That's what "reasonable doubt" is all about

For those who may be wondering, yes, I do know that Karl Rove won't be charged by Patrick Fitzgerald. I just haven't said anything about it because I don't see much of anything to say.

It's a lot like the O.J. Simpson case -- no matter how much outside spectators like you and I might believe the defendant is guilty or innocent (cue up the Quintessons!), that means diddly-squat to the folks making the decision, the folks who have examined the evidence in greater detail than we have. And if the jury or the prosecutor doesn't believe there's enough evidence to convict or charge, that's the way the ball bounces. *Shrug*

Of course, like the Simpson case, I strongly suspect Karl Rove is guilty as sin. We know for a fact that Rove is guilty of lying to the special prosecutor -- as Joshua Marshall points out,

The question going back three years ago now is whether Karl Rove knowingly participated in leaking the identity of a covert CIA operative for the purpose of discrediting a political opponent who was revealing information about the White House's use of intelligence in the lead-up to the Iraq War.

That was the issue. From the beginning, Rove, through Scott McClellan, denied that he did any of that. There weren't even any clever circumlocutions. He just lied. From admissions from Rove, filings in the Libby case, and uncontradicted reportage, we know as clearly as we ever can that Rove did do each of those things.

However, "lying to the grand jury" was not the charge here, any my own "strong feelings" don't factor into the equation. The bigger charge -- the one that apparently Mr. Fitzgerald didn't feel he had sufficient evidence for -- was the question of whether Rove actively aided in the uncovering of Plame's identity. And while lying to the grand jury is mighty suspicious, it's not the same thing.

Of course, just because Patrick Fitzgerald won't level charges doesn't mean Karl Rove is as innocent as a newborn babe, either, just as the not-guilty verdict in the O.J. Simpson case hasn't cleared the storm clouds hanging over his reputation. And unlike Simpson, Rove's got a lot more clouds in his past.

If nothing else, Patrick Fitzgerald has demonstrated a level of nonpartisan integrity that Kenneth Starr could only dream of.