Tony Snow’s Defense Of Bush Commutation: ‘He Did What He Does Normally’
Tony Snow’s Defense Of Bush Commutation: ‘He Did What He Does Normally’
In an op-ed in the USA Today, White House Press Secretary Tony Snow mangles and distorts the facts in an attempt to claim Bush’s commutation of Scooter Libby’s prison time was a demonstration of how much the “President respects justice.” Snow writes:
[Bush] believes it is important to respect the jury’s work. … So the president left intact the felony convictions and two of the major punishments — the fine and probation.
But he conveniently ignores Judge Reggie Walton’s recent warning that Bush’s clemency order “may wipe out Libby’s 2-year probation as well,” because the probation was contingent on prison time.
Snow continues: “No president in recent history has made more careful use of the pardoning power than George W. Bush.” Yes, it is true Bush has been stingy with his pardon and clemency power. Bush previously had commuted only three sentences, “all for drug offenses, from more than 5,000 requests. He has issued 113 pardons, fewer than other modern presidents.”
As the New York Times noted, Bush refused to grant commutations in very similar cases as Libby’s. The case of Victor Rita, a man who served for 25 years in the armed services and faced a similar fate as Scooter, stands out as an example of Bush’s hypocrisy. The Carpetbagger Report writes:
Both Rita and Libby are first-time offenders; both were convicted of the exact same crime. One lied about gun registration; the other lied about his role in outing a covert CIA operative during a time of war. The president believes the prior should be away for nearly three years, but believes the latter shouldn’t spend a single moment behind bars.
In a stirring conclusion that also serves as an indictment of Bush, Snow writes, “[The President] did what he does normally, and what makes those of us who work for him proud. He proceeded on the basis of principle.” Indeed, Bush did what he does routinely, showcasing once again his “principle” of rewarding incompetence and malfeasance from unethical staff for carrying out the White House’s horrendous decisions.
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73 Responses to “Tony Snow’s Defense Of Bush Commutation: ‘He Did What He Does Normally’”
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Get into his jammies and have Mommie make cocoa and some’mores?
July 5th, 2007 at 10:19 amI’m waiting for the trolls to hijack this thread with “but…but…but…Clinton!”
Yes, Dubya is stingier with his commutations and pardons than Bill was (Snow calls it “careful”). This makes it all the more easy to see who gets his favor — and it turns out to be the guy who could bite him in the butt.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:22 amHe can fool most the Christians, most of the time..
July 5th, 2007 at 10:22 am“Did what he does normally?”
Oh, you mean lie!
July 5th, 2007 at 10:27 amIs Tony Snow-job the ONLY Troll left who will support Dubya? The wagon is about as tightly circled as it can get now!
July 5th, 2007 at 10:29 amImagine how sad your life has to be in order to perceive anything George Bush does as making you “proud.”
July 5th, 2007 at 10:29 amSomehow, Snow reminds me Breznev. Only lacks the shoe.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:30 amI wonder what would’ve happened if Scooter Libby had received the death penalty. I believe that George Bush might have actually split into two entities over wether to pardon or execute. It would’ve been like the fight between Evil Superman and Clark Kent in Superman III.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:32 am“Somehow, Snow reminds me Breznev. Only lacks the shoe.”
Comment by Evil Spaniard
That would be Nikita Kruschev.
Breznev was the one with the forested eyebrows.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:32 amI find it curious how “Christians” **cough, cough** get really upset w/ Clinton’s pardons but have no problems w/ Bush’s record of executions as Gov of Texas.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:33 amYes, it is true Bush has been stingy with his pardon and clemency power.
Two reasons why that statement is misleading:
July 5th, 2007 at 10:35 amBreznev was the one with the forested eyebrows.
Comment by Raven — July 5, 2007 @ 10:32 am
Brezhnev was only a quarter inch away from the most awesome uni-brow on the planet.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:35 amFinally, something Tony and I agree on. Bush did what he does normally.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:35 am“[The President] did what he does normally, and what makes those of us who work for him proud. He proceeded on the basis of principle.â€
I don’t know what everybody’s complaining about. Tony Snow is exactly right. The President normally rewards loyalty with no regard for wider consequences, and he bases all of his decisions on the principle of whatever The Dick Cheney tells him to do.
Why that should make those who work for him proud, I’m at a loss to explain. But Tony Snow is not lying — this time.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:36 amI wonder what would’ve happened if Scooter Libby had received the death penalty. I believe that George Bush might have actually split into two entities over wether to pardon or execute. It would’ve been like the fight between Evil Superman and Clark Kent in Superman III.
Comment by toasterhead — July 5, 2007 @ 10:32 am
Once they make it to the Hague for their war crimes and crimes against humanity, they’ll ALL receive the death penalty.
The mainstream media talking heads will do well to remember that it’s time to part ways with the administration where parroting disinformation and propaganda is concerned - lest they find themselves at the Hague as “Co-Conspirators.”
July 5th, 2007 at 10:36 amtripmaster:
Check out the rove thread from last night, from comment #310 on down.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:38 amThese rats at 1600 Penn Ave are so dirty, they belong living in Bleach. King George shows that he has no regard for law and never has. Just as in everything that he does touch, he screws it up, royally.
Like I have stated many times before this is why you never vote red, they are evil.
Elk
July 5th, 2007 at 10:39 amace,
Already have. Good posts.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:39 amI find it curious how “Christians†**cough, cough** get really upset w/ Clinton’s pardons but have no problems w/ Bush’s record of executions as Gov of Texas.
Comment by The Republic of Stupidity
That’s because anyone who supports the BushCo Cabal are not Christians, assuming being a Christian means following the word of God.
How sad their life must be, acting just like the Trolls of Jonestown, as they lined up to take their Kool-aid enemas from another dysfunctional, dillusional wack job.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:40 amMany friends are busy w/ familiy events till Monday. It is a holiday. While others are working at “staples”….lol
July 5th, 2007 at 10:40 amELK
Staples products are getting a work out……..1, 2, 3, and 4.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:41 amâ€We’re an empire now, and when we act, we create our own reality. And while you’re studying that reality — judiciously, as you will — we’ll act again, creating other new realities, which you can study too, and that’s how things will sort out. We’re history’s actors . . . and you, all of you, will be left to just study what we do.â€
Bush White House Aid
July 5th, 2007 at 10:42 amThe mainstream media talking heads will do well to remember that it’s time to part ways with the administration where parroting disinformation and propaganda is concerned - lest they find themselves at the Hague as “Co-Conspirators.â€
Comment by ace — July 5, 2007 @ 10:36 am
Truth!
Oh, and the media in the Superman III analogy are Richard Pryor. They don’t really do anything substantial but make a whole bunch of stupid annoying statements for comic relief.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:42 am“The case of Victor Rita, a man who served for 25 years in the armed services and faced a similar fate as Scooter,..”
“(Rita) lied about gun registration…”
Why does the Bush administration hate veterans and their right to bear arms?
July 5th, 2007 at 10:44 amThis most recent act by the Administration boldy shows us that sitting on their hands and waiting until 2009 is the wrong thing for this Congress to do. Vigorous and expediant action towards impeachment of the POTUS & his handler Cheney are THE ONLY THINGS THAT SHOULD BE ON THE TABLE at this point! How much more damage can Bush/Cheney bring with a year and a half to go? I for one am afraid to find out! Impeachment is not only AN option . Now it the ONLY option. If the Republicans are still reluctant to follow what’s right for this country at least they will have to publicly be seen coddling these lyars in the White House. With every public vote and filibuster these bootlicking hypocrites are seen more and more for what they are and what they represent. After impeachment Congress should then convict Libby again for Obstruction of Justice and send his sorry, treasonous ass to jail where there will be no pardon.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:44 amThe only thing Bush normally does is butcher the english language.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:44 amhe DOES normally obstruct justice, yes…
July 5th, 2007 at 10:47 am#11 Comment by TripMaster Monkey — July 5, 2007 @ 10:35 am
Spot on!
How many pardons will Bush issue on his way out the door? If his past is any indication, he will set new heights (depths?) in the people he pardons.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:47 amGuess the trolls haven’t received their Rover talking points yet.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:47 am“[The President] did what he does normally….”
He f*cked up.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:47 am“[The President] did what he does normally….â€
Did he go on vacation again?
July 5th, 2007 at 10:50 amI certainly agree with the thoughts expressed so far, except for part of the statement referring to “incompetence….” The actions taken have not been through incompetence. They are deliberately designed to do what they do. Katrina response, not enough troops in Iraq, withdraw troops from Afghanistan and stop chasing OBL, etc. This all keeps us based in the Constitutional tradition in turmoil and the royalist public happy as the Constitution becomes venerated as it supports absolutism and overlooked as it gets in the way. I just don’t see their actions as incompetent.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:50 am#31…
July 5th, 2007 at 10:56 amWe can draw a similarity with the corporate marketing
model of Planned Obsolesence…
Here we have Planned Incompetence
Bear Country, wouldn’t you say that the OVP missing the little fact that Joe Wilson did freelance work for the CIA, was a little incompetent? Not to mention the fact that they didn’t know until he wacked them with his editorial that his Mrs. worked at the agency? I can’t imagine the ass chewing that followed.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:57 amSomeone quick! Man needs Grecian Formula ASAP!
July 5th, 2007 at 10:58 amTony could actually be asphyxiating there at the podium,
July 5th, 2007 at 11:01 ammaybe his (hideous) tie is to tight…
#
Someone quick! Man needs Grecian Formula ASAP!
Comment by prof shropshire — July 5, 2007 @ 10:58 am
Clearly a troll who wishes to tarnish “the progressive blogosphere” as having been responsible for making fun of a man who is suffering the ravages of cancer and chemo.
Just another version of a “False Flag Attack”
July 5th, 2007 at 11:01 amaWol bushie did what he normally does, and that is what dick bushie tells him to do.
July 5th, 2007 at 11:02 amActually, prof shropshire has a pretty good sense of humor,
and hardly a troll, IMHO.
And, sorry, Tony will garner no sympathy from this quarter.
July 5th, 2007 at 11:07 amCompassion, yes, but no sympathy.
Off-Topic: But relevant. As we celebrated our 4th last night, I noticed that we were the only family out on our street with fireworks. Our street is normally packed with families celebrating. Speaking to a few of my very conservative neighbors, many said they were not in the mood for the festivities. Now we live only 15 miles away from Edwards AFB, and Plant 42 (where many aerospace contractors are) is about 5 miles near, so this is not a bastion of Progressives here. In fact, my area is very Red and conservative.
My only thought on this… Wow, has this administration blown it for the conservatives, true conservatives, not neocons, but ordinary middle class American conservatives. This administration has left only a wake of destruction in their paths and it might seem that the ultimate destruction may be that of their own Republican party. Time will only tell.
July 5th, 2007 at 11:07 amThat picture of Yellow Snow looks very familiar. I know, just put a mustache and brown shirt on him and he’d be qouting Mein Kampf.
July 5th, 2007 at 11:07 amHey, thanks Raven, I do try. I guess my previous post is mean, but that what I think about everytime I see him. Cancer sucks, bad karma to make fun of him for that, Ace has been up pretty early today.
July 5th, 2007 at 11:10 amSnowjob is going to look like an even bigger ass when Bush pardons Libby on his last day in office, barring of course the appelette court doesn’t reverse Libby’s conviction, which is what the Bushies are hoping for (or even fixing behind the scenes like usual).
July 5th, 2007 at 11:18 amTony Snow’s Defense Of Bush Commutation: ‘He Did What He Does Normally’
Butcher the English language ?
Piss on the Constitution ?
Make up a word/term to describe himself in the 3rd person ?
Add to the deficit ?
Try to tie Iraq to 9/11 ?
July 5th, 2007 at 11:20 amGreenParty, conservatism is the greatest sales pitch, fraudulent ruse to come along to dupe the willing in a long time. Mix that in with a little authoritarian crack to smoke and now they all need some good ole fashioned compromise therapy. Why is it that every great conservative is dead?
July 5th, 2007 at 11:21 amExactly, he covered his ass, er, tracks…
July 5th, 2007 at 11:21 amsomeone needs to tell tony snow that lying is bad for your health
July 5th, 2007 at 11:24 am“Ace has been up pretty early today.”
Comment by prof shropshire
Yes, and I totally appreciate the diligence and work he (ace) puts into his contributions here of real meat and potatoes,
July 5th, 2007 at 11:39 amit’s just that we’ve got to have a little salsa to go along with it………….
He commuted the sentence to shut him up, Tony. Libby retains his 5th amendment rights, something a pardon would remove, leaving him open to further questioning. You and your criminal bosses are all lying sacks of shit.
July 5th, 2007 at 11:41 amRepublic –Kinda creepy, though, isn’t it?
July 5th, 2007 at 11:42 amI wonder how Snow manages to lie so blatantly. This guy has faced cancer! One would think that would make him reevaluate a job where he has to tell such egregious lies on a daily basis.
July 5th, 2007 at 11:43 amTwo words: jazz flute.
July 5th, 2007 at 12:11 pmBush Commutation Flashback - Karla Faye Tucker:
when his allies on the religious right pressured him to spare murderess turned jailhouse born-again Christian Karla Faye Tucker, Governor Bush displayed his trademark resolve - and compassion. As Time recounted in 1999:
Tucker Carlson of Talk magazine described the smirk Bush wore as he mimicked convicted murderer turned Christian Karla Faye Tucker begging, “Please don’t kill me,” something she never actually did.
For the details, see:
July 5th, 2007 at 12:13 pm“The Consistent Inconsistency of George W. Bush.”
mmmmmmmmmm
July 5th, 2007 at 12:14 pmsalsa
#15 Hi Ace! Just wanted to take a moment to thank you, again, for the sheer volume of research and information you’ve provided to TP posters over the course of the past few days. Truth IS Power, this we all know and it’s the unveiling process which is now taking place…bringing this from a fringe movement to a “critical mass” of consciousness who believes that the official story is pure, unadulterated bunk.
As for the Hague and what is possibly transpiring as we speak vis-a-vis Bush & Cheney’s “war crimes”, where does that stand? Do you have any links to what’s occurring with all of that. I do know that Germany, (I believe) issued charges in absentia against Rumsfeld the moment he stepped out of public office. Where does all of that stand at this point.
Clearly, I believe many americans are realizing that even if our own political machine (Congress) fails us in bringing this administration to justice for their crimes, the Hague may be waiting patiently behind the scenes to do so when their terms of office expire. One way or another, people expect them to be brought to the justice they deserve under the rule of domestic law as well as international law.
I thoroughly enjoyed your comment regarding the use of Bush’s intel gathered “illegally” in a warrantless way. I guess that means what we’ve all suspected after all - that it is not and has not been used to protect us from some boogeyman villian out there but, instead, has been used to wiretap their political foes. Perhaps that’s why Queen Nancy and King Reid are moot at this point - blackmail anyone??
In closing, I’d like to applaud you for all of the incredible insight you’ve provided to all of the serious posters here at TP. Keep the information coming - we appreciate it and applaud you for the depth and breadth of your ongoing research.
July 5th, 2007 at 12:32 pmCatch you all later! Have a great day!!
July 5th, 2007 at 12:34 pmThat would be Nikita Kruschev.
Breznev was the one with the forested eyebrows.
Comment by Raven — July 5, 2007 @ 10:32 am
Big Oops! Really, I mistook the correct Soviet Premier. Anyhow, “stalinist” fits so well this GOP…
July 5th, 2007 at 1:05 pmLiars still get Cancer.
July 5th, 2007 at 1:45 pm“[The President] did what he does normally, and what makes those of us who work for him proud.”
Well, there are some who still “believe” in W.
SAD!!!
July 5th, 2007 at 2:21 pmYou lefties are getting loonier by the minute. But at least you’re good for a laugh.
July 5th, 2007 at 2:52 pmLike father, like son - GHW pardoned Weinburger, et al. to keep them quiet about his role in Iran-Contra. He was in that up to his turkey neck.
July 5th, 2007 at 3:10 pmRe: Snow’s continued lying - Lee Atwater (godfather of the political nastiness of the last 25 years) repented when he was dying - apparently the total lack of conscience requied to work for Bush prevents any such action.
July 5th, 2007 at 3:14 pmTony Snow is simply tragic. How can anyone so ill continue to avoid speaking the truth or questioning the current White House policies? How could Tony Snow, in good conscience, or simplified logic compare the Libby/Clinton issues? Outing American spies is treason. Plain and simple. TREASON. Anyone who participates and engages in facilitating such treason should be held accountable. Mr. Bush is more than willing to approve of torture at Guantanamo, more than willing to allow a 15 year old boy to be placed in deep prison for years, yet he feels his personal friend is being oppressed? Snow has to have witnessed the photographs of the dying and ill orphans in Iraq. Those children are dying and ill because we are dropping bombs on their parents. Mr. Snow needs to do some serious soul searching and, if I were him, I would step down from the press position. At his personal point in time, telling the truth and demonstrating a sense of justice is far more important than speaking for powerful potentates.
July 5th, 2007 at 3:51 pmYou liberals are hilarious….getting your panties in a bunch over scooter libby….Your hero…pardoned so many drug dealers and future campaign contributors for hillary it is disgusting. Bush certainly is a lame duck but this issue is a sure loser…I can even believe it is getting attention but we know who controls the MSM..and it is not a vast right wing conspiracy.
Valerie Plame was nobody at the CIA and her outing was about as significant as knowing the winning of survivor figi island beforehand. Richard Amitage is the leaker…any other questions.
July 5th, 2007 at 4:07 pmNo, Bush did not do what he usually does. According to Texas state records, then governor Bush spent no more than 30 minutes on any of the 152 clemency requests from death row inmates that he eventually denied. Bush’s oft-cited reasoning for this was that he did not think it appropriate for the chief executive to interfere with the judicial process. The extremely brief briefs on the subject submitted by then Texas AG Alberto Gonzales must have save him a lot of time, since the AG had a tendency to omit any extenuating factors in these cases, such as the time the defendent’s attorney slept through part of the proceedings. But I digress… The point is that Bush eschewed a long expoused philosophy on non-interference with the judicial system, micromanaged the disposition of a cut and dried case, and changed the sentence handed down by one of his own appointees who had solid conservative credentials. Tony, if you think this “business as usual” then let me know when Elvis shows up.
July 5th, 2007 at 4:31 pmLet’s see, why would the President cummute Mr. Libby’s 30-month sentence? Is it because 30 months for perjury and obstruction of justice is actually too long? More likely, Mr. Libby will OUT the true perpetrators in this case if he’s placed behind bars. Loyalty only goes as far as the front gate of the prison.
July 5th, 2007 at 5:16 pmPresident Bush didn’t respect the jury’s decision in the Libby case, instead by commuting this sentence he has done the opposite. In this commutation there was no equal justice under the law. He blatantly disregarded the rule of law and our justice system. Bush should have let the courts handle this instead of intervening in a case in where members of his own administration were involved. Libby should have served his complete sentence.
This commutation sends the wrong message that you don’t have to pay for your crimes. Libby is a convicted felon who broke the law he should go to jail for 30 months. Unlike Mr. Rita, Libby’s crimes were more severe and significant because he used to work for this White House. He was involved in outing a covert CIA agent, just to get back at a critic of the Iraq war - Ambassador Wilson.
Libby should be held to a higher standard because he was a White House official. The president said that anyone who was involved in the leak would be dealt with, he should stand by his words, and Libby should serve out his sentence. The decision to commute Libby’s sentence had nothing to do with principle. This was an effort to protect one of their own. This was also an effort to protect himself and the vice president.
July 5th, 2007 at 5:28 pmWhere is the justice, why aren’t Americans outraged that a distinguished war hero sits behind bars while Libby is free?
July 5th, 2007 at 6:17 pmTony Snow is just another carpetbagging Washington elite. He has lost all credibility with the conservative base as has his mentor, Jorge’ Dubai Boosh.
July 5th, 2007 at 8:30 pm#6. Imagine how sad your life has to be in order to perceive anything George Bush does as making you “proud.â€
Comment by daganium — July 5, 2007 @ 10:29 am
That is a great comment!
Either Snow is lying appallingly, or he’s a very sad case.
July 5th, 2007 at 9:01 pmI find it curious how “Christians†**cough, cough** get really upset w/ Clinton’s pardons but have no problems w/ Bush’s record of executions as Gov of Texas.
Comment by The Republic of Stupidity — July 5, 2007 @ 10:33 am
Yeah, you would find that curious.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:24 pmComment by faith — July 5, 2007 @ 3:51 pm
Tony Snow is simply tragic. How can anyone so ill continue to avoid speaking the truth or questioning the current White House policies? How could Tony Snow, in good conscience, or simplified logic compare the Libby/Clinton issues?
Excellent point — there is NO comparison between pardoning Libby and abusing pardon power by treating it as a cash machine, handing them out to the highest bidder, setting free fugitives, cronies, campaign contributors and terrorists, all for PERSONAL gain.
Outing American spies is treason. Plain and simple. TREASON.
Who was convicted–er, scratch that–who was even CHARGED with that crime? I’ll save you the time–nobody was charged with that crime, because there was no crime.
Mr. Bush is more than willing to approve of torture at Guantanamo
Somehow, I doubt Bush sanctioned the smelly underwear, dogs and naked lady “torture” routines perpetrated on the poor, picked-on terrorists. Besides, isn’t this exactly the kind of behavior you lefties want to introduce to third graders in public school?
Snow has to have witnessed the photographs of the dying and ill orphans in Iraq. Those children are dying and ill because we are dropping bombs on their parents. Mr. Snow needs to do some serious soul searching and, if I were him, I would step down from the press position.
If I were you, I would step down from the crack pipe.
At his personal point in time, telling the truth and demonstrating a sense of justice is far more important than speaking for powerful potentates.
On second thought, pass the pipe over. I want some of what you’re having.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:35 pm#53
Yep. Free the murderers, execute those who have spent their lives serving this nation!
July 7th, 2007 at 12:01 pm