RAW STORY

WASHINGTON -- Questions about the outcome of a federal probe into the leaking of a CIA agent's identity could linger into the fall, creating a long stretch of uncertainty for President Bush and his team on a sensitive topic, the Wall Street Journal splashes on page A4 in Monday's editions. Excerpts follow.

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There is no sign Mr. Bush himself has sustained much damage yet, and thus far, the complications for the White House aren't great. But Democrats are sure to try to use the time to sow doubts about the president's team and erode his public support, already damaged by the conflict in Iraq and high gasoline prices.

Lawyers involved in the matter indicate that special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald has kept the nearly two-year-old investigation going mostly to obtain information from Time magazine reporter Matthew Cooper and New York Times reporter Judith Miller.

Mr. Cooper said Messrs. Rove and Libby both gave him confirmation that the wife of former diplomat Joseph Wilson, a critic of President Bush's push for war in Iraq, worked for the Central Intelligence Agency. This contradicted past public denials of their involvement by the White House.

Ms. Miller remains jailed over her refusal to cooperate. The grand jury's term ends in October, but could be extended for six months if prosecutors believe there is a reason to continue. Ms. Miller could face more time if prosecutors decide to seek criminal-contempt charges. Mr. Rove's attorney, Robert Luskin, said that generally speaking, it wouldn't be unusual for a federal prosecutor to hold the current grand jury over.

There also have been indications for at least a year that Mr. Libby told prosecutors that he learned of the agent's identity from a journalist. One who was asked about that last year, NBC's Tim Russert, repeated yesterday on "Meet the Press" that he wasn't Mr. Libby's source. It's possible that Mr. Fitzgerald wants to find out if Ms. Miller was Mr. Libby's source.

Originally published on Monday July 25, 2005.