I predict that the full pardon will come at the traditional
time, the waning days of the Bush administration. It would have
been too cataclysmic, too dangerous to Republican futures now.

The question is, will Libby be able to delay the fine until such
time as it happens, and will he get the quarter mill back when
it does? Alternatively, will he get a lucrative consulting job
for some PAC, with a salary which just neatly covers that expense?

Once he's pardoned, he will likely be able to re-gain his license
to practice law. Until then, he'll be a 'consultant.' Should be
plenty of that work available in quiet corners during an election
year.

Ultimately, he'll be handsomely rewarded for having 'taken the
bullet' for the administration.

I'd bet he wasn't left for a minute to believe that he'd serve
any jail time. This was part of a plan, with every contingency
covered, and it hasn't played all the way out yet.