From Judson Berger at Fox News:

A number of high-profile convicts are hoping President Bush will grant their clemency requests before leaving office — but the President’s slim history of pardons suggests he’ll remain skeptical.

After the president granted 18 pardons and one commutation earlier this week, a handful of high-profile prisoners — and thousands of others — are still hoping he will grant their appeals before he leaves the White House.

But Bush has proved one of the most cautious presidents in modern history when it comes to exercising his clemency powers.

To date, he has granted 189 pardons and nine commutations. Compare that with the 396 pardons and 61 commutations granted under President Clinton, or the 393 pardons and 13 commutations granted under President Reagan, and Bush’s record signals applicants will have a tough time in the weeks ahead convincing him to overturn the will of the courts. [Read More]

Philip Klein:

Conservatism Can Rise Again

America is not as conservative as it seemed in 2004 and it isn’t as liberal as it looks this morning.

What happened is that four years ago, voters put their trust in one political party to run the country and they didn’t like the results, and so, over the course of two elections, they systematically threw out that political party and turned to a different one. If Democrats disappoint the public, they could be waking up on a not so distant November morning just as devastated as Republicans are today. [Read more →]