Presidential Pardons for as Little As $40,000!!!

Ah, the pardoning of the scum has begun. More evidence of how completely compromised our justice system has become under Bush and the fact that forgiveness is only for the rich:

President Bush pardoned a Brooklyn real estate developer accused of scamming hundreds of poor, minority homebuyers - and whose father donated $28,500 to the Republican Party this year.

Bush pardoned Isaac Toussie, 36, two days before Christmas in a gesture of mercy that outraged ex-customers who said they were duped into buying overpriced, defective homes.

"We're in the middle of a mortgage crisis [and] this is somebody who was alleged to have participated in predatory lending practices," said Peter Seidman, a lawyer who represents 460 people who say they were fleeced.

"To pardon Isaac Toussie is a kick in the teeth to homeowners struggling with mortgages they can't afford."

But it gets better! Much amazed that anyone noticed him pardoning such a scumbag*, Bush is now attempting to rescind his pardon.

Experts said Wednesday they knew of no other instance of a presidential pardon being revoked. Some analysts suggested Toussie might be able to challenge the reversal in court.

"I can't think of another time that it's happened for a presidential pardon," said Margaret Love, who was the lead pardon attorney under President George H.W. Bush and for part of the Clinton administration. "It's not clear to me that it's as easy to do as all that."

White House aides said that the pardon did not take effect until it was "delivered" to Toussie and that that had not happened when Bush changed course Wednesday. The definition of "delivered" was unclear.

It has been suggested in a Harper's Magazine online editorial that if Bush's negation of this pardon is effective, it means that a future President might be able to rescind the current President's pardons. Wouldn't that be entertaining?

*to be fair, Bushco claims the President knew nothing of the campaign contributions. How it is possible that the team that developed the most organized fundraising apparatus in history (prior to Obama) did not instantly know this man's father contributed around $40k is difficult to believe.