"The Scooter Libby decision was, I thought, a fair and balanced decision."

Bush's Scooter Libby decision, of course. Not the decision of Patrick Fitzgerald, Judge Walton and a jury of Libby's peers. Bush knows best!

I'm aware of the fact that perhaps somebody in the administration did disclose the name of that person.

In other words, at the very least, Bush knows that somebody in the White House committed treason.

And we're supposed to simply let that rest? You know these guys can feel the water in the pot getting hotter, which is why their "gut feelings" about heightened possibilities of an Al-Qaida attack are all the more disturbing.

There's another way to read what Bush said--that he thought Libby's conviction (but not his sentence) was "fair and balanced." This would be consistent with his recent sentiments that the Libby jury's decision should stand but that the sentence itself should not.

Of course, Bush's "logic" is only superficially consistent. If a jury saw fit to convict Libby of a crime that generally brings sentences similar to what Libby received, how does a commutation preserve the jury's decision? In fact, Bush's commutation was a thin-veiled attempt at taking the moral high road. "Unlike the Clinton administration," Bush seems to be saying, "we honor the decisions of our legal system." But Bush neglects to add that if he doesn't like the punishments that those decisions include, he feels at liberty to just wipe them away.

If Bush truly thought that the conviction was fair and balanced, he would have allowed for a sentence consistent with that which is frequently meted out for the same crime. That he did not puts the lie to his spin.

I'd guess that Bush's logic runs along the lines of there being extenuating circumstances that he is aware of concerning Scooter's case (the circumstance is that he knows who released Plame's name, and it wasn't Libby, who was and continues to just follow orders). Ergo, it's fair that he get tagged for something, but not jail. Not for following orders.

Of course, it's a load of codswallup. It's the sort of "reasoning" that doesn't belong in a public servant's lexicon. It puts personal loyalties before loyalties to the ideals of this country. Unfortunately, that also happens to be status quo for the Bush administration.

I think there's a double meaning here, though maybe not an intentional one:

I think Bush meant, and can fairly be read as saying, that the jury decision was "fair and balanced".

To read his statement as saying the commutation was "fair and balanced" is funny, but probably not intentional. Though it sure took FOXNEWS reasoning to get there.

It's becoming increasingly clear to me that either the Dems are allowing these kinds of transgressions to go unchecked because they themselves crave the current level of power amassed at the Exec. level or they are truthfully all one in the same: Dems=Repubs. I've run out of ways to think of why we haven't seen any articles of impeachment other than they have something secretive and nefarious to gain by not impeaching. Logic is simply defying this issue as the clock runs out of time to actually do something about these flagrant criminals. So, if the Pelosi/Reid led Dems can't or won't do what's right for this nation, who exactly will?

sucks. They have no credibility left, none.

What do you want them to do? Send cops into the White House to arrest the president? On what evidence? Everyone who is testifying is certainly not giving names, and they're doing their best to obstruct justice. yes, we all know he and his staff are guilty. But in the democratic party, we use EVIDENCE to convict people of crimes. That way, when the noise machine buzzes as loudly as it can, there's no doubt in the minds of normal americans that the EVIDENCE is stacked against Bush. and right now, there simply isn't enough evidence to convict of perjury, or obstruction of justice. But think about this: IF Republicans had control of the government, there wouldn't even be a hearing. So while I understand your frustration, equating democrats with republicans and saying that they're in it for the same level of power is disingenuous.

The fact is, these thugs have done a great job of keeping the evidence as far from the oval office as possible. And if the President isn't being investigated for a crime, he can keep pardoning or using executive privilege to cover anyone else who can testify.

Patience Sam. Someone will flip. The dam is cracking, and water is dripping out. There's only so many holes that the Little Bush Boy can plug before the dam breaks.

O, Zeus listened to the right-wing GOP suppliants and hear what has been said: okay.

"I'll pay them back--He (Nature Zeus), keeps a eye on the world of humanity that has gone astray. Nature punishes all deceitful transaction's!" okay. Yes.

O, NO Libby's commutation?...No!... "fair and balanced"....O, No! Yikes.

...O, Poseidon!...Here's to Libby's luck...but you know YOU NEOCONS begin much trouble---YA? From this day forward, know the corrupt fake conservatives should never have intervened? No!

...*may some power save you,

and spirit you away before you meet,

the good Nature face-to-face on "fair and balanced" native ground!*

---(18.167-69) The Odyssey.

O, Cheers?

Yes! Okay.

O, Cheers!

Rich powerful white people skate on slime, the poor, brown, and black have to do their time. Fair and balanced, facist style. Whatta country. while the tapdance goes on, 32 more American soldiers have died this month so far. Surge, baby, surge.

Bushit has now publicly pronounced someone in his office committed Treason. Treason. Presidential pardons often involve people who probably don't really deserve one but, for some reason or another, they are relieved of their sentences and go merrily along wiping the sweat from their brows at their good fortune. Bushit's daddy pardoned men who would have implicated him in a treasonous event and so as the saying goes: Like father, like son.

I remember popping a neck vein when Pappy unloaded the gun pointed at his own head and again now, as Shrub unloaded his own. All well and good. However, Pappy never admitted being a participant in the crime. His first offspring has implicated himself by cutting the blood flow which would lead to at very least Cheney. So where is the outrage? This isn't oral sex. People may have lost their lives overseas via this "outing".

He admits Treason took place under his watch, and he has let the bastard off with "good behavior" and wants to move on. Move on. Hell, can you blame him? If only anyone else in the world had the same good fortune to avoid eye contact, stammer-out a few words, and then say "move on", it's only Treason, nothing to worry about. Someone committed friggin Treason for Christ's sake. Treason.

And the The Wimp-House Press Corp just sits and stares in dumbfounded amazement. Treason for love of God. Treason.

Impeach. The rest is just a waste of time.