Libby Sentence Commuted
According to the Washington Post, President Bush has commuted former Cheney aid I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby. He left intact probation provisions and the fine.
I greet this news with mixed emotions. On the one hand I’m tired of lengthy investigations in Washington that produce nothing but convictions for lying to investigators and grand juries. Consider what happened to President Clinton under those circumstances. At the same time, lying to investigators is a pretty serious problem, and what’s more, in this case the issue is the leaking of an important piece of classified information. With Cheney’s office right now behaving as though they are above the law on that point, I dislike sending the signal that this type of behavior is OK.
For the most part, it appears that nobody will be held responsible for the actual crime.
I would have liked to have seen Richard Armitage prosecuted, since he was the one who did the actual leaking. I simply do not understand why Fitzgerald gave him a free pass on it; that was the point of the whole investigation, and he learned it about two months in – then promptly ignored it. While I obviously am not pro-perjury, I don’t think Libby should have been treated more harshly than Sandy Berger was.
I agree with you on Armitage. My problem is how frequently we have investigations in Washington in which nobody is punished for the actual crime investigated but many people are punished for perjury or obstruction of justice. It may just be that there is a high density of liars in Washington!
It may just be that there is a high density of liars in Washington!
On that, I wholeheartedly agree!!