Official A

If you read the entire text of Libby's indictment, you might have noticed a person referred to as "Official A." From the AP, that mysterious Official A is none other than Karl Rove.

But why the pseudonym? Is it kind of like the "player to be named later" in a trade--i.e. maybe Fitzgerald is not positive it's Rove, and therefore cannot identify him as such, but it is clear that someone did these things ascribed to Official A. By using the variable, Fitzgerald's indictment will hold even if Karl Rove cannot be held to have done these things, I guess.

However, if it is Rove, he seems to be only tangentially involved with the Libby/Miller conversations and instead would be part of an entirely separate line of questioning--the Novak column. Here's what Official A did:

On or about July 10 or July 11, 2003, LIBBY spoke to a senior official in the White House (“Official A”) who advised LIBBY of a conversation Official A had earlier that week with columnist Robert Novak in which Wilson’s wife was discussed as a CIA employee involved in Wilson’s trip. LIBBY was advised by Official A that Novak would be writing a story about Wilson’s wife.

Neither Novak nor 'Official A' are mentioned again in the indictment.