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Peltier Denied Freedom (Clemency)
Peltier Denied Freedom
President Clinton, in his farewell address said, "..As for me, I'll leave the presidency more idealistic, more full of hope than the day I arrived and more confident than ever that America's best days lie ahead." Even though the word "lie" stood out, one could only hope that what he was saying will become true. For this to happen it would require a total transformation in the military-industrial-academic complex with a truly fair justice system for prosperity, health and peace for humankind and our natural environment. Yet the denial of Leonard's freedom, in the wake of documented evidences of overt FBI misconduct, showed the reality of the ruthless power dominating world affairs and our government.
Peltier's Clemency denial does not bid well for justice, human rights and the peace in space issue. The new administration is proposing a policy for the U.S. to dominate space, which would lead to an acceleration of the arms race, which leads to more terrorism, leading to more elimination of our civil rights and liberties, that leads to more terrorism, internal instability, more wars and a more probable collapse of the human and many other species of life. Our environment has a limited capacity for abuse.
A political solution to help end the continued injustices to Leonard Peltier and help prevent a downward sprial with missile defense, is in the hands of our supposed representatives in Congress. This may be our last resort in stopping the terror confronting everyone. Congressional Hearings on the case of Leonard Peltier would expose FBI misconduct, an illegal land transfer, a corrupt Indian Council group, armed by the FBI, and more than sixty murders remaining uninvestigated during the Reign of Terror. Leonard Peltier was on the Pine Ridge Reservation to protect families for their lives and for Mother Earth. He remains in prison for this same purpose.
It seems apparent that when President Clinton made his deal with the independent investigators about being less than honest in court regarding his relationship with Monica Lewinsky, other nondisclosed issues were tide-up in the same package, including the sad fate of human rights activist, Leonard Peltier. Perhaps, what was at stake for President Clinton in fighting the FBI, or whoever they represent, was too much to take a stand to grant Clemency. This choice of self interest will place Leonard Peltier in prison for a quarter of a Century this February 6.
To keep best informed on the ongoing struggle subscribe for the Leonard Peltier Defense Committee's email updates by sending a blank message to < lpdc-on@mail-list.com > .
Leonard Peltier's book, Prison Writings: My Life Is My Sun Dance, is available from bookstores, libraries and the Leonard Peltier Defense Committe - http://www.freepeltier.org
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An excerpt from President Clinton's final address 1/1801
".. we must remember that America cannot lead in the world unless here at home we weave the threads of our coat of many colors into the fabric of one America. As we become ever more diverse, we must work harder to unite around our common values and our common humanity.
We must work harder to overcome our differences. In our hearts and in our laws, we must treat all our people with fairness and dignity, regardless of their race, religion, gender or sexual orientation and regardless of when they arrived in our country, always moving toward the more perfect union of our founders' dreams.."
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President Dwight D. Eisenhower's Farewell Address in 1961.
"This conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large arms industry is new in the American experience. The total influence-economic, political, even spiritual-is felt in every city, every state house, every office of the Federal government. We recognize the imperative need for this development. Yet we must not fail to comprehend its grave implications. Our toil, resources and livelihood are all involved; so is the very structure of our society.
In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist.
We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals, so that security and liberty may prosper together."
Full Address:
http://www.eisenhower.utexas.edu/farewell.htm
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http://dailynews.yahoo.com/htx/nm/20010120/ts/clinton_leadall_dc_3.html
Saturday January 20 11:22 AM ET
Clinton Pardons McDougal, Not Milken
By Patricia Wilson
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Less than two hours before leaving office, President Clinton pardoned on Saturday Whitewater scandal figure Susan McDougal and one-time revolutionary and kidnapped heiress Patricia Hearst Shaw.
But Clinton, after lengthy discussions with his advisers, decided not to pardon financier Michael Milken, Native American Leonard Peltier and former Justice Department official Webster Hubbell. He also declined a pardon for convicted Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard.
All told, Clinton pardoned 140 people. The White House papers announcing the pardons were released at about 10:30 a.m. EST, 90 minutes before Clinton's term was to expire.
Clinton also pardoned his half-brother Roger Clinton, a musician who served a year in jail on a drug offense. Roger Clinton is 10 years younger than the 54-year-old president and says he has kicked his cocaine habit.
Also receiving pardons were former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Henry Cisneros and former CIA Director John Deutch.
Cisneros pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of lying to the FBI about how much he paid a former mistress. He remains one of the most popular Hispanic politicians in the United States.
Deutch has reportedly been negotiating with the Justice Department about possibly pleading guilty to a misdemeanor for keeping classified information on his home computers.
Deutch, who was CIA director from May 1995 to December 1996, was stripped of his CIA and high-level defense intelligence clearances in August of last year for mishandling classified information.
Clinton also commuted the prison sentences of 36 people.
A presidential pardon -- providing official forgiveness for criminal wrongdoing -- gives back to convicted criminals benefits enjoyed by a full citizen, including the right to vote. Clinton relinquishes the presidency to George W. Bush at noon on Saturday.
Kidnap Victim, Friend Pardoned
Patricia Hearst Shaw, an heiress to the Hearst fortune, was kidnapped by a radical terrorist group called the Symbionese Liberation Army in 1974 and while under control of the SLA, she was forced to rob a bank. But she maintains that she committed the crime after being mistreated by the group, including spending more than 50 days in a closet, and after being brainwashed.
When found, she was put on trial for grand theft and convicted. She served nearly two years of a seven-year prison term and was released with help from then-President Jimmy Carter. She later married her bodyguard and sought a full pardon.
McDougal was convicted in connection with an improper loan to pay the debts of the Whitewater Development Co., the Arkansas land company in which Clinton and his wife, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, were partners.
McDougal spent 21 months in jail for refusing to testify about Clinton to independent counsel Kenneth Starr.
Hubbell, a former top Justice Department official and longtime friend of Clinton, was convicted of defrauding his Little Rock law firm, where he was a partner with Mrs. Clinton.
Milken, a Wall Street financier who made billions in the junk bond industry before pleading guilty to securities fraud in 1990, had attracted high-profile support for a pardon.
A prostate cancer survivor, Milken served two years in prison, paid $500 million in fines and was barred from the securities industry for life. He has earned a reputation as a philanthropist after raising large sums of money for cancer research and education.
In his final weekly radio address, the last of more than 400 such recordings, Clinton announced that the federal government was awarding $112 million to fund 1,400 more police officers in communities across the country.
Clinton leaves office with an approval rating of about 65 percent, but held in low regard personally because of scandals such as his affair with Monica Lewinsky. He reached a deal with independent prosecutor Robert Ray on Friday to avoid being indicted on perjury charges in the Lewinsky case.
``Now, my job as your president draws to a close, and the work of our new president begins,'' Clinton said. ``I want to wish President-elect Bush, Vice President-elect (Dick) Cheney, their families and entire administration the very best.
``I know you do, too,'' he said to Americans. ``Thanks to your work, he takes the reins of a nation renewed, ready to move into a new century and a whole new era in human affairs. I join every American in wishing him Godspeed,'' Clinton said.
On Friday, his last full day in office, Clinton cut a deal to escape criminal indictment in the Monica Lewinsky scandal, admitting he gave ``evasive and misleading'' testimony about the sexual affair that nearly cost him the presidency.
In return, Ray shut down his perjury investigation and dropped any plans to indict Clinton. As part of the deal, Clinton accepted a five-year suspension of his license to practice law in Arkansas and paid a $25,000 fine.
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