Memo to Bush: Don't Even Think of Pardoning This Scumbag

As the term of George W. Bush nears an end, there's much buzz about who he might pardon. If he wants to have any legacy whatsoever, he doesn't even consider pardoning John Walker Lindh.

Some high-profile convicts past and present are among more than 2,000 people asking President George W. Bush to pardon them or commute their prison sentences before he leaves office.

Junk-bond king Michael Milken, media mogul Conrad Black and American-born Taliban soldier John Walker Lindh have applied to the Justice Department seeking official forgiveness.

But with Bush's term ending Jan. 20, some lawyers are lobbying the White House directly to pardon their clients. That raises the possibility that the president could excuse scores of people, including some who have not been charged, to protect them from future accusations, such as former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales or star baseball pitcher Roger Clemens.

As much as I dislike Roger Clemens, all that jerk did was take steroids and lie to Congress. Compared to a lowlife like Lindh, he's a Boy Scout. If Bush is dumb enough to pardon or even consider commuting the sentence of Taliban Johnny, any respect I have left for him will be gone.

The department is considering a pardon application for Milken, who was convicted of securities fraud charges. Two politicians convicted of public corruption _ former Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham, R-Calif., and four-term Democratic Louisiana Gov. Edwin W. Edwards _ have applied for shorter prison terms. So has Lindh, convicted of assisting the Taliban, and Black, who is serving time for fraud and obstruction of justice.

Additionally, former U.S. Border Patrol agent Ignacio Ramos is applying to have his prison sentences reduced. Ramos and his colleague, former agent Jose Compean, were convicted of shooting a drug smuggler in 2005 and trying to cover it up.

As far as I'm concerned, pardoning Compean and Ramos is a no-brainer.

Already, Democrats and other Bush critics are warning the president against getting overly generous with his power of forgiveness. Of particular concern is whether he will issue pre-emptive pardons to protect allies and some government employees from facing future charges for carrying out his policies.

Some of those people could include officials who authorized or engaged in harsh interrogations of suspected terrorists after Sept. 11, 2001. Critics want incoming President-elect Barack Obama to investigate possible war crimes.

Others to be pre-emptively pardoned might include advisers - Gonzales or other Bush administration lawyers, for example - who sanctioned potentially illegal policies or lied to Congress about them.

In these cases, pardon away. The Democrats have zero standing to criticize Bush if he pardons anyone in his administration or for prosecuting the war on terror. After Marc Rich, he's got plenty of markers.