Judge Reggie Walton has sentenced Scooter Libby 30 months in jail. It looks like Walton will not allow Libby to remain free pending his appeal. I’ve written about this case before, saying it didn’t feel like justice. Libby got his own private prosecutor who was determined to send him or someone in his orbit to jail. When the music stopped, Libby was the one without the chair and without any luck.

I’ve never met Scooter Libby. I do know several people who know him well who think this case is a travesty and his looming incarceration a national disgrace. There is of course one man who could stop it: George W. Bush, a man famous for his loyalty. A man so determinedly loyal that he has steadfastly stood by an obviously inadequate attorney general and tried to appoint a woefully unqualified person to the Supreme Court all because they were part of his inner circle.

So you’d think that a Libby pardon would be right in Bush’s wheelhouse. You also would think the politics of the matter wouldn’t affect the president, since his move on immigration heralded not only an indifference but actual contempt for public opinion. Au contraire. Bill Kristol sums it up nicely:

Will Bush pardon Libby? Apparently not--even if it means a man who worked closely with him and sought tirelessly to do what was right for the country goes to prison. Bush spokeswoman Dana Perino, noting that the appeals process was underway, said, "Given that and in keeping with what we have said in the past, the president has not intervened so far in any other criminal matter and he is going to decline to do so now."

So much for loyalty, or decency, or courage. For President Bush, loyalty is apparently a one-way street; decency is something he's for as long as he doesn't have to take any risks in its behalf;and courage--well, that's nowhere to be seen. Many of us used to respect President Bush. Can one respect him still?

To answer Bill’s perhaps rhetorical exit question: Yes, but it seems to be getting tougher every day.

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