Full Fitzmas Fizzle: NYT Turns on Fitzgerald

When even that bastion of liberal thought The New York Times reports on possible wrongdoing by special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald in the Valerie Plame leak case, it's time to fold the tents and steal away into the night:

WASHINGTON, Sept. 1 — An enduring mystery of the C.I.A. leak case has been solved in recent days, but with a new twist: Patrick J. Fitzgerald, the prosecutor, knew the identity of the leaker from his very first day in the special counsel’s chair, but kept the inquiry open for nearly two more years before indicting I. Lewis Libby Jr., Vice President Dick Cheney’s former chief of staff, on obstruction charges.

Now, the question of whether Mr. Fitzgerald properly exercised his prosecutorial discretion in continuing to pursue possible wrongdoing in the case has become the subject of rich debate on editorial pages and in legal and political circles.

Mr. Fitzgerald has, so far, made no comment about the appearance of a wildly over-zealous investigation.