Although reporter David Kerley's segment did feature a quote from Republican strategist Rich Galen, both pieces seemed more interested in Democratic outrage. Kerley and Muir seemed taken with Senator Dick Durbin’s comparison to Paris Hilton:
Kerley: "But one of the most stinging statements came from Senator Dick Durbin, who said, quote, ‘Even Paris Hilton had to go to jail. No one in this administration should be above the law.’"
...
David Muir: "Not surprisingly, the Democrats are jumping on this. We heard from the Democratic candidates there. Senator Durbin saying even Paris Hilton went to jail. Some real red meat for the other party."
Additionally, GMA minimized the fact that Democratic President Bill Clinton pardoned Marc Rich, the ex-husband of Denise Rich. (Mrs. Rich, of course, donated $400,000 to the Clinton library.) GMA guest, and former Clinton aide, George Stephanopoulos discussed this salient point only in passing at the conclusion of the second piece on Libby, who was convicted of perjury in relation to a probe of the Valerie Plame leak case. However, during the first piece, Kerley skipped over that fact when he played a clip of Senator Hillary Clinton decrying the Libby commutation:
Kerley: "Democratic presidential candidates also quickly attacked."
Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY 2008 presidential candidate): "What we saw today was elevating cronyism over the rule of law."
Finally, towards the end of the second segment, "This Week" host George Stephanopoulos acknowledged the oddity of 2008 candidate Hillary Clinton slamming Bush's actions:
George Stephanopoulos: "But this could become an issue in the general election because it was such an unpopular decision with the general public, although candidates like Hillary Clinton are subject to a counterattack. Remember, President Clinton had a very controversial pardon of Marc Rich and, of course, President Clinton himself, during the Monica Lewinsky scandal, was impeached for lying to Congress."
UPDATE: To be fair to ABC, GMA did offer this snarky critique of Bill Clinton's pardons during the 8am news update:
David Wright: "The question is, can he drum up enthusiasm for his wife's campaign without overshadowing her? Clearly, Bill Clinton is not used to singing backup. As Hillary lashed out at President Bush for commuting Scooter Libby's sentence --"
Hillary Clinton: "--elevating cronyism over the rule of law."
Wright: "--he looked a bit uncomfortable, perhaps mindful that back in the day he did the same for his cronies."
A transcript of the segments, which aired at 7:02am on July 3, follows:
David Muir: "This morning, above the law? The President decides convicted White House official Scooter Libby should not go directly to jail. He’s not going to jail at all. Was justice served?"
7:02am
Deborah Roberts: "But first, the huge controversy over the President's order that top White House aide Lewis ‘Scooter’ Libby will not go to prison. On Monday, the President commuted Libby’s 30-month prison sentence after a judge ruled that he'd have to serve time even during his appeal. Libby was found guilty, you may remember, of obstructing justice during the federal probe into who leaked the name of CIA agent Valerie Plame. This morning, critics of the President have come out in force. And ABC's David Kerley is in Washington with the latest. David?"
ABC Graphic: "Above The Law? Libby’s Sentence Commuted"
David Kerley: "Good morning, Deborah. This is not a pardon. Scooter Libby is still a convicted felon. But he won't be going to the big house. The ‘stay out of jail’ card means Scooter Libby won't spend two and a half years in prison, but he will pay a quarter million dollar fine. Democrats were shocked."
Senator Charles Schumer (D-New York): "This is just the latest example of a White House that holds itself accountable to nobody."
Kerley: "In a statement, Mr. Bush said, quote, ‘While I respect the jury’s verdict, the prison sentence is excessive.’ Mr. Bush said Libby, the Vice President’s former chief of staff, has ‘suffered immensely’ and ‘harsh punishment’ is still in place. But erasing the prison sentence isn't enough for some conservatives."
Rich Galen (Republican strategist): "Most people on the conservative side of the ledger would prefer a full pardon because that's the fair thing to do."
Kerley: "Libby's conviction came in the case of the outing of CIA operative Valerie Plame. Libby wasn’t convicted of leaking Plame’s name, but lying about his involvement. The special prosecutor of the case, Patrick Fitzgerald, expressed dismay, saying the judge had sentenced Libby consistent with the law. Democratic presidential candidates also quickly attacked."
Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY 2008 presidential candidate): "What we saw today was elevating cronyism over the rule of law."
Kerley: "Barack Obama called it putting ideology above the law. Joe Biden asked Americans to flood the White House with phone calls today, ‘expressing their outrage.’ But one of the most stinging statements came from Senator Dick Durbin, who said, quote, ‘Even Paris Hilton had to go to jail. No one in this administration should be above the law.’ Many Republicans praised the move by the President. Rudy Giuliani calling it a good decision, one he believes in. Fred Thompson says it allows a good American to resume his life. The President reportedly made this decision very quickly yesterday after a federal appeals court ruled against Mr. Libby. And according to some of the staff members at the White House, he did not consult the Justice Department before making his decision. David?"
David Muir: "All right. Thanks very much. David Kerley in Washington. And joining us now is our chief Washington correspondent George Stephanopoulos, of course, host of ‘This Week.’ Morning, George."
George Stephanopoulos: "Good morning, David."
David Muir: "You know, the polling on this has been consistent. Two out of three Americans say they did not support this. So why exactly did the President do this?"
Stephanopoulos: "Well, the President was getting pressure to do this, though, from those who support him, his last remaining supporters, those conservatives in his party, even in his own White House. Vice President Cheney, who believed that the prosecution of Scooter Libby was unjust, who believed he should not go to prison. And the President could not afford to alienate those last supporters. So he made this decision, made it relatively quickly."
Muir: "Were his poll numbers so low that he felt safe in doing this or does he risk going even lower?"
Stephanopoulos: "Had he– I think he believes that, had he given, had he not given this pardon, this commutation of the sentence to Scooter Libby, he would have lost that last base of support he has in his own party. You can't afford to do that with 18 months left."
Muir: "Not surprisingly, the Democrats are jumping on this. We heard from the Democratic candidates there. Senator Durbin saying even Paris Hilton went to jail. Some real red meat for the other party."
Stephanopoulos: "Absolutely. And this is going to cause some discomfort for the Republican candidates for president, even though you saw Rudy Giuliani, Fred Thompson, Mitt Romney, all support this decision and they're going to need to do that in the primaries. But this could become an issue in the general election because it was such an unpopular decision with the general public, although candidates like Hillary Clinton are subject to a counterattack. Remember, President Clinton had a very controversial pardon of Marc Rich and, of course, President Clinton himself, during the Monica Lewinsky scandal, was impeached for lying to Congress."
Muir: "You mentioned Rudy Giuliani there. You know, some have argued that the punishment did not fit the crime. In fact, some said there was no crime at all, but this was similar to what put Martha Stewart in prison."
Stephanopoulos: "Absolutely. Perjury, obstruction of justice. And the prosecutor in this case, Patrick Fitzgerald said that's what our system of justice relies on. When people are called before the court, when people are under oath, they have to tell the truth, they have to obstruct justice [sic] and there are thousands of people across the country in jail for just this crime right now."
Muir: "While we have you this morning, we wanted to look at the presidential race for a moment. The new McCain numbers out in the last 24 hours and they are not good. Hard to believe that $11 million in a quarter is considered not good this time around, but for him it's meant slashing jobs, salaries on his campaign. What's the future here for McCain?"
Stephanopoulos: "He is– He is on life support right now, but his team vows to fight back, vows that he’s going to stay in the race. He's only got $2 million cash on hand. Essentially, the campaign that John McCain planned is over right now. He planned a front-runner campaign based on $100 million budget. He's not going to have anything close to that. He’s going back to his roots, back in the 2000 campaign. He’s going to run a gorilla campaign in those early states, Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina. He's had a terrible two months, hurt not only by the fund-raising, but by the issues of Iraq and immigration. But they hope he can regroup. And as I said, his campaign vows that he’s going to stay in all the way."
Muir: "All right, George Stephanopoulos this morning. George, as always, thanks very much."
