by Damozel | An article in TIME by Massimo Calabresi and Michael Weisskopf called Legacy Fight: Inside Bush and Cheney's Tense Final Days recounts Bush's and Cheney's break over the Scooter Libby pardon that never was. You all know what happened there: having had the president commute his sentence, he didn't get the pardon. The article gives a long account of how Cheney worked to get it for him and how Bush failed to give it.
The most interesting aspect of the piece, according to me, is the way it presents Bush and the Prince of Darkness, Dick Cheney. The truth is, of course, always more complex than you think it is -- but the insistence in this article (mostly in asides) on Bush's good intentions and his respect for truth, the law, and the judicial system is unsettling, given everything that happened on his watch. Is this what we have to look forward to: Cheney portrayed as the source of all darkness and Bush as something quite other?
Here are a few key quotes.
Bush's attitude toward Libby at the time of the commutation of his sentence:
And there were these two sentences: "Our entire system of justice relies on people telling the truth," Bush said. "And if a person does not tell the truth, particularly if he serves in government and holds the public trust, he must be held accountable." Particularly if he serves in government. Bush's allies would say later that the language was intended to send an unmistakable message, internally as well as externally: No one is above the law. (more at TIME)
Cheney's relationship with Bush:
Bush's attitude toward presidential pardons and his alleged reasons:
Which doesn't quite gibe with this -- you'll remember this -- even as reframed here:
Cheney's agitating for Libby:
Bush's attitude toward Libby:
Bush would decide alone. In private, he was bothered by Libby's lack of repentance. But he seemed more riveted by the central issue of the trial: truthfulness. Did Libby lie to prosecutors? The President had been told by private lawyers in the case that Libby never should have testified before the grand jury and instead should have invoked his Fifth Amendment right not to incriminate himself. Prosecutors can accept that. But lie to them, and it gets personal. "It's the difference between making mistakes, which everybody does, and making up a story," a lawyer told Bush. "That is a sin that prosecutors are not going to forgive."...
While packing boxes in the upstairs residence, according to his associates, Bush noted that he was again under pressure from Cheney to pardon Libby....Then he turned to Sharp. "What's the bottom line here? Did this guy lie or not?"
The lawyer, who had followed the case very closely, replied affirmatively.
Bush indicated that he had already come to that conclusion too.
"O.K., that's it," Bush said. (More at TIME; emphasis added)
Interesting. Also quite worrying...
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Bush didn't pardon Libby for one simple reason:
If he had, Libby wouldn't have been able to plead the Fifth in any subsequent cause against the Busheviks in the wilson/plame proceedings...
This way his silence is assured...
Posted by: Woody | July 24, 2009 at 11:58 AM