Posted on 12/04/2009 9:36:02 AM PST by yongin
Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney defended Mike Huckabee's clemency decision that allegedly led to the shooting death of four police officers in Washington state..
During an interview Thursday night with CNN's Larry King Live, Romney, who in his four years as governor says he did not pardon or commute a single sentence, empathized with his former political rival in the last battle for the Republican presidential nomination, saying the focus is on the tragedy that struck the lives of Washington state residents.
Huckabee has come under fire because, as governor of Arkansas in 2000, he signed a clemency order for Maurice Clemmons. That made Clemmons, who at the time was serving a 108 year prison sentence, eligible for parole, which was granted. Clemmons, 37, was fatally shot Tuesday by police in Seattle, Washington, after a two-day manhunt that began after he allegedly killed four officers at a coffee shop in Lakewood, Washington.
"You have three families that lost their father, one family that lost their mother, and this is just tragic," Romney said. "I think [Huckabee] indicated that had he got the chance to do it again based on what he knows now, of course he wouldn't have made that decision and I believe that's true."
As Governor, Romney said he put strict pardoning guidelines in place to avoid letting personal impressions fog his judgment.
"My conclusion was if somebody has been convicted by a jury of their peers and they have been prosecuted and the police were able to get the evidence necessary to put them behind bars, why in the world would I step in and reverse that sentence," He said.
(Excerpt) Read more at politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com ...
Birds of a feather...
Translation.....tic tic tic tic on Romney’s pardons / clemency’s
Well, that’s two down.
CNN trying desperately to keep their 2 favorite Repub candidates viable...
Stick a fork in them. They’re both done.
I guess it’s good to see that the liberal Republicans are all on the same page.
Dumb and Dumberer.
That’s two RINOs down...999,998 to go!
Roemney’s pardon probs pale in comparison to his involvement with The Big Dig...
Was just going to say the same thing.
Actually, I believe Huckabee said he would do exactly the same thing if he had to do it over again. Although maybe that wasn't with the "what I know now" caveat.
My take is the bulk of the problems occured post Huckabee. Singling him out for blame is just left wing propaganda to cover up the Washington state and Arkansas law enforcement screwups.
Kind of like blaming Hasan’s recruiter for the Fort Hood shootings.
Tomorrow, Romney will be laying a defense of Tiger Woods ...
They will team up against Sarah, no doubt... losers.
Saying he believe the man is hardly defending.
Romney didn’t pardon or commute any sentences. Why Romney felt he had to defend Huckabee is beyond me, especially after Huckabee’s treatment of Romney last year.
Romney is right that we can’t make decisions about clemency based on what might happen in one or two cases decades later.
But why bother to make that statement? Why defend Huckabee? Makes no sense to me.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.