Pardon Me

Froomkin, a fantastic journalist and observer of the Washington scene is still a little bit naive (in my opinon) regarding Bush. In today's column he discusses a pardon of Libby and the political consequences for Bush, of which there are few. He concludes:

And pardoning Libby -- a lawbreaker who may have been acting under orders from his superiors -- would finally and fully associate Bush in the public's mind with the one transgression that has forced a president out of office in the modern age: A cover up.

Does Bush really give much of a s*#t about his legacy?

I suspect that as long as Bush has *1) plenty of money, 2) lots of brush to clear and a bike to ride, 3) plenty of beer drinkin' buddies and 4) a good piece of .... well, let's just say getting his biological needs met (note, it doesn't even have to be Laura) I suspect he really doesn't care much about his legacy. I predict Bush will disappear into the landscape at the end of his Presidency, confident that he "did right" despite historical conclusions.

Which brings us back to the pardon. Despite all the talk about the legal requirements for a pardon and the politics of a pardon, if Bush thinks it the loyal, god-given correct thing to do, Libby will walk. He'll charge Rover with the messaging which will go something like "Libby has been a selfless public servant for years and should be let off because he's such a good guy". Bush will sink a bit further in the polls, but not much because only the nutbars, who also want Libby freed, still support him anyway. The Dems will all cry about it but do nothing. And the beat will go on and on .....

I know I've said it like ten thousand times before, but here it goes again. It's astounding to me how many of the wise-old men of the Washington punditry and press corpse still don't understand that under Bush, we're not playing by the normal rules. "Pressure", meaning disapproving looks, low polls, bad press, negative op-eds/columns, Congressional investigations, and disparging remarks on the cocktail weenie circuit mean nothing to Bush. He holds them all in contempt anyway, a proxy for his own father. The only things that move him are his own base needs*.

Period.