READER COMMENTS ON
"'Scooter' Libby Sentenced to 30 Months in CIA Leak Case"
(7 Responses so far...)
COMMENT #1 [Permalink]
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Dredd
said on 6/5/2007 @ 9:32 am PT...
So far no story.
It all depends upon whether on not he stays out of prison pending appeal.
I will link to my post some months ago that shows the law now defaults to not being free pending appeal.
The judge will take a couple of days to decide, but expressed doubt that he will be able to let Scooter remain free pending appeal.
If Scooter remains free pending appeal they got to the judge for damn sure.
COMMENT #2 [Permalink]
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phil
said on 6/5/2007 @ 9:38 am PT...
I have a love hate relationship with the BradBlog.
I love the bradblog. I hate the reality.
30 months seems kind of light for guvment corruption.
Did anyone yank his security clearance yet?
COMMENT #3 [Permalink]
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Dredd
said on 6/5/2007 @ 9:47 am PT...
I did a post here about the future of this case (mentioned in post #1) several months ago in March, quoting inter alia the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals:
The Bail Reform Act of 1984 made it much more difficult for a convicted criminal defendant to obtain his release pending appeal.
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Here comes The Libby Pardon Scandal?
(Dredd's March Post on Bradblog, emphasis added). The default and widespread practice is to NOT remain free pending appeal.
But there are many ways they can get to judge Walton.
They can leak a memo showing he is being considered for a US Court of Appeals nomination or a nomination to the Supreme Court.
He will know what they mean. If he is a loyal bushie and lets Scooter stay free pending appeal, he gets the big promotion.
Otherwise he rots where he is.
The stakes are very high. With Scooter in jail along with a lot of folks they have screwed, he will begin to sweat and want to "tell stories".
A presidential pardon will loom large on the horizon. But if judge Walton lets him stay free pending appeal, preznit blush will pardon him on the last day of his preznitzy in January of 2009.
COMMENT #4 [Permalink]
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MarkH
said on 6/5/2007 @ 2:20 pm PT...
Walton was recently assigned to the panel of judges who handle FISA cases. But, that's on top of his current work. Is that a promotion? It would probably benefit him if he were up for a SC nomination.
Anyway, they gave Scooter 30 months, $200K fine, 400 hours of public service (who'd trust him?) and several years probation (as if he'd be a risk to do it again in private life) and 10 days to explain why he shouldn't be thrown directly into jail.
If they don't put him in jail he'll probably get a post-Bush presidency pardon, so he'll never see the inside of a jail cell. Justice demands he be put in jail as soon as he has his affairs in order.
For more discussion on the matter just read firedoglake.com
COMMENT #5 [Permalink]
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gtash
said on 6/5/2007 @ 4:17 pm PT...
I listened to NPR all day while driving and kept hearing how Libby's lawyer was pleading leniency because Scooter has suffered enough and would probably never work again, and so forth. So he should get no time in prison because he had pre-redeemed himself with national public service. All I could think of was: how many weeks were lost by all those grand jurors and all the the time they weren't "working" to earn their livings while sitting in a jury box trying to hear evidence and this weasel Scooter doing his best to make them sit there longer! Talk about sacrifice for public service. Talk about humiliation. I think doing anything less than throwing the book--or the whole damn library--at Scooter would be humiliating to those jurors who also performed a public service.
COMMENT #6 [Permalink]
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steve p
said on 6/5/2007 @ 6:41 pm PT...
wow, scooter gets 30 months for lying, does that mean bill and h. rodham clinton are going to get 11,000 years. or maybe only 8,000 years
COMMENT #7 [Permalink]
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Dredd
said on 6/6/2007 @ 5:01 am PT...
Steve P #6
If they had been investigated, indicted, and convicted by a jury of their peers, like Smutter Libby was, then they should get what Smutter Libby got.
No more no less. Only problem for your denial is that they weren't. Get over it.