LIBBY MANDELA IS FREE, FREE, FREE AT LAST!

Anyone who imagined Cheney wouldn't pull Bush out from under the presidential bed and force him to pardon-- or commute-- Libby's sentence must have been living on Mars for the past 7 years. Libby could easily testify against Rove and Cheney and have them both in prison. Bush would have preferred the courts to do it, but after today's appeal was turned down by 3 right-wing extremist judges, total GOP hacks of the worst variety, there was nothing that could be done but bite the bullet and do it himself.

I mean look at the judges who turned Libby down: Sentelle, Reagan's worst and most extremist appointment, suggested by Jesse Helms; Henderson, a hack appointed by Bush's father; and Walton a GOP thug appointed by Bush himself! If these guys couldn't spring Libby, no one was gonna do it. Cheney must have screamed his head off.

Hated and already judged as the worst president in history, there will be no price to pay. Maybe his approval rating will fall from 28% to 26.5%. maybe. And what does he care about the appearance of there being no justice in the country? After all, he's only the chief law enforcement officer of the nation. But Jane just asked the crucial question our whole country must confront:

I wonder what the majority of people sitting at home in their living rooms watching this stuff, who have managed to successfully pass 8th grade civics and understand the concept of “trial by jury,” think of these people. The air they breathe is awfully thin and the contempt they have for the American judicial system is palpable. What must they think of these shrieking divas who believe that justice is something that Brahmins like themselves should never be subject to? Ann Coulter bristles about “illiterate jurors” as if the great, unwashed masses are just too stoopid to be trusted with decisions of such weight.

It would be nice if they all just came out and admitted that democracy wasn’t their cup of tea because deep down, the notion really seems to repel them.

How long will it take to mend the damages doen to the American justice system by this foul regime? Not even Republicans thought Libby should get off. And over 70% of Americans thought he should serve his time.


UPDATE NUMERO UNO: SO YOU WANT TO READ BUSH'S EXCUSES?

He didn't say why he really commuted Libby's sentence. Instead his lawyers drafted a nonsensical rationale based on fallacies about sentencing guidelines. Wasn't Bush the guy who laughed when he refused to commute the death sentence of a retarded person? I guess he doesn't find Libby's predicament as humorous. Afterall, conspiring to out a CIA agent is no laughing matter, especially when it's done by the highest levels of your regime. "I respect the jury’s verdict.  But I have concluded that the prison sentence given to Mr. Libby is excessive." Gee, I bet he'd never go for my suggested sentence for Libby, Cheney and Rove, the one that entails, three blindfolds, three cigarettes and a squad of marksmen. I could see him thinking that might be excessive-- though he'd never convince me.


UPDATE II: REACTIONS TO BUSH'S COMMUTE

"The President's commutation of Scooter Libby's prison sentence does not serve justice, condones criminal conduct, and is a betrayal of trust of the American people.

"The President said he would hold accountable anyone involved in the Valerie Plame leak case. By his action today, the President shows his word is not to be believed. He has abandoned all sense of fairness when it comes to justice, he has failed to uphold the rule of law, and he has failed to hold his Administration accountable."

-Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House of Representatives

"Until now, it appeared that the President merely turned a blind eye to a high ranking Administration official leaking classified information. The President's action today makes it clear that he condones such activity. This decision is inconsistent with the rule of law and sends a horrible signal to the American people and our intelligence operatives who place their lives at risk everyday. Now that the White House can no longer argue that there is a pending criminal investigation, I expect them to be fully forthcoming with the American people about the circumstances that led to this leak and the President's decision today."

-John Conyers, Chairman, House Judiciary Committee

"The President's decision to commute Mr. Libby's sentence is disgraceful. Libby's conviction was the one faint glimmer of accountability for White House efforts to manipulate intelligence and silence critics of the Iraq War. Now, even that small bit of justice has been undone. Judge Walton correctly determined that Libby deserved to be imprisoned for lying about a matter of national security. The Constitution gives President Bush the power to commute sentences, but history will judge him harshly for using that power to benefit his own Vice President's Chief of Staff who was convicted of such a serious violation of law."

-Harry Reid, Senate Majority Leader

"I don't believe my role [as governor] is to replace the verdict of a jury with my own, unless there are new facts or evidence of which a jury was unaware, or evidence that the trial was somehow unfair."

-George W. Bush, Governor of Texas