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Hagel: Commutation "Unfortunate"; Smith: "I Don't Know What Happened Here"
Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Nebraska), often a critic of the Bush administration, called the decision to commute Scooter Libby's sentence yesterday "unfortunate."
Sen. Gordon Smith (R-Oregon), who recently came out strongly against the Iraq War, was less assured:
It is a very serious thing to not tell the truth to a federal officer and why he would have gotten in that situation I don't know, because he was not guilty of the charge of the case. But the constitution gives the president the lawful right to commute or pardon, he's exercised that, every president before has done that. I would have preferred to see this run the full legal course but I know Scooter Libby and he's a very smart and as far as I know a decent guy and I just don't know what happened here. It's just sad...I feel bad for everyone, even the Plames who were affected by this case."
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Let's not ever hear another word about Dem waffling. I guess the GOP moderates decided to go with a classic as their slogan: Mistakes were made. Oh, and it's sad and unfortunate. I only wish there was somebody responsible for making the unfortunate sadness happen, but sometimes things just happen that are out of our control, like Katrina and the Libby pardon. Being a senator is hard.
July 6, 2007 12:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
Smith feels bad "even for the Plames". Touching. Excuse me while I go puke.
July 6, 2007 12:31 PM | Reply | Permalink
Is McCain going to get away without commenting?
July 6, 2007 12:35 PM | Reply | Permalink
Huh? Has Mr. Smith been living in a cave? It did run the full legal course--is this his way of saying that the President shouldn't have commuted the sentence? Whatta loser.
July 6, 2007 12:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
... or the rule of law, or truth in sentencing, or mandatory minimums.
Law & order, my ass.
July 6, 2007 1:09 PM | Reply | Permalink
"Even the Plames"... We'll need an old fashioned Roman vomitorium after that one.
Will we do more than natter on the Internet after they cancel the next elections???
July 6, 2007 1:16 PM | Reply | Permalink
Of course the reason Mr. Libby was convicted wasn't simply lying to federal officials--Mr Rove 'volunteered' three or four times, to 'clarify' his testimony--Mr, Libby lied repeatedly, and refused to recant when confronted to evidence contradicting his testimony. As far as his 'harsh' sentence is concerned, this the direct result of his continuing to refuse to admit fault, or express any contrition (although I notice that in the footage of him after paying he had trading in his nonchalant smirk for a more lugubrious 'what a harsh punishment' look.
July 6, 2007 1:17 PM | Reply | Permalink
So he feels bad for Valerie and the Plame family but not for her husband, Joe Wilson, who was the intended target?
July 6, 2007 1:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
I note that Smith (a likely name -- no? bet he changed it from "John Doe"), blandly palid as his remarks are to begin with, makes no mention of veteran of two wars and 25 years in the military Rita serving 33 months for the same crimes of which lifelong chickenhawk Libby was convicted.
That's as it should be, of course: a veteran can handle 33 months. A chickenhawk millionaire can't handle doing anything more than paying a $250,000 fine with someone else's money.
July 6, 2007 5:50 PM | Reply | Permalink
sully18
"I feel bad for everyone, even the Plames who were affected by this case."-- Gordon Smith (hopefully,soon to be ex-Senator Smith)
I feel sorry for Paris Hilton who did more time for a PV than Scooter did for treason.Speaking of probation violations,I hope Scooter gets a mean-assed,hard-nosed, left leaning PO who violates him the first week even though it`s not likely.
July 6, 2007 6:16 PM | Reply | Permalink
"Unfortunate"
You keep using that word, Sen. Hagel. I do not think it means what you think it means.
July 6, 2007 7:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
"But the constitution gives the president the lawful right to commute or pardon"
Thanks, Senator Smith for reminding us of what we already know. Now, can you actually defend the commutation of the sentence based on something other than the simple statement that the President was allowed by law to do it? You know, some actual substance?
Good lord, these guys suck.
July 6, 2007 7:41 PM | Reply | Permalink
You have to understand that, after being a Senator, the first lesson you learn is: Never to offend anybody. This, after a while, softens the brain so that you cannot think straight or talk straight. Your speech can become awfully convoluted. Remember, the person you offend may be a big contributor or just a single voter, and you need them all. So to expect a Senator to talk straight is to believe that pigs can fly. Only when he or she is forced into a desperate position, such as losing votes in huge quantities, will a Senator amend his or her position.
July 6, 2007 9:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
There are still the appeals to be dragged out
July 7, 2007 12:17 AM | Reply | Permalink
"Even" the Plames. Wow, how bloody decent of him.
July 7, 2007 5:56 AM | Reply | Permalink
I hate so much to bring it up to a Republican but what about your country, Gordon? What about the intelligence network? Could lives have been lost or is there just a busted network or two?
It would be particularly delightful to me if Bush and Cheney were finally busted as a result of leaking the name of a covert CIA agent.
All of the extraordinary smelly and criminal business of vote suppression and rigging elections through DOJ does not rise to the level of the crimes committed against our nation's defense IMO.
Only the Iraq war rises to that level.
Oh, say, wasn't there some connection of some kind between "the Plames" and the Iraq War?
Best, Terry
July 7, 2007 7:07 AM | Reply | Permalink