Who's Who

According to David Brooks, the Plame Leak Scandal was all just a game of Who's In and Who's Out in Washington.

[Y]ou must always remember that it’s better to be One of Us than One of Them. Washington attracts a community of smart public-service-oriented people. This permanent community has its own set of mores. It’s important to be politically temperate. It’s important, even though you supported the Iraq war in 2003, to act as if you opposed it all along. Above all one must engage in the off-the-record gossip and background leaking that important people use to spin each other while pretending they are not spinning.

Members of the Washington community, like members of all decent communities, protect one another. Richard Armitage is a member of this community. Karl Rove is not. When a scandal hits One of Us, it is like Pepto-Bismol on an upset stomach. When a scandal hits One of Them, it’s like a match on gasoline.

I hope, dear reader, I have explained some of the rituals of our political culture. And I hope you will not judge us harshly. We only destroy those who are unfashionable.

So it doesn't really matter whether or not classified information was leaked from the White House to the press in order to destroy the reputation and career of a CIA agent because her husband had the temerity to embarrass the president (after all, he's perfectly capable of doing a pretty good job of it on his own). No, it's just one big parlor game to them.