Former Judge O'Neill: LaTourette's Silence on Libby Commutation 'Speaks Volumes'
CHAGRIN FALLS, Ohio (7/9/2007) - Democratic candidate for United States Congress Bill O'Neill, a former appellate judge and former assistant attorney general, issued the following statement today on Rep. Steve LaTourette's silence on the president's commutation of I. Lewis Libby's prison sentence:
"Today is Day 7 since the president so flagrantly bucked the rule of law in the name of party politics by commuting the prison sentence of 'Scooter' Libby. So many pundits and politicians on both sides of the aisle have publicly assailed this disgusting abuse of power. Still, our representative in Congress remains silent.
"President Bush's decision is not just an affront on the jurors who convicted Libby or the federal judge who imposed his sentence. That act was an affront on the rule of law itself - and it continues a toxic pattern of this administration's rejection of the rule of law. But Steve LaTourette is a lawyer. And he knows better.
"The people of Ohio's 14th District deserve to know why this administration - and its allies - believes the law simply does not apply to them. And the people of this district deserve to know why their congressman has not said a word.
"The Steve LaTourette that we sent to Washington so many years ago had an astute respect for the law. He was a prosecutor who made his career on not letting criminals get off easy.
"What I and so many of his constituents are wondering is: 'Where is that man today?'
"Instead, his silence speaks volumes. It appears that Steve LaTourette's more than a decade in Washington has rubbed off on him. His priorities today couldn't be more obvious: allegiance to his party and the president comes first.
"The people of the 14th District deserve better. When President Bush leaves Washington, I'm going to make sure he takes at least one of his friends with him."
CONTACT:
* Toby Fallsgraff, fallsgraff-AT-gmail.com
* Pat Gliha, 330.283.0506