In Memorium

A moment of silence for the Fifth Amendment - Johnny, we hardly knew ye.

No person shall be held to answer for any capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, NOR BE DEPRIVED OF LIFE, LIBERTY, OR PROPERTY, WITHOUT DUE PROCESS OF LAW; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation. -- Outdated,'Pre-9/11' thinking.

"The instability in Iraq is all the fault of those war protestors and dissentors! I know how to fix them; I'll take their stuff!" -- What passes for thinking in the White House.


Harry Reid had better watch out now!

I Couldn't Resist

And now you can say you've seen it all. I'm surprised the crowd didn't throw money.

What Magnificant Bastards They Truly Are

We return, naturally enough, to the Scooter Libby matter. The President's commutation of Scooter's sentance has prompted Keith Olbermann to call for the administration to step down entirely. But why, one might ask, was his sentance merely commuted? Why not pardon the man? Was it a minor concession to the reality-based community? Is the President in fact not wholly corrupt and motivated by partisan self-interest?

Of course, it was no such thing. Scooter Libby is still appealing his case. If in the meantime Congress were to call him to testify, he can therefore plead the Fifth and refuse to answer any or all questions about his role in the Plame affair.

If he were pardoned, this would of course not be an option.

We now return to your regularly scheduled despair.

(Also - the President's already said he's not ruling out pardoning Libby later - you know, when this whole Plamegate thing has blown over and the investigations have run their course. Really, they're such complete scumbags it's honestly breathtaking.)