So if a commutation of sentence means that the person was carrying out the wishes of the President, what does a pardon mean, Hillary?

Democratic presidential contender Hillary Rodham Clinton drew a distinction between President Bush's decision to commute the sentence of White House aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby — which she has harshly criticized — and her husband's 140 pardons in his closing hours in office.

"I believe that presidential pardon authority is available to any president, and almost all presidents have exercised it," Clinton said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. "This (the Libby decision) was clearly an effort to protect the White House. ... There isn't any doubt now, what we know is that Libby was carrying out the implicit or explicit wishes of the vice president, or maybe the president as well, in the further effort to stifle dissent."

A commutation, please remember, leaves the conviction intact and leaves the individual in question still legally guilty of the crime -- a pardon constitutes a Christ-like redemption and complete forgiveness of the offense.

Let's see -- Bill Clinton pardoned a bunch of FALN terrorists. Does that indicate that they had carried out actions of which Bill Clinton explicitly or implicitly approved, including the murder of a police officer?

And we know he gave several pardons to big campaign contributors, and to at least one client of his brother-in-law who had given him a multi-million dollar interest-free loan that was forgiven after the pardon.

Indeed, let's look at the pardons and commutations given by Bill Clinton -- and remember that, according to Senator Clinton, that a pardon equals approval of the activities carried out.

I guess Slick Willie has a lot of stuff that he is complicit with.

UPDATE: Just wehn you thought the hypocrisy couldn't get any worse, what's up with this?

Former President Bill Clinton blasted his successor's decision to spare former White House aide Lewis "Scooter" Libby from prison, telling Iowa radio listeners that Libby's case differed from his own administration's pardon controversy.

"You've got to understand, this is consistent with their philosophy," Clinton said during an interview on Des Moines news-talk station WHO.

Bush administration officials, he said, "believe that they should be able to do what they want to do, and that the law is a minor obstacle."

HOLY CRAP! This is the guy who got slapped down on virtually every claim of executive privilege he and his administration made -- and also on several new "privileges" that he tried to get made up! Furthermore, this is the guy who took campaign donations and other financial kickbacks from folks who he later pardoned -- and who also pardoned close associates who were convicted in relation to his crimes. In-FREAKIN'-credible!

Posted by: Greg at 02:17 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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