment, this political scandal, like most others, is about personalities and not the system that encouraged and rewarded their deceit. If Fitzgerald goes after Cheney or even W., then maybe we get a deeper look into the squalid well. But if Iran/contra taught us anything, it's that those at the top know how to protect themselves, while those who get pinched (to the degree that they do) can later find professional redemption. Ask Ollie North and Elliott Abrams.

Maybe a year or two down the road, MSNBC, in its ongoing effort to balance conservatives with howling reactionaries, will award Libby with his own primetime show -- "Double Talk with Scooter Libby."

It's how the game works. Perfectly normal.