Harry and Nancy

Harry and Nancy, over the weekend, were saying that the reason the 110th Congress has been so do nothing is because of “the obstructionism of the Republicans in the United States Senate.”

Captain Ed said it best:

However, listening to Harry Reid complain about Senate obstructionism is somewhat akin to hearing a small child complain to his mother that his sibling hit him back.

Then, today, Harry said that President Bush’s commutation of I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby’s sentence was “disgraceful“:

He said Libby’s conviction was “the one faint glimmer of accountability for White House efforts to manipulate intelligence and silence critics of the Iraq war.”

He said the president had the power to commute Libby’s sentence but “history will judge him harshly for using that power to benefit his own Vice President’s chief of staff who was convicted of such a serious violation of law.”

“As Independence Day nears, we are reminded that one of the principles our forefathers fought for was equal justice under the law. This commutation completely tramples on that principle,” said a frequent Bush critic, New York Democratic Sen. Charles Schumer.

I think President Bush did just the right thing. He waited until the appeals court denied Libby’s appeal to remain out of jail pending the appeals process. He only commuted the jail portion of the sentence leaving the conviction and fines in place pending the rest of the appeals process.