Posted on 03/26/2007 2:39:41 PM PDT by West Coast Conservative
Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Lamar Smith (R-TX) today asked Former President Bill Clinton if he would be available to testify at the Democrats' Thursday hearing on presidential pardon authority.
"Former President Clinton is no stranger to controversial pardons, most notably the pardon of Marc Rich on his last day in office," stated Ranking Member Smith. "I can think of no better person to address this issue."
At Thursday's hearing of the Judiciary's Crime Subcommittee entitled, "The Appropriate Use of the Presidential Pardoning Power," Democrats are expected to explore what is and is not the appropriate use of pardons, despite a president's plenary power to issue pardons.
President Clinton granted pardons or commuted the sentences of nearly 500 people, including fugitive financier Marc Rich, whose wife donated $450 thousand to the Clinton Library. Other pardons included a person accused of cocaine trafficking and a former Democratic committee chairman indicted on political corruption charges.
The Constitution gives the President the absolute authority to grant clemency, commutation, and remission of fines for offenses. Despite this absolute authority, presidents are not immune from criticism and even congressional attempts to restrict pardon authority.
"Mr. Clinton's exercise of his pardon authority would be of real interest to Members of the Subcommittee," concluded Smith. "I hope he will lend his expertise.
They want to prevent Bush from pardoning anybody.
When will the madness end?!
If I were a betting person, I'd bet he politely declines the invitation. ;)
While it might provide some comedy value, I don't think it serves any purpose for the Republicans to follow the Dems into staging hearings just to score political points or to grandstand under the guise of asking questions.
Assuming he showed up, Clinton would somehow turn it into a wag-the-finger session and the media lapdogs would eat up a return to the good ol' days.
I realize Smith is trying a goose-and-gander tactic but the last thing any of us need is more oxygen being wasted in the Potomac Basin.
They'll have a hard time preventing Bush from pardoning Libby (surely the point of this whole meeting) but they hope to sharpen their knives so that when he does they can score political points from it.
Bill will plead the 5th.
So, despite the fact that the Constitution gives the President this explicit authority to use, or abuse in the case of Clinton, Congress is going to have hearings about yet another thing that they don't have control over?
Is there anything this bunch won't do to waste time?
The Dems are having the hearing...the GOP are just trying to level the playing field by asking Clinton to testify.
I'm hoping this was a sarcastic comment from Smith and not the comment of a RINO.
Power-lustful RAT ping
While he's there, ask him about requiring 93 US Attorneys to resign and be gone in 10 days, especially that pesky US Attorney in Little Rock.
Bill Clinton testifying about presidential pardons? LOL That will be the day pigs fly! LOL
Clinton has absolutely no expertise in APPROPRET pardoning.
Me thinks the the standard operating procedure by Billy would be to take the 5th over and over and over.
And another example of the dims changing the rules when the rules go against them. Of course they will change the rule back after if a dim becomes prez.
Bring Clinton in to talk to Congress about pardons, is like bring in the fox to talk about guarding the hen house.
Yeah, what the heck? They are taking steps to stop him from pardoning Scooter Libby?
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