President Bush has commuted the 30-month sentence of federal inmate No. 28301-016 — aka I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby, the former White House aide who was convicted of perjury and obstruction of justice in the Valerie Plame CIA leak case.
The president said the 2½-year prison term was “excessive.” But his action sends this message: Lying by government officials under oath isn’t a serious offense. Misleading investigators isn’t a big deal. Loyalty to friends is more important than the rule of law. And those in high places don’t answer to the same laws as ordinary folks.
How about those civics lessons, kids?
Posted by Randy Scholfield
Media have focused of late on Sen. Hillary Clinton’s continued lead in polls among the Democratic presidential contenders, planting the suggestion of her inevitability as the party’s nominee.
But it’s too early for polls to matter much. What does matter is Sen. Barack Obama’s latest fundraising totals, which are astounding.
Obama raised a whopping $31 million in the past three months, breaking all previous fundraising records for a Democratic candidate in a nonelection year and leaving Clinton trailing at $21 million.
As a gauge of his political capital, it shows Obama has money in the bank and will be able to compete toe-to-toe with Clinton. Moreover, the breadth of his donors — more than 250,000, the majority of them small donors who likely will give again — suggests the makings of a powerful grassroots organization.
This race isn’t over yet. Not by a long shot.
Posted by Randy Scholfield
Credit the crisp sea air and relaxed atmosphere of the Bush family retreat in Kennebunkport, Maine. In any case, it was good to see presidents Bush and Putin agree today to work together in the United Nations to prevent Iran from going nuclear. “We’re close on recognizing that we got to work together to send a common message,” Bush said, after he and Putin had shared a speedboat excursion. Unfortunately, what Putin says now matters less than how Russia acts on the Iranian issue at the United Nations — and how much it wants to bring the proposed U.S. missile-defense system into the already difficult diplomatic mix.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
Let’s face it: Wichita is not a mass transit town. But as our Saturday editorial argued, that shouldn’t stop the city from looking into the idea of a Bus Rapid Transit line, a fleet of high-end, low-riding, fast-route buses that have dramatically increased bus ridership in many cities, including Kansas City, according to an Eagle article.
The BRT systems, a cheaper alternative to light rail, could provide a quick and convenient ride from outlying areas to downtown along high-traffic corridors.
Wichita plans to study the idea in a required upcoming five-year transportation plan review.
But will Wichitans ride the bus? There are reasons to be skeptical. But with rising fuel prices and air pollution concerns, there could be a growing niche for mass transit. These ideas are worth a look.
Posted by Randy Scholfield
Anticipating Fred Thompson’s entry into the presidential race, the Democratic National Committee is trying to get in some preemptive strikes, reports Politico.
Dems have begun painting the sometime actor as a sometime senator whose only heavy lifting has been as a Washington lobbyist. A recently released DNC “research document” is headlined, “MAJOR LEGISLATIVE ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF SEN. FRED DALTON THOMPSON (1994-2002).”
Then the page is blank.
Posted by Randy Scholfield
Gov. Kathleen Sebelius once got into trouble for telling a disparaging joke about Missouri’s roads, but as many motorists already know, she had truth on her side. According to the Reason Foundation’s 16th annual report, Kansas has the third-best roads in the nation (behind only North Dakota and South Carolina), compared with 17th-ranked Missouri. Something to think about as the state gears up to debate another long-term transportation plan.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof lately has been describing the harrowing conditions in eastern Congo, which has been war-torn for a decade and seen 4 million die by violence and hunger, making it “the most lethal conflict since World War II.”
He writes: “This war staggers on in part because the suffering here hasn’t registered on the international conscience, and because it has been allowed to fester and continue. Barack Obama and Sam Brownback are among the few prominent American politicians who have focused on the war.”
Posted by Rhonda Holman
