Come May, Chelsea Manning is a free woman
Among the hundreds of sentence commutations and dozens of pardons passed out today by President Barrack Obama as his presidency winds down was one for Chelsea Manning. She will be released in May of this year and will have served seven years of the 35 year sentence she was given after being found guilty on 20 of 22 charges against her.
Conservatives are aghast. Progressives aren't happy either but only because it took so long for this commutation to take place. Remember that commutation is not the same as a pardon. Manning remains a convicted felon and with her dishonorable discharge has lost almost all of the veterans benefits most former military personnel receive after leaving the service.
She isn't being released immediately as this period from now through May will provide time to arrange from her transition from military prisoner to freed civilian.
There is the fact that she received a much longer sentence than most who leak classified information. Before you try to make a comparison between Manning and Jonathan Pollard, remember that Pollard pleaded guilty to the far more serious charge of espionage.
So is this a case of balancing the scales of justice? Is Chelsea Manning receiving this commutation because she's tried to kill herself twice? Because she's a transgender woman? I do not believe those things were part of President Obama's thought process. I believe he felt that seven years behind bars was an appropriate punishment for the transgressions of Chelsea Manning.
The White House was asked how what she did was different from the actions of Edward Snowden. Their response pointed out the fact that Snowden fled to a foreign land to escape prosecution while Manning went through the justice system. The two cases of leaking classified material are very different when you take that into account.
On my way home from work today a pundit on talk radio made the point that President Obama has now issued pardons and commutations during his eight years that total more than the 11 presidents who immediately preceded him.
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Conservatives are aghast. Progressives aren't happy either but only because it took so long for this commutation to take place. Remember that commutation is not the same as a pardon. Manning remains a convicted felon and with her dishonorable discharge has lost almost all of the veterans benefits most former military personnel receive after leaving the service.
She isn't being released immediately as this period from now through May will provide time to arrange from her transition from military prisoner to freed civilian.
There is the fact that she received a much longer sentence than most who leak classified information. Before you try to make a comparison between Manning and Jonathan Pollard, remember that Pollard pleaded guilty to the far more serious charge of espionage.
So is this a case of balancing the scales of justice? Is Chelsea Manning receiving this commutation because she's tried to kill herself twice? Because she's a transgender woman? I do not believe those things were part of President Obama's thought process. I believe he felt that seven years behind bars was an appropriate punishment for the transgressions of Chelsea Manning.
The White House was asked how what she did was different from the actions of Edward Snowden. Their response pointed out the fact that Snowden fled to a foreign land to escape prosecution while Manning went through the justice system. The two cases of leaking classified material are very different when you take that into account.
On my way home from work today a pundit on talk radio made the point that President Obama has now issued pardons and commutations during his eight years that total more than the 11 presidents who immediately preceded him.
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posted by me at 7:24 PM
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