Editorial

FBI probe has political overtones

For the first time, the Bush administration is facing a serious and official inquiry into alleged wrong-doing by someone (possibly more than one) on the White House staff. There are some remarkable traits in this case involving spies and diplomatic intrigue that deserve special notice.

First is the fact that President Bush is well into his third year in office -- the time in any presidential term when a great deal of attention is being focused on the politics of the presidency -- and has up till now remained unscathed by any serious probes involving anything he or others close to him have done or are accused of doing.

In this day and age, scandal and innuendo have become the biggest guns in the political arsenal. From the Nixon presidency through the Clinton presidency, the use of damaging accusations have played a significant role in the sometimes bombastic day-to-day activities of political operatives who seek an advantage in the court of public opinion.

Occasionally, these issues go to real courts, even as high as the U.S. Senate sitting as an impeachment jury. But mostly the charges of gross misconduct have a much lower aim: Distracting the business of the nation when political advantage is at stake.

Second is the fact that President Bush has expressed a credible desire to find out who is responsible for leaking the identity of a CIA agent. Whoever gave the information to journalists committed a serious federal crime, and the president is just as eager to find out who did it as the FBI.

There are several levels of this investigation, and it will become important to keep these levels separate as the FBI delves deeper into its inquiry.

On one level is the issue of preserving the integrity of the CIA and the people who perform a variety of tasks in utmost secrecy. There is a reason for the federal law that bars the disclosure of information like this and imposes stiff penalties. On this level, it is the desire of everyone to find the leaker and administer whatever punishment is appropriate.

Another level is the effect of this probe on the ongoing controversy over information used by the Bush administration to justify the invasion of Iraq. The CIA agent in question is the wife of a diplomat who has embarrassed the administration by stating that part of the justification never existed.

Yet another level, of course, is the political accusations like those that became so common during the Clinton years -- and often with good reason.

A significant difference between the Clinton and Bush administrations, however, is becoming clear as the FBI probe into the CIA leak continues. That is the response and actions of the men who occupy the Oval Office. Clinton denied facts and thwarted probes at every turn. Bush, in this instance, has ordered White House staffers to cooperate and preserve documents that might be useful to the probe.

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