Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) is another politician who has weighed in on the evils of perjury:

By his words and deeds he chose to place himself above the law. By his words and deeds he has undermined the rule of law in America to the great harm of this nation. By his words and deeds he has undermined the truth-finding function of the judiciary, at great harm to that branch of our government. By his words and deeds he has done great harm to the notions of honesty and integrity that form the underpinnings of this great republic.

As with the quotes in my previous blog, Senator Brownback was referring to Bill Clinton in 1999. Yet in 2007, Brownback has said he would pardon Scooter Libby. It makes you wonder what's changed in the last 8 years. Maybe nothing has changed except the party affiliation of the perjurer.

Brownback's change of heart demonstrates the kind of non-partisan integrity that Republicans demand of their leaders. Some people even think he should be president.

And you can forget the lazy argument that all politicians are the same. The following is from an article on FOXNews.com regarding the indictment of Rep. William Jefferson (D-LA) on charges of bribery, racketeering, obstruction of justice and money laundering:

Hearing of the indictment, House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, announced he would offer a resolution to refer the indictment to the House ethics committee. The resolution, which could be voted on as early as Tuesday, will instruct the ethics panel to review the matter against Jefferson and report within 30 days on whether he should be expelled from the House.

Democrats will not oppose the resolution, a high-level Democratic aide told FOX News. Separately, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called the charges "extremely serious."

"The charges in the indictment against Congressman Jefferson are extremely serious. While Mr. Jefferson, just as any other citizen, must be considered innocent until proven guilty, if these charges are proven true, they constitute an egregious and unacceptable abuse of public trust and power," Pelosi said in a statement.

How about that? The Speaker the House won't block an ethics review of a member of her own party. Wow. It's almost like she believes in justice and the Rule of Law.

So let your Republican friends snuggle up with the false equivalency that The Great Satan, Bill Clinton, pardoned people. At this point it's about all they have left. We know that there's nothing inherently wrong with a presidential pardon or commutation. And there's no denying that everyone who receives one is a criminal, convicted in a court of law. But not all crimes are created equal. What makes this case outrageous is that Libby lied to cover up treasonous activity that may have been committed inside the Bush Administration during a time of war. It wasn't some shady financial scheme. This isn't Enron's Jeffrey Skilling. As far as I know, American history doesn't contain anyone executed for fraud. Traitors, however, are another matter.

"All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others."
- George Orwell's "Animal Farm"

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