In a sense the outing of CIA agent Valerie Wilson, aka Plame, is just another part of the entire triumph of politics over substance in the Bush White House.  This administration is driven by the desire to obtain and wield power, but has little understanding of what to with it.

So the appointment of political cronies to public safety positions is tollerated, or sycophant staffers as Supreme Court nominees, huge budget deficits are driven up as political "due," and national security assets are attacked if that advances the administartion's political interest.  The Boston Globe picks up on the connection in an analysis piece:

This leadership strategy involves rallying intense groups of supporters and striking out against critics. It helped win President Bush many close votes in Congress in his first term and a narrow, hard-fought reelection victory.

But when the White House applied the same approach to building the case for the Iraq war, it found itself in battles not just with Democrats but also with parts of its own government, including the CIA.

The fierce prowar leanings of Libby, combined with the partisan warfare perfected by presidential adviser Karl Rove, led to a legal and political disaster for the administration.

The Plame scandal is a dirct product of the Bush/Rove political strategy and part of a larger pattern of failure only now unforlding.