Coddling Criminals
In light of the president's commutation of Scooter Libby's prison sentence, I wanted to quote briefly from an AP story about the administration's latest crime-fighting initiative, dated June 17:
WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration is trying to roll back a Supreme Court decision by pushing legislation that would require prison time for nearly all criminals.The Justice Department is offering the plan as an opening salvo in a larger debate about whether sentences for crack cocaine are unfairly harsh and racially discriminatory.
Republicans are seizing the administration's crackdown, packaged in legislation to combat violent crime, as a campaign issue for 2008.
As Republicans like to say in defense of the mindless, "tough" sentencing policies that have represented virtually their only criminal justice strategy in recent decades: "You do the crime, you do the time." But I guess that depends on who you are.
Comments
If I could back up just a minute, I have a question -- why the heck does Bush commute Libby's sentence (he still has to pay $250,000 and serve two years probation) and not pardon him outright?
I've seen a couple places where folks have said there is a certain amount of political sense in letting Libby off. It will appeal to the base and the rest of the country can't hate him anymore than they already do.
But I can't believe that the base is going to be happy with a commuted sentence. They were asking for a full pardon, and once again, the President did not deliver.
And the rest of the country is pretty outraged over this. I don't see a lot of liberal (or even impartial) commentators saying, "Well, at least he didn't pardon the guy." Folks are pissed and disappointed -- just as they would have been if Libby got off completely.
As with so much else of the Bush presidency, I'm puzzled by the decision-making here.
Posted by: Matt![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.thedemocraticstrategist.org/strategist/nav-commenters.gif)
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July 3, 2007 09:35 AM