According to the conservative bloggasariat, my moral compass is irretrievably broken for voting for Clark Schmidtke, a man with a felony theft conviction, instead of Russell Olson, a man with a longer yet less grave criminal record.
So how big of a jerk is Governor M. Michael Rounds for granting executive clemency to ten individuals the day after the election? Grand theft, assualt, DUI... all excused by Governor Rounds. Criminals all told by Governor Rounds, "Let's put your record behind you. Go on with your lives. Serve the common good. And don't screw up again."
Note that the governor doesn't excuse all lawbreakers. He picks and chooses, just like the Board of Pardons and Paroles. He listens to their stories, assesses their apologies, their character, and their sincerity. He grants it to some and not to others.
But of course, he's a Republican governor, not a Democratic blogger, so he's entitled to make such moral judgment calls... right?
They've admitted their guilt and successfully completed the terms of their sentences.
ReplyDeleteWhereas your guy, who was initially charged with "16 counts of theft, one count of mistreatment of residents or patients, and 28 counts of violations regarding the reporting of mistreatment of vulnerable adults" and pled it down to "three counts of theft" to save his bacon has yet to make full restitution.
It is within the Governor's purview to grant clemency when he feels it's justified, and he does not hand those things out lightly.
Maybe when your guy has fully paid the restitution he still owes, you can claim some smidgen of moral equivalency for supporting someone for office whose resume includes spending 8 months in the iron bar motel for stealing from old people.
Until then, you're only going to be mocked for your continued excuses.
Clark admitted what he did, pled guilty, did time, and paid the restitution the court required until the prosecuting attorney asked that the remainder be dismissed. I have yet to see evidence to the contrary. Governor Rounds is clearly as mockworthy as I.
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