July 03, 2007
Bush Intervenes In Libby Conviction After All
UPDATED.
Under intense pressure from his base to stand up for a trusted aide, President Bush was damned if he did and damned if he did not pardon I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, the former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney. Early Monday evening, the self-appointed Decider quietly announced he would seek the middle road.
Safely ensconced in the White House, Bush announced via written statement that he was commuting Libby's 30-month sentence, just hours after a federal court denied Libby's request to postpone reporting to prison during the appeals process. Many White House reporters had not yet left Kennebunkport, Maine, where Bush had been hosting Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier in the day.
"My decision to commute his prison sentence leaves in place a harsh punishment for Mr. Libby,'' the president's statement read. "The consequences of his felony conviction on his former life as a lawyer, public servant, and private citizen will be long-lasting."
Bush emphasized that Libby would still be on probation and would still have to pay $250,000 in fines. Libby also has millions in legal fees hanging over his head; conservative allies including GOP strategist Mary Matalin and future presidential contender Fred Thompson have raised funds on his behalf.
Bush's conservative base has long derided the federal prosecution of Libby on perjury and obstruction of justice charges as trivial and politically motivated, particularly since the original inquiry had to do with the more serious allegation of blowing a CIA agent's cover. The special prosecutor in the case, Patrick Fitzgerald, declined to charge anyone with the leak of former CIA officer Valerie Plame's identity.
The White House was accused of intentionally giving Plame away in an effort to discredit her husband, Ambassador Joseph Wilson, a prominent critic of the administration's argument for war against Iraq. Many Democrats remain convinced that something untoward occurred in Cheney's office with regard to Plame and Wilson.
Democrats are not alone in believing Libby deserves to go to jail. A FOX News/Opinion Dynamics poll (subscription) last month shows Americans opposed granting Libby a pardon by 47 percent to 20 percent; 33 percent did not know. Respondents in a March Gallup poll (subscription) were even more decided against Libby: They opposed a pardon 67 percent to 21 percent.
House Judiciary Chairman John Conyers quickly expressed his displeasure with the commutation. "Until now, it appeared that the president merely turned a blind eye to a high-ranking administration leaking classified information. The president's action today makes it clear that he condones such activity," the Michigan Democrat said in a statement.
(AP rounds up more reaction from the Hill, and Earlybird's Pundits and Editorials section (subscription) has commentary from editorial boards of major papers around the country.)
Libby's backers have argued that the sentence and fine are excessive, and that in most cases lying to a jury or federal investigator to protect oneself is considered a secondary offense. "In making the sentencing decision, the district court rejected the advice of the probation office, which recommended a lesser sentence and the consideration of factors that could have led to a sentence of home confinement or probation," Bush noted in his statement. "I respect the jury's verdict. But I have concluded that the prison sentence given to Mr. Libby is excessive."
In a prescient op-ed that appeared in the Washington Post last month, former federal prosecutor William Otis advised the president to commute Libby's sentence rather than issue a pardon.
"The case was proved, and the conviction should not simply be wiped away. Yet the sentence is another matter," Otis wrote. "He is by no stretch a danger to the community, as 'danger' is commonly understood. He did not commit his crime out of greed or personal malice.
"A sense of proportionality argues in favor of eliminating Libby's prison term," Otis concluded.
Thompson, a member of the Libby Legal Defense Trust's advisory board, said in a written statement, "While for a long time I have urged a pardon for Scooter, I respect the president's decision. This will allow a good American, who has done a lot for his country, to resume his life," National Review's Hillary Spot blog reports.
On June 5, Libby was sentenced for perjury and obstruction of justice. When asked if Bush would issue a pardon, a White House spokeswoman said, "The president has not intervened so far in any other criminal matter and he is going to decline to do so now."
That vaguely worded statement left the door open for Bush to change his mind, as he has likely done with the knowledge that a political price will be paid. But with his approval ratings all but flatlined, it is probably fair to say he has little to lose by taking a stand for a friend.
Posted at 8:35 AM
Posted to:
Bush Administration, Crime, Dick Cheney, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, President Bush
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