Bush spares Libby from 2 1/2-year prison term

[Anonymous Idiot Savant]

SURPRISE!

WASHINGTON - President Bush commuted the sentence of former aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby Monday, sparing him from a 2 1/2-year prison term in the CIA leak case.

Bush left intact a $250,000 fine and two years probation for Libby, according to a senior White House official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the decision had not been announced.

"My decision to commute his prison sentence leaves in place a harsh punishment for Mr. Libby. The reputation he gained through his years of public service and professional work in the legal community is forever damaged," Bush said in a statement. "I respect the jury's verdict. But I have concluded that the prison sentence given to Mr. Libby is excessive."

Bush's move came hours after a federal appeals panel ruled Libby could not delay his prison term in the CIA leak case. That decision put the pressure on the president, who had been sidestepping calls by Libby's allies to pardon the former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney.

Libby was convicted in March of lying to authorities and obstructing the investigation into the 2003 leak of CIA operative's identity. He was the highest-ranking White House official ordered to prison since the Iran-Contra affair.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19570081/

[Anonymous Idiot Savant]

I knew he would pardon Libby, but I always figured he would at least wait till the end of his term, but that swaggering bastard didn't even wait for a friday.

... and justice for all.

[suedanim]

The shit's foul, but I knew he throw Libby a big, juicy bone to keep his mouth shut. I just thought it'd be on his way out, but then again, maybe George isn't on his way out...

[LiberalNation]

well not on his way out till 08.

[Gilles de Rais]

Originally Posted by Anonymous Idiot Savant

"I respect the jury's verdict."

yeah, right...

[ninjalooter1701]

Originally Posted by Anonymous Idiot Savant

I knew he would pardon Libby, but I always figured he would at least wait till the end of his term, but that swaggering bastard didn't even wait for a friday.

... and justice for all.

That's what I thought too...The end of his term.

You can expect a lot more pardons to come.

[suedanim]

Thats why we need the sonsabitches prosecuted under a Democrat held WH and Congress. This is foul and its just a little taste of how much more foul it will be, if anybody else is prosecuted.

I wonder how Fitzgerald feels about his efforts now.

[ninjalooter1701]

Just announced. It's official.

[donquixote99]

My. The wailing and gnashing of teeth is fairly DEAFENING!


Excuse the attitude, I'd of course lile Bush & co. to roast for true cause, that is, for making unjustified war. But I always thought the 'Plame Affair' was hyped beyond all recognition by critics.

[LiberalNation]

not to mention it's not like clinton never pardoned anyone. I'm sure the repubs felt the same way then.

[jpn of Seattle]

I like Edward's reaction the best:

Former Senator John Edwards called the president “clinically incapable of understanding that mistakes have consequences:”
“President Bush has just sent exactly the wrong signal to the country and the world. In George Bush’s America, it is apparently okay to misuse intelligence for political gain, mislead prosecutors and lie to the FBI. George Bush and his cronies think they are above the law and the rest of us live with the consequences. The cause of equal justice in America took a serious blow today.”

[Waabone]

Bill done a couple of them his own self I see...

http://www.usdoj.gov/pardon/clintonpardon_grants.htm

[Diemos3211]

On a more interesting note (more interesting than wagging of fingers and/or tipping hats at least):
Pardons and such are generally something that Presidents do not do until they are sure that they are totally done for as a political force (usually the very last days of their term). Does this commutation mean that Bush and his advisors think he's totally done for, so they might as well do as they wish? Does the fact that it's a commutation of sentence and NOT a pardon mean that they think they are still in the game? Does the commutation rather than sentence mean that Libby forced their hand by threatening to spill some beans so they compromised and kept him out of jail?

[ninjalooter1701]

Originally Posted by Waabone

Bill done a couple of them his own self I see...

http://www.usdoj.gov/pardon/clintonpardon_grants.htm

I heard that President Ford did some too...

[Anonymous Idiot Savant]

Originally Posted by Diemos3211

On a more interesting note (more interesting than wagging of fingers and/or tipping hats at least):
Pardons and such are generally something that Presidents do not do until they are sure that they are totally done for as a political force (usually the very last days of their term). Does this commutation mean that Bush and his advisors think he's totally done for, so they might as well do as they wish? Does the fact that it's a commutation of sentence and NOT a pardon mean that they think they are still in the game? Does the commutation rather than sentence mean that Libby forced their hand by threatening to spill some beans so they compromised and kept him out of jail?

Libby was Cheney's #1 man and he stood tall and protected his boss.

Cheney has said many times that he has no plans for public office after Bush's term is over.

Cheney isn't accountable to anyone since he was never elected, and apparently doesn't belong to any branch of government.

Cheney could give a fuck what anyone thinks about what he says or does.

Libby is going to be taken care of for the rest of his life because of what he did (the $250,000 fine means nothing), Google "Libby defense fund" etc, so a commutation is just as good for him and don't forget Bush can still pardon him before he leaves office to clear the felony charges.

Lastly Bush's approvel ratings aren't going to get any lower because of this, and even if they do so what? Does it really matter at this point? I wouldn't think so, and I bet they all feel the same way too.

But who knows, maybe this of all things will be the feather that brings it all crashing down, provided there is enough public outrage.... but even then it would still be a longshot.

Anywho, its funny that this happened right after the Post's week long story about Darth Cheney the shadow president, this is sure to add more fuel to that fire... again for all the good it might do.

Lastly I almost forgot that the 4th is only another day away, so doing it now is just as good, if not better, than waiting for a friday.

[Francois Cellier]

From the Guardian

Saved from prison by Bush's favour: the White House aide who lied to a grand jury

· Rightwing pressure wins commutation for Scooter
· Democrats say president has trampled on the law

Ewen MacAskill in Washington
The Guardian
Tuesday July 3, 2007


George Bush created a political storm yesterday by intervening to stop the disgraced White House aide, Lewis "Scooter" Libby, from going to jail. The president, in a statement, said the prison sentence imposed on Mr Libby, who was found guilty of perjury in a complex spy case linked to the Iraq war, was too harsh.

Mr Bush, who made the statement after leaving a summit with the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, at Kennebunkport, Maine, said: "I respect the jury's verdict. But I have concluded that the prison sentence is excessive."

Mr Bush was under pressure from the vice-president, Dick Cheney, and other conservatives to commute the two-and-a-half year jail sentence imposed last month. When Mr Libby was sentenced, television and radio talk shows were innundated with calls of support for the former White House aide from Republicans.

Conservative commentators raged against the judge, Reggie Walton, and the prosecutor, Patrick Fitzgerald, and called on Mr Bush to act on behalf of a loyal servant. But Democrats and others yesterday accused the president of operating with double standards, protecting a convicted felon from jail because of his association with the White House.

Mr Bush's decision is likely to hurt his presidency further. With 19 months left in office, he has suffered the most consistently low poll ratings of almost any modern president, is running an unpopular war and last week lost his last chance to bring in a major piece of domestic legislation - reform of the immigration law.


Probation

He commuted Mr Libby's jail sentence, but did not grant him a pardon. Mr Libby still faces a $250,000 (£125,000) fine and will remain on probation.

"My decision to commute his prison sentence leaves in place a harsh punishment for Mr Libby," the president said. "The reputation he gained through his years of public service and professional work in the legal community is forever damaged. His wife and young children have also suffered immensely ... The consequences of his felony conviction on his former life as a lawyer, public servant and private citizen will be long-lasting."

The White House move was prompted by a federal court decision earlier yesterday not to allow Mr Libby to remain at home pending the outcome of an appeal. This would have meant that he would have been heading to jail within the next few weeks. It was expected he would have served out his time in a minimum security jail in one of the states close to Washington DC, in Virginia, Maryland or New Jersey.

His strategy until then had appeared to be to string out the appeal until January 2009 in expectation of a pardon when Mr Bush left office.

Harry Reid, the Democratic leader in the Senate, described Mr Bush's action as "disgraceful". Charles Schumer, a Democratic senator, echoed this: "As independence day nears, we're reminded that one of the principles our forefathers fought for was equal justice under the law. This commutation completely tramples on that principle.

But Republicans such as Fred Thompson, one of the frontrunners for the Republican nomination for the 2008 presidential race, welcomed it, noting Mr Libby's long service to the US.


Covert

The former ambassador Richard Carlson, who helped to raise millions for Mr Libby's defence fund, said: "That's fantastic. It's a great relief. "Scooter" Libby did not deserve to go to prison and I'm glad the president had the courage to do this."

Mr Libby, who was Mr Cheney's chief of staff, was found guilty of obstructing a federal investigation into the "outing" of the covert CIA operative Valerie Plame. The suspicion at the time, though never confirmed, was that the Bush administration revealed her identity to take revenge on her husband, Joe Wilson, a former ambassador who had publicly dismissed as rubbish the president's claim that Iraq had been seeking uranium from Niger to build a nuclear weapon.

In his statement, Mr Bush said he had remained silent throughout the case until the legal process was exhausted. "But with the denial of bail being upheld and incarceration imminent, I believe it is now important to react to that decision," he said.

The president ran over the arguments for and against the sentence. He said some critics felt the punishment did not fit the crime because Mr Libby was a first-time offender with years of exceptional public service. Others "argue, correctly, that our entire system of justice relies on people telling the truth," Mr Bush said.

"They say that had Mr Libby only told the truth, he would have never been indicted in the first place." But he added: "I have made my own evaluation. In preparing for the decision I am announcing, I have carefully weighed these arguments and the circumstances surrounding this case."


Timeline: the road to jail and back

February 2002 Joseph Wilson, a former US ambassador, travels to Niger to investigate claims that Saddam Hussein tried to buy uranium. Wilson tells the US government that the claims are based on forged documents

January 2003 George Bush says in his State of the Union address: "The British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa"

June 2003 A US government source tells New York Times reporter Judith Miller that Wilson's wife, Valerie Plame, worked for the CIA

July 2003 Wilson goes public about his Niger trip. Seven days later Plame is "outed" as a CIA operative

September 2003 A criminal investigation is launched to find out who leaked Plame's identity

October 2003 Libby is interviewed by federal agents

March 2004 Libby testifies to a grand jury and denies deliberately leaking Plame's identity

October 2005 Libby is indicted by the FBI on five counts: obstruction of justice and two counts each of false statement and two counts of perjury

September 2006 Former US deputy secretary of state Richard Armitage confesses to leaking Plame's name

March 2007 Libby is found guilty on four out of five charges.

June Libby given a 30-month prison sentence

July 2 George Bush commutes sentence, sparing him jail. A $250,000 fine stands.

[kramsret]

And pundits wonder why there's such a partisan split in America.

One party has sold their patriotic souls for partisan loyalty. Democrats haven't.

The Republicans defending this decision on record are beyond belief. They cannot defend it. But they do.

And Bush. Jesus Christ, he made the most undefendable decision he could. Bush obviously thinks Libby is guilty of obstruction of justice, otherwise Bush would have pardoned him. But no....Bush just believes that HIS guy shouldn't have to do time for obstructing justice.

Or maybe Bush is being evenhanded after all...he just doesn't think the crime rises to the level of a lied about blowjob.

[Dawildman]

Originally Posted by LiberalNation

not to mention it's not like clinton never pardoned anyone. I'm sure the repubs felt the same way then.

Folks note the ""Clinton did it" "Clinton did it" "Clinton did it" "Clinton did it" "Clinton did it" "Clinton did it" "Clinton did it" "Clinton did it" "Clinton did it" "Clinton did it" Clinton did it"

Mantra from the right wing nutcases. It's ALL they have. From top to bottom EVERYTHING that our "liberalnation" member has wished to occur under the neo conservative agenda has failed miserably.

And his response to every DISASTER this lying cowardly evil president does is to blame a former president whose popularity ratings percentage surges between two to three times that of the current idiot in chief.

Next on the agenda; Look for "liberalnation" to distance himself from bush.

[ninjalooter1701]

Originally Posted by Dawildman

""Clinton did it" "Clinton did it" "Clinton did it" "Clinton did it" "Clinton did it" "Clinton did it" "Clinton did it" "Clinton did it" "Clinton did it" "Clinton did it" Clinton did it"

That's an apt summary of 2000 to 2003.

[LiberalNation]

Clinton did that too. So what the president does have the right under the law to do these kinda things for his buddies.