'Full cooperation' should mean full cooperation

Now that the Valerie Plame investigation has been turned over to a special prosecutor and John Ashcroft has recuse himself from any involvement in the case, it looks like we're starting to see some progress - at least on the Justice Deparment's end of things. It's not so clear what's happening from the White House end of things.

The Justice Department has started asking administration officials to sign a form stating that they want journalists to cooperate with the investigation and to not claim journalistic privilege when questioned by authorities. Bush's press secretary, Scott McLellan, isn't saying, however, whether Bush feels those who are asked to sign the forms need to or not.

McClellan said Bush has directed his aides to "cooperate fully in this investigation." Citing an ongoing investigation, however, he would not say whether the president thinks that extends to signing the forms.

"That's asking a specific question about matters that should be directed to the career officials at the Department of Justice," McClellan said. "The president has always said that leaking classified information is a serious matter, and certainly no one wants to get to the bottom of this more than he does."

If the aides are not guilty, then there should be no harm in signing the releases. Bush has often said he doesn't want to see leaks coming out of the White House, and that he considers leaks to be a serious matter. Releasing journalists from any pledge of confidentially might help accomplish that. Unless, of course, Bush means that he only wants to stop the leaks that he doesn't approve of - and that the leak of Plame's status as an undercover operative is one that he has no problem with.