HuckPAC coordinator steps down, citing clemency decision

By GottaLaff

Original post about HuckaPardon here. Here come the repercussions.

HuckaT. Oa. St:

The Arkansas coordinator for Mike Huckabee's political action committee resigned Tuesday, citing the former Arkansas governor's decision nine years ago to grant clemency to Maurice Clemmons, the man suspected of murdering four police officers in Washington state.

Jason Tolbert is a conservative blogger, and was the (volunteer) Arkansas state coordinator for HuckPAC.

"My departure was with a heavy heart but was done after serious prayer and consideration," Tolbert wrote on his Web site. "Some have asked about the timing. As most could imagine, the recent news of the last two days along with the response did play a role in this decision but was not the sole factor."

VIDEO: Bill O'Reilly Interviews Mike Huckabee About Commuting Suspected Cop Killer

By GottaLaff

Via Mediaite:

Yesterday, I posted about about Mike Huckabee's commuting the suspected Washington shooter's sentence some years ago. Now Bill-o interviews HuckExplain:




"We didn't have any information from the prosecutor," sez HuckaHole. And then he goes on to blame everyone else. Poor Huck, he's in deep and is trying so very hard to dig out. Diggity dig dig. Just like a prairie dog.

"It's not your fault," says Bill-O. He's so compassionate and open-minded, isn't he? How could we have misjudged him?

H/t: Texbetsy

Mike Huckabee commuted sentence of Washington cop-killer suspect

By GottaLaff

Maurice Clemmons

CORRECTION and UPDATE: Per CNN just now, Clemmons is "person of interest", not a suspect... yet. They "really want to talk to him" says Hunter George PIO, Pierce Co. Sheriff's office.

UPDATE: Could this be why Huck suggested he wasn't up for another run in 2012?

Those four policemen who were murdered in a Washington state coffeehouse this morning? The suspect is one Maurice Clemmons.

Politically speaking, this does not bode well for Mike Huckabee:

Nine years ago, then-Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee granted clemency to Clemmons, commuting his lengthy prison sentence over the protests of prosecutors.

"This is the day I've been dreading for a long time," Larry Jegley, prosecuting attorney for Arkansas' Pulaski County said Sunday night when informed that Clemmons was being sought in connection to the killings.

H/t: Oliver Willis and TPM

The Last Hours of the Bush Administration

By GottaLaff

Slimy and Slimier:

In a must-read piece, Time looks at the final days of the Bush administration when Vice President Dick Cheney "had been pleading, cajoling, even pestering" President Bush to pardon his former chief of staff, Scooter Libby.

"These last hours represent a climactic chapter in the mysterious and mostly opaque relationship at the center of a tumultuous period in American history. It reveals how one question -- whether to grant a presidential pardon to a top vice-presidential aide -- strained the bonds between Bush and his deputy and closest counselor. It reveals a gap in the two men's views of crime and punishment. And in a broader way, it uncovers a fundamental difference in how the two men regarded the legacy of the Bush years. As a Cheney confidant puts it, the Vice President believed he and the President could claim the war on terrorism as his greatest legacy only if they defended at all costs the men and women who fought in the trenches. When it came to Libby, Bush felt he had done enough."

Breaking: Toussie's pardon reconsidered

By GottaLaff

CNN just reported that Isaac Toussie's pardon is going the way of Rudy Giuliani's hair.

They're concerned about the "nature of the fraud" and his "political contributions". Uh huh. I think we kinda beat them to the punch here at TPC.

Duke of Hurl

By GottaLaff

"Ouch" doesn't begin to say it:

An online petition seeking to rally support for a presidential pardon for convicted Rep. Duke Cunningham (R-CA) has 13 signatures -- after three years.

Stevens will not seek presidential pardon

By GottaLaff

Oh that wacky, zany, crazy Ted Stevens, he's such a stand-up guy. Actually, more like a stand-up comedian:

Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens (R) said Tuesday that he will not seek a pardon from President Bush for his recent conviction on federal charges of concealing gifts and home renovations from an oil executive.

Stevens said the conviction, along with his likely expulsion from the Republican Party, is hurtful, but he won’t seek special treatment from the White House.

Republican senators held back on voting on a motion to expel Stevens but are expected to follow through on that motion later in the week. [...]

Stevens simply said "No" when asked about a Bush pardon, and bristled when a reporter asked if he expected to be expelled as a political liability to Republicans battling an image of corruption.

"That's just your words," he said. "As a matter of fact, when the indictment was announced, they said it was not a corruption case, it was not a bribery case. It was a simple matter of failing to disclose. Maybe some of the verbiage that you are using is not proper."

How about that election, Ted?

"I still think I'm going to win," he said.

Nate Silver thinks otherwise.

Thugs for nothing: Keith Olbermann, Jonathan Turley on Dems and the Bush crimes

By GottaLaff

This segment had me in tears last night. That was after I lost my voice from screaming obscenities.

Seriously, we cannot let this happen. I don't know what we can do, but this is unthinkably dangerous and completely unacceptable.

Tom DeLay won't seek pardon from Bush

By GottaLaff

Who knew DeLay could be so reasonable (sarcasm):

Tom DeLay’s legal advisers are ruling out seeking a presidential pardon for the embattled former House majority leader.

DeLay (R-Texas), who declined to comment for this article, resigned from Congress more than two years ago after being indicted, and remains embroiled in legal proceedings in Texas and Washington. [...]

But Richard Cullen, who is representing DeLay in the federal investigation against him, said there should be no question of a pardon.'

Okay, now stay with me here... First, the joke:

“I would rule it out,” he said. “No one has suggested that Mr. DeLay is guilty of a crime. He has stated clearly that he has not committed a crime.”

Oh, but there's always a catch:

Legal experts say a person does not need to request a pardon to receive one from the president.

Now for the punch line:

DeLay’s lawyer in Texas, Dick DeGuerin, said he would “love for him to do that” but emphasized that DeLay has not asked for a pardon.

“Usually a pardon is for someone who has done something wrong,” said DeGuerin. “Tom DeLay didn’t do anything wrong.”

I should have posted that last part in my comedy blog post.