Lively Cast of Characters Want Last-Minute Pardons From Bush « The Washington Independent

The New York Times’ Charlie Savage reported this weekend that the Justice Dept. has received about 2,300 petitions from felons seeking a pardon in the Bush administration’s final months. The petitioners include former California Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham who’s spending eight years in prison for accepting a combined $2.4 million in bribes. Marion Jones, the gold-medal winning sprinter who admitted she used to steroids to win her gold medals, has petitioned the White House to end her six-month prison sentence. And 80’s enthusiasts will appreciate that junk bond financier Michael Milken, who served jail for securities fraud, is also asking for clemency.

Interestingly, the Justice Dept. will reveal the name of anybody who’s petitioned for a pardon– as long as a specific case is inquired about. So Savage asked whether Duke Cunningham requested a pardon and found out that he did. Jailed uber-lobbyist Jack Abramoff, however, has yet to seek a pardon. Nor is Dick Cheney’s former chief of staff, Scooter Libby. Bush commuted Libby’s sentence last year, but didn’t pardon him.

So far Bush has pardoned only about a quarter of the people Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton pardoned. Besides the above figures, it will also be interesting to see whether Bush uses his pardoning power to issue preemptive pardons to the architects of detainee interrogation laws. The White House has declined to say whether the Bush will preempt any legal action that might be taken against, for example, Dick Cheney or his top lawyer, and current chief of staff, David Addington. Stay tuned.

Correction: Michael Milken is no longer in prison for securities fraud. He’s been released. We regret the error.