| Page 2 of 2 < |
Bush Deflects Pressure To Give Libby a Pardon
|
TOOLBOX
   Resize
COMMENT
 Discussion Policy
 CLOSE
Comments that include profanity or personal attacks or other inappropriate comments or material will be removed from the site. Additionally, entries that are unsigned or contain "signatures" by someone other than the actual author will be removed. Finally, we will take steps to block users who violate any of our posting standards, terms of use or privacy policies or any other policies governing this site. Please review the full rules governing commentaries and discussions. You are fully responsible for the content that you post.
Who's Blogging  |
Libby's allies urged Bush to move right away to put an end to a prosecution they consider blown out of proportion. "He absolutely should do it," said Victoria Toensing, a former federal prosecutor who has been one of Libby's most prominent public supporters. "It was a case that never should have been brought in the first place. It's in Scooter Libby's interest to have it happen as soon as possible to stop this madness."
Despite the defense's trial argument that Libby was made a scapegoat by the White House, aides and advisers said there is no anger toward him in the West Wing. Libby's defense team reached out to an intermediary after its opening statement to reassure the White House about its strategy, according to a source close to the situation.
Some Republican lawmakers said Libby does not deserve the punishment he faces. "Mr. Libby is a good candidate for a pardon -- I'll put it that way," said Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (S.C.). "Mr. Libby can make an application for a pardon, and the president can seriously consider it." Senate Minority Whip Trent Lott (Miss.) said: "It's a terrible miscarriage of justice and abuse of prosecutorial power. But there's a long way to go in this process, and it's too early to talk about pardons."
Other Republicans warned that a pardon by Bush would make a bad situation worse. "If he does pardon Scooter Libby, then it will be construed, whether correctly or not, as an admission on his part that there's culpability that goes beyond the foolishness of an individual in the administration and that Scooter took a bullet for the team," said former House majority leader Richard K. Armey (Tex.).
The perils of a pardon would extend beyond politicians, according to some lawyers. Pardons normally are reviewed by a special office at the Justice Department, which provides recommendations about whether one is merited. Bush does not have to listen, but he would risk the wrath of career law enforcement officers if he disregarded their views, said Walter E. Dellinger III, who was assistant attorney general under Clinton.
"A president's going out on a limb without going through the process -- as we saw with President Clinton's pardon of Marc Rich -- with respect to someone who was just convicted," Dellinger said.
Staff writer Lyndsey Layton contributed to this report.
