WASHINGTON, D.C. ? Granting a former White House aide’s demands for classified documents to help his defense in the CIA leak investigation would torpedo the case, the prosecutor is arguing.

Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald suggests that allowing I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby access to the documents – many of which Libby read or wrote while working for Vice President Dick Cheney – would have a “breathtaking” impact on national security.

In arguments filed late Thursday, Fitzgerald said Libby’s lawyers were trying to derail the perjury and obstruction case.

Libby, 55, is charged with lying about how he learned CIA operative Valerie Plame’s identity and when he subsequently told reporters.

Libby’s trial is set for January 2007.