Not a single person has demanded that the real leaker of Plame's name, Richard Armitage, be charged with a crime.

Jeez, the hypocrisy is just stinkin' up the place!

From the 'Marc Rich' wikipedia entry...

During hearings after Rich's pardon, Lewis "Scooter" Libby, who had represented Rich from 1985 until the spring of 2000, denied that Rich had violated the tax laws, but criticized him for trading with Iran at a time when that country was holding U.S. hostages. In his letter to the New York Times, Bill Clinton explained why he pardoned Rich, noting that U.S. tax professors Bernard Wolfman of Harvard Law School and Martin Ginsburg of Georgetown University Law Center concluded that no crime was committed, and that the companies' tax reporting position was reasonable. [New York Times, February 18, 2001][2]. In the same letter Clinton listed Libby as one of three "distinguished Republican lawyers" who supported Rich's pardon.

In 2007 Libby himself received a presidential commutation of sentence following his perjury conviction in the so-called Plame affair.

Anonymous... the facts do not support your delusions.

The Marc Rich spin is just the latest diversion tactic from rightwingnut central.

Scooter Libby who was VP Cheney's Chief Of Staff, was convicted of perjury and obstruction of justice for his part in the furtherance of a scheme that was orchestrated by the VP and WH and was designed to reveal the identity of a covert operative as political payback against her husband, who revealed the one of the key claims being used as justification for the Iraq war II was well...bullshit.

To try and compare Bush's commutation and probable eventual pardon of Libby to Clinton's pardon of Marc Rich as if they were somehow equal, is simply assinine and just Pugs lame spin.

"Nonviolent offenders should not be serving hard time in our prisons. They need to be diverted from our prison system."--Sen. Hillary Clinton, Democratic debate, June 28

But what a difference a few days--and political opportunism--makes.

"Today's decision is yet another example that this Administration simply considers itself above the law. . . . This commutation sends the clear signal that in this Administration, cronyism and ideology trump competence and justice."--Sen. Hillary Clinton, press release, July 2

...recommend sugarless gum for their patients who chew gum.

That means 20% of the well-educated, duly licensed dentists out there are either maddenly incompetent or appallingly unethical. In either case, these dentists are of no good use to anyone.

This administration and its behaviors often approach this threshhold of unacceptability. Its chief executive is barely capable of walking AND chewing gum at the same time.

At the risk of sounding like the present members of the legislative branch, I vote that we END this travesty and dispense sugarless gum to all dental patients who chew gum.

It's "fourth box" time, my friends. That's the tooth, the whole tooth, and nothing but the tooth.

Compare this to Clinton's pardoning of multiple terrorists guilty of murder to help Hillary's political career.

Until you do, STFU.

Well that's just too stupid to seriously comment on.

Four Out of Five Dentists...

...recommend sugarless gum for their patients who chew gum.

That means 20% of the well-educated, duly licensed dentists out there are either maddenly incompetent or appallingly unethical. In either case, these dentists are of no good use to anyone. --Volaar

No, quite simply those 20 percent either expressed no opinion or expressly recommended against chewing gum--period. That statistical claim therefore remains true without having to come to the ludicrous conclusion that you just came to.

Brain cells. A terrible thing to waste.

Well that's just too stupid to seriously comment on.

-- KStone

Okay, enlighten me. Why is it just "too stupid"?

This is Scooty's payment for taking a bullet for the real criminals. They are, after all, so very loyal to their own.

Good lord - have you (anonymous, etc.) no shame? The issue at hand is the what Scooter Libby did and how he was rewarded. Regardless any actions of any previous individuals (from Stalin to Clinton to Mao) this commutation of sentence by the President is out and out wrong.

It violates the spirit if not the exact letter of the law.

It violates the trust "WE THE PEOPLE" place in our executive branch.

It violates our intellect to be given false reasons... I'd have a shred (only a shred) of respect for George W if he came right out and said, "I'm commuting his sentence because I can, period."

Spare me and everybody else your whining excuse of "He/She did it so it's okay if I do it too!"

Well, Der Brownshirter, you are about to get your wish.

But don't expect it up here.

It's coming from over your shoulder, from your rearview mirror, and from a place you haven't thought to look.

Your paranoia will only prolong your suffering. But I understand you fellows have always been good at that sort of thing.

There are those who will always suffer, those who insist that the world is filled with winners and losers -- then they make the whole world losers by inflicting themselves on the general population.

When everyone wins, der Brownshirter, you will be in a safe place where all the spoons and knives are counted after every meal.

Here's drooling at you.

In his letter to the New York Times, Bill Clinton explained why he pardoned Rich, noting that U.S. tax professors Bernard Wolfman of Harvard Law School and Martin Ginsburg of Georgetown University Law Center concluded that no crime was committed, and that the companies' tax reporting position was reasonable.

Rich was not just charged with tax evasion. He was charged with Wire fraud, mail fraud, racketeering, racketeering conspiracy, criminal forfeiture and trading with Iran in violation of trade embargo--all in addition to a charge of tax fraud.

Yet more barnyard byproducts pretending to be an actual argument.

And he has been rewarded. He was the designated fall guy for the treachery of Bush and Cheney. This administration reminds me of Goodfellas. Gonzales couldn't remember a thing and so protected his bosses. Bush and Cheney are now rewarding him for his loyalty. Libby too is being rewarded for his loyalty and OF COURSE Bush will give him a full pardon, right before he leaves office and maybe sooner. Libby will be well taken care of for the rest of his life..so he doesn't write a book. As long as Gonzales and Libby don't even think of writing tell all books, they will probably remain well off and alive.