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Bush 'saddened' by Libby ruling
06/03/2007 23:22 - (SA)
Washington - US President George W Bush respects the guilty verdict against former top White House aide "Scooter" Libby, but is "saddened" for him and his family, a Bush spokesperson said on Tuesday.
Dana Perino refused to discuss whether Bush would consider pardoning Libby, who was found guilty of obstruction of justice and perjury in a case closely tied to the flawed case for war in Iraq, saying she was "aware of no such request".
"As is afforded to all Americans, there is a process that is followed in which to apply for a pardon. And I don't think that speculating on a wildly hypothetical situation at this time is appropriate," she said.
Perino also indicated that the White House would pursue its strategy of refusing to comment on the case while Libby continues to fight in court - his lawyers have said they will seek a new trial or appeal the verdict.
"You know, hypothetically, had their been an acquittal today, then our conversation might have been very different," she said.
But Bush commented publicly when former house majority leader Tom Delay battled corruption charges; made a high-profile push in the pitched legal battle over the fate of an apparently brain dead woman; and weighed in when a US university was locked in a courtroom fight over affirmative action.
- AFP
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