Will Libby Scoot Off With a Pardon?

Although I. Lewis (Scooter) Libby pleaded not guilty in the CIA leak scandal last week--and brought on a legal team that specializes in winning high-profile public-integrity cases--the talk in Washington is already whether George W. Bush might pardon the Vice President's former chief of staff if he is convicted of perjury, obstruction of justice or other charges. Republicans involved in the case say the scenario most conducive to a pardon would be a guilty plea by Libby to head off a messy trial in which Dick Cheney's testimony might be sought.

The White House, which ordered aides with security clearances to attend hourlong "refresher lectures" on ethics this week, says no such discussions have begun. But people who know Bush well tell TIME that he may follow the example of previous Presidents who have used the end of their terms to pardon loyalists who ran afoul of the law while doing political battle. Meanwhile, Bush's appetite for pardons is growing: after granting none in 2001 and 2002, he approved four in 2003, 22 in 2004 and 29 this year. And Libby, a lawyer, knows the ropes. He called his client, fugitive financier Marc Rich, in January 2001 to congratulate him on a beat-the-clock pardon from Bill Clinton.