We write letters!

Below you will find the text of an email I sent to my fearless leader in the White House at 14:50 British Summer Time today.

Dear President Bush,

I am appalled, but not shocked, by your decision to commute the sentence of your Vice President's former Chief of Staff I. Lewis Libby. Early on in the investigation into the disgraceful leak of the identify of a covert CIA agent that emanated from the executive branch you said that you would hold any member of your administration accountable if they were found to have had any culpability in the leak. Clearly your concept of accountability and mine differ materially. Mr. Libby was found, by a jury of his peers, to have lied to prosecutors investigating that very leak and his obfuscation may, in part, have caused the investigation to fail to find the guilty party. Public servants, of which Mr. Libby was one until recently, have an obligation to the American people to be forthright and honest both to the citizenry themselves and to their representatives. We expect and deserve that these same public servants adhere to a higher standard than that expected of the general public. When they fail to meet that standard they must suffer the same or more severe punishment than the general populace.

In the statement you issued announcing your decision to forgive Mr. Libby of a significant part of the punishment that he was lawfully found to deserve you did not dispute his guilt. You do however say that you find that the "the prison sentence given to Mr Libby is excessive". Given your record as the governor of Texas I find this a most curious statement. Your behaviour as the Lone Star State's chief executive showed you to have a taste for, rather than an abhorrence of, harsh punishments. You certainly seem to believe that harsh punishments, including the taking of a human live, serve as a deterrent to future criminals. I certainly disagree with you as regards the death penalty but I do feel that in many cases, especially for so-called "white criminals" which would include Mr. Libby, prison sentences do prove a deterrent. If Mr. Libby had served the sentence he was given and which he earned by his criminal behaviour perhaps other public servants would seriously consider whether misleading those they serve was worth the price. I would hope that that is a result you desire. It is possible that it is not.

Mr. President I am an American citizen and registered voter who lives overseas, in London, and as such I am often thrust into the role of defender of the actions of my government. I find this role generally quite difficult to perform when I wholeheartedly believe that the actions said government are illegal, immoral or unethical. I would class this most recent decision of yours in the latter category.

There is no doubt that should you and I have an opportunity to sit down and discuss matters either international or domestic we would find little to agree on. My philosophy and yours are vastly divergent from each other. Despite that I would hope that we would agree that one of the greatest things about America is the legacy we have from our founders of a legal system that is seen to be fair to all irrespective of their class, race, sex, religion, sexual preference or political influence. It has not always been this way and there have been great struggles to get where we are today. We have not yet achieved perfect justice but I hope, and I hope that you hope, that we will continue to progress in that direction. I am afraid that I believe that your decision is a step in the opposite direction.

So what is it in Mr. Libby's crime that you find so exceptional that you felt that you had to take this extraordinary step? There are countless other incarcerated Americans who could make equal or superior claims to having suffered excessively harsh sentences. Why have you not take the same steps for them that you have for Mr. Libby? When I ask myself why I find only two possible answers. First is that you find Mr.Libby's sentence too severe because he is a man well known to you and who you may feel to be a friend. Second is that you may feel beholden to Mr. Libby because, in obstructing the CIA leak investigation, he was doing your bidding or the bidding of your Vice President, Mr. Cheney. Is there any other possible explanation that is consist with your record? I cannot find one. If there is not and one or the other of the previously described explanations is your true motivation in this matter then your decision is simply unacceptable to the American people and is a blow to the American system of equal justice for all and to America's reputation across the globe. If it is possible for you to undo this step I would fervently urge you to do so.

In any case Mr. President you have an obligation as an elected representative of the American people to better explain your actions. Should you fail to do so, and I fear that you will, we will not forget nor shall we forgive.

Sincerely yours,

Yank in London*

I sincerely doubt that he will ever be made aware of this communiqué's existence and even if he were that he would pay it any mind. Nonetheless I found it rather cathartic.

*Note: I did indeed sign it with my own name which shall forever be unknown to you!