We all remember the leak of the name of a former covert CIA agent a few years ago. Finally a resolution was had, and Scooter Libby was found guilty of perjury and obstruction of justice for lying about how he knew about the agent and whom he told about her. *yawn*
What I find most interesting is that Bush commuted the prison sentence. Perjury is punishable by all the ways imposed on him: prison, fines, probation. I think it a bit unsettling that Bush did this because as he said, "Others point out that a jury of citizens weighed all the evidence and listened to all the testimony and found Mr. Libby guilty of perjury and obstructing justice. They argue, correctly, that our entire system of justice relies on people telling the truth. 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."
But what is the accountability? $250,000 fine and some probation? Likely small change and a minor inconvenience to Scooter. Prison is often a much more effective means of letting someone know they were wrong, and I'm sure that if the offender hadn't quite the same relationship to the White House, he would be sitting in jail as we speak. I mean, hey, we made Paris go to jail for driving on a suspended license and lying about it...let the punishment fit the crime and let all crimes be judged by the same moral guidelines.
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3 comments:
To be completely fair, I believe there was a big stink over Clinton pardoning one of his cronies.
but yes, prison is a pretty good deterrent for most crimes. But not to those who have no regard for any law in the first place.
Yeah, and lying is probably a good indication of little regard for anything.
More than one of his cronies, apparently.
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