To Pardon - Or Pardon Not?
President-elect Bush has poured some cold water on whether he plans to pardon President Clinton after he's sworn in as his successor.
"No, I wouldn't pardon somebody who's not been indicted," Mr. Bush told reporters in Austin, Texas, on Monday.
Some Republicans, even those who have been sharply critical of Mr. Clinton in the aftermath of his impeachment, have suggested Mr. Bush pardon him so as to move the country beyond the scandals of his presidency.
"It's hard to pardon somebody who's not been indicted," Mr. Bush said, adding that it's time for the country "to move on" - and also for Mr. Clinton to become an "active participant in the American system."
Indicating a reluctance to let Mr. Clinton's legal troubles cloud his own administration, the president-elect said, "I think we've had enough focus on the past."
Mr. Bush's comments seem to rule out the type of blanket pardon that President Gerald Ford gave former president Richard Nixon after his resignation in 1974. At the time, Mr. Nixon had not been indicted for his role in the Watergate scandal, though one was expected. Mr. Ford issued what he called a "full, free and absolute pardon ... for all offenses against the United States" which Mr. Nixon "has committed or may have committed" as president.
However, Mr. Bush's statement doesn't appear to completely shut the door on a possible pardon of Mr. Clinton if he is indicted after leaving office on January 20. Robert Ray, the independent counsel investigating Mr. Clinton's conduct in the Monica Lewinsky scandal, has said a decision to prosecute will come "very shortly" following that date.
On Sunday, the Senate Judiciary Committee's top Republican suggested Mr. Bush pardon Mr. Clinton - whether he's indicted or not - to "end a problem in America that needs to be ended."
"I would do that ... just end the whole thing," Hatch said on Fox News Sunday. "I would pardon him," the Utah Republican said.
"I think it's time to put this to bed. It's time to let President Clinton fade into whatever he's going to fade into, and I just don't see keeping it alive any longer, and I don't think there's a jury in America that is going to convict President Clinton," said Hatch, who returns as Judiciary Committee chairman when Bush is sworn in. Currently, Democrats control the evenly-split Senate, because Vice President Al Gore, a Democrat, is Senate president.
On CNN's Late Edition, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said, "I don't know what he would be pardoning him for, unless the independent counsel brings up charges."
Prior to Mr. Bush's comments on Monday, his spokesman Ari Fleischer said last month that the president-elect had noted reports quoting administration officials that Mr. Clinton would not seek a pardon from the new president. "We take him at his word," Fleischer said then.
At the request of Indpendent Counsel Ray, a federal grand jury in Washington has been hearing evidence against Mr. Clinton.
Based on a report submitted by Ray's predecessor, Kenneth Starr, the president was impeached by the House for alleged perjury and obstruction. The Senate acquitted Mr. Clinton of obstruction on a 50-50 vote - and the Senate voted 55-45 against convicting him of perjury. A two-thirds majority was necessary for conviction.
Also, Mr. Clinton, a lawyer, is undergoing disbarment proceedings in Arkansas for his sworn testimony in the Paula Jones case in which he denied having sex with Lewinsky and said he did not recall being alone with her. The Arkansas Supreme Court Committee on Professional Conduct says Mr. Clinton is unfit to practice law because of that testimony.