Some Observations

Recently, President Bush commuted the 30-month sentence of Scooter Libby, Vice-President Cheney’s former Chief of Staff and an accomplished attorney. Libby had been convicted of lying to the grand jury. By commuting his sentence, the President ensured that Libby would serve no jail time. This is the same President who has presided over a Justice Department that prosecuted others when they lied before grand juries. In one such case, a person was sentenced to more months in prison than Libby. His sentence was not commuted by the President. When the imposition of punishment is based on caprice and political considerations rather than on the common good, our system of justice is undermined. When it is the President who is undermining our nation’s system of justice, it is a national embarrassment.

The Clintons attacked President Bush for his commutation of Libby's sentence. This from a former President who recommended 140 plus pardons in his final days? Didn't he pardon a close relative as well as a wealthy tax-evading financier who happened to be a major campaign supporter/donor? The Clintons would have been better served by not commenting. Their hypocrisy with reference to the Libby issue is blatant and may give us insight regarding Hillary Clinton’s quest for the presidency.

Recently, former Newark Mayor Sharpe James was indicted. The allegations range from paying for movie tickets to taking exotic trips on the public dime, with no legitimate civic purpose, to arranging favorable land deals for a female companion and other insiders. These alleged actions are a blatant abuse of the public trust. Former Governor Codey said that the indictment of James marked a “sad day.” The fact that James was indicted was not sad. What is sad was that James was allowed to get away with his behavior for nearly twenty years. What is twice as disturbing was that Democrats in the State Senate and the New Jersey Democratic Party looked the other way regarding the culture of corruption allegedly practiced by James, even once the accusations were publicly detailed in newspapers throughout the State. While Mr. James is presumed innocent until proven guilty, virtually no Democratic leader had even questioned his conduct. Finally, State Democratic Chairman Joe Cryan this past week called for the resignations of both Sharpe James and Wayne Bryant from the State Senate. Cryan’s pronouncement was seen as a shock by the political establishment; they expressed surprise and indignation that the head of the Party would publicly inveigh against elected members of his own Party. The Party would benefit immensely by continued courage on the part of Mr. Cryan and the leadership of the Democratic Party in confronting the issue of corruption and the alleged “few bad apples spoiling the crop.”

Finally, the blight on the Bush Administration became more intense this past week when the President told former White House Counsel Harriet Miers not to testify regarding a Congressional inquiry into the firing of United States attorneys. When a President uses his bully pulpit to defy Congress, suppress information, and chill free speech, it marks a cratering of his presidency. With nearly two years to go in his Presidency, the only question that remains is "how much lower can his approval ratings go?"

Michael M. Shapiro, founder of ShapTalk.com, is an attorney who resides in New Providence, New Jersey. He currently serves as the Chairman of the New Providence Democratic Party and as Editor of The Alternative Press Contact Mike at mike@shaptalk.com