This does not preclude a pardon. This is a 'slick' maneuver before the 2008 elections. Bush WILL pardon Libby.

Liberated Libby

Why do Republicans keep plenty of money in their personal treasuries? Because when they break the law there might be liabilities and fines. That's why.

When you pledge allegiance, do you pledge allegiance to George Walker Bush and Dick Cheney or do you pledge allegiance to the USA Constitution? These men don't pledge allegiance to the USA, they pledge allegiance to 'the party' and the 'power brokers' their money buys for them.

George Walker Bush rewards liars, criminals and those that can 'serve his purpose.' There is no justice in the USA. None.


Fitzgerald wants Libby imprisoned immediately (click here)

By Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) - Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald urged a federal judge Tuesday not to delay former White House aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby's 2½-year prison sentence in the CIA leak case.
Libby, the former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney, has argued that he has a good chance of winning an appeal and should be allowed to remain free until that challenge has run its course.
U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton, who sentenced Libby to prison for lying to authorities and obstructing the investigation into the 2003 leak of CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity, has said he sees no reason to grant Libby's request.
A delay in Libby's sentence would give President Bush more time to consider pardon requests from Libby's supporters, who say the loyal aide was caught up in a political investigation and does not deserve prison time.
Fitzgerald, in court documents filed Tuesday, said an appeals court is unlikely to overturn Libby's conviction because the evidence against him was so overwhelming.
After a monthlong trial, jurors found that Libby lied to investigators about how he learned that Valerie Plame, the wife of an outspoken war critic, worked for the CIA, and whom he told.
Defense attorneys contended that Fitzgerald lacked the constitutional authority to bring charges against Libby. They also said they were unfairly prohibited from discussing the classified issues that were weighing on Libby's mind at the time and from questioning NBC reporter Andrea Mitchell about why she said lots of journalists knew Plame's identity.
On the classified information issue, Fitzgerald noted that defense attorneys did not call Libby or Cheney to testify to bolster Libby's defense, despite saying they would.
If Libby's request to remain free is denied, defense attorneys will rush to an appeals court and ask judges there to put the sentence on hold.



Bush Commutes Libby Prison Sentence (click on title above. thank you)
By MATT APUZZO Associated Press Writer
AP Photo/Gerald Herbert
U.S. Video

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Bush commuted the sentence of former aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby Monday, sparing him from a 2 1/2-year prison term in the CIA leak case. Bush left intact a $250,000 fine and two years probation for Libby, according to a senior White House official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the decision had not been announced.
Bush's move came hours after a federal appeals panel ruled Libby could not delay his prison term in the CIA leak case. That decision put the pressure on the president, who had been sidestepping calls by Libby's allies to pardon the former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney.
Libby was convicted in March of lying to authorities and obstructing the investigation into the 2003 leak of CIA operative's identity. He was the highest-ranking White House official ordered to prison since the Iran-Contra affair.

Not much of a 4th of July for Independence, Kansas

July 1, 2007
Photographer states :: Going East out of town, towards Cherryvale on the highway.

Odd picture, isn't it? Those are water rapids on the right side of the photo. If anyone was in the road when it was overtaken by water they are now washed downstream. That from a Rescue perspective. But the velocity of the water is clear. The water is running from left to right.

The roadway where the water actually appears calm, mirror-like is a bit deeper than the side of the road to the right which is more than likely cropland. So when the high velocity water 'piles up' when it hits the higher elevated crop land there is a rapid of water that develops.

There are rows of signs. There the ones on the right and the ones on the left and then a row of telephone poles. I find the first sign in the row of signs on the left the most interesting. It shows me the direction of the water and the velocity. The size of the pole is probably 2 inches by 4 inches at the very most where the water hits. As the water hits that pole it creates a wake behind it. That 'wake' is quite lengthy and it looks as though it continues to the line of rapids.

I would estimate those signs are above eye level. So the water is about five feet deep. For this much trubulence to occur the water has to be traveling at a high rate of speed. I'll make an estimate of about 30 mph with enough turlulence in that stretch of road a human being would be dragged under if they attempted to cross it. Kansas is mostly flat and that adds to the velocity of the water. No resistance. No friction for the upper two thirds of the 'stream.' It is a stream now by the way. Temporary, hopefully, but a stream just the same. The percise measurement is difficult because the exact volume of water is not known.

But.

For a wake to not resolve immediately after such a small 'interruption' as that 'sign pole' there is a lot of force behind it's movement. Possibly more than 30 mph.

Thank you, George Walker Bush. The color of the water tells me where all the topsoil is going.

Flooding forces hundreds from homes in Kansas and Missouri (click on title. thank you.)

OSAWATOMIE, Kan. — Even after sunshine returned to southeast Kansas and southwest Missouri, rivers swollen by days of heavy rain continued to rise as flood surges moved downstream.
While the rain had mostly stopped Monday morning, the National Weather Service extended a flash flood watch for six southeast Kansas counties — Allen, Labette, Montgomery, Neosho, Wilson and Woodson — because major flooding continued in area rivers.
The state was providing water to several communities where flooding had overwhelmed water treatment plants, said Sharon Watson, spokeswoman for the Kansas Emergency Management Agency. Fourteen shelters had been opened and were housing about 340 people early Monday.
In addition, more than 42,000 gallons of crude oil spilled into the Verdigris River from the Coffeyville Resources refinery Sunday, Watson said. The river flows south into Oklahoma.
VIDEO: Flooding leads to State of Emergency
..."The water's moving too fast for us to do anything with it right now," Bunting said Monday morning.
...The Verdigris River at Independence set a record of 52.4 feet Sunday morning, shattering the old mark of 47.6 feet and more than 20 feet above flood stage. In Coffeyville, the old record of 26.6 feet fell Saturday night as the river surged past 29 feet, more than 10 feet above flood stage.
"Releasing the water may not cause the river to crest higher, but it may cause the crest to remain for a longer period of time," said Robb Lawson, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Wichita.
The Neosho River crested at 40.5 feet at Erie in Neosho County, where some evacuations occurred during the weekend.
...In Nevada, the Marmaton was at 29.5 feet, almost 10 feet above flood stage, while the Marais des Cygnes was expected to crest at 12 feet above flood stage on Tuesday, said John Campbell, an operations manager for the State Emergency Management.

Rains stop, but waters rise

July 1, 2007

Ottawa, Kansas

Photographer states :: The main street bridge is completely submerged.

Ottawa — During heavy rains here Saturday, Tyler Carey, 24, could see the water ominously inching toward his house in the eastern part of the city.
It crept within 3 feet of his front porch. By Sunday evening, Carey looked out onto the body of water that had spilled over from the Marais des Cygnes River, which runs through Ottawa. It had overwhelmed the bottoms area by his house near East Second and South Poplar streets.
“I never thought in my wildest dreams that it would come all the way up to my house,” he said.
His two closest neighbors had left during the flooding, and Carey and his wife propped up their furniture. The couple and their three children spent Saturday night elsewhere with family, but they were back at home Sunday because the waters never reached the home.
“Everyone’s pretty much in shock,” Carey said....

This is quite a view from the Florida Room.

June 25, 2007

Ft. Myers Beach, Florida

Photographer states :: A few anxious moments as we watched this waterspout, hoping it would not move onto land.