Judge Andrew Napolitano, Fox News “Senior Judicial Analyst”:
Nader: What’s the sanction for President Bush and Vice President Cheney?
Napolitano: There’s been no sanction except what history will say about them.
Nader: What should be the sanctions?
Napolitano: They should have been indicted. They absolutely should have been indicted for torturing, for spying, for arresting without warrants. I’d like to say they should be indicted for lying but believe it or not, unless you’re under oath, lying is not a crime. At least not an indictable crime. It’s a moral crime.
(via)
SGEW
The thing is, this really shouldn’t be a controversial statement from a legal point of view. It’s practically hornbook stuff.
Redhand
@SGEW:
Absolutely. Bush and Cheney are the most lawless bastards ever to occupy high office in this country. What Augusto Pinochet was to Chile, they are to the USA.
RedKitten
Man, for someone to finally say that out loud, and on TV (and on Fox, no less)…that’s just plain refreshing, isn’t it?
satby
Yeah, I’m just glad it was on Faux News. Maybe my conservative family saw it.
David
If the Republicans were smart they would have been calling for that starting January 21, 2009.
TomG
Judge Napolitano is just awesome. He’s the only person worth paying attention to on Fox News.
The Truffle
And of course, the good judge waited until Bush/Cheney were gone to say this.
Jerk.
bago
Cheney is not gone. Only in repose…
SGEW
N.B.: This exchange with Ralph Nader did not take place on FOXNews; it appeared on CSPAN.
TomG
The Truffle, @7 – This isn’t the FIRST time that Judge Napolitano has made these statements. He was completely against the PATRIOT Act from the moment it passed, for instance. I haven’t read his books yet, but he hasn’t hesitated to call out those who are trampling on our civil liberties.
EDIT – apparently he subs for Glenn Beck on Beck’s radio show. I still think he’s pretty good, just not perfect.
Shrillhouse
Whooops!! Did I say ‘should be indicted?” ’cause I meant to say “should have their faces carved on Mt. Rushmore..heh..heh..gosh it’s hot in here!”
kid bitzer
don’t worry–fox will figure out some reason why this shows it’s all obama’s fault.
Svensker
Judge Nap is an old fashioned libertarian conservative who actually thinks that the Constitution should have some meaning. He’s been very consistent throughout. Fox just usually limits him to areas that don’t offend the wingnuts too much yet keeps their hooks on the more libertarian viewers.
Redshirt
How did this happen? Not only does Napolitano need to be made invisible, but I think some staffers too.
No dissenting opinions! Party before All!
Ahh a Lion!
Napolitano has been saying these kinds of things for years. Not only has Fox kept him as a judicial expert, they gave him his own show. Freedom Watch on Fox Business Network.
Paul in KY
Soon to be ex-Fox News Senior Legal Analyst. Kudos to him for speaking truth to the detriment of his paycheck.
water balloon
As others have been pointing out, Napolitano has been saying these kinds of things on Fox itself for years. I remember him getting very worked up over the FISA court business and domestic spying years ago. The people at Fox know they need someone to speak up for the Ron Paul wing of the conservative movement.
SixStringFanatic
@Ahh a Lion!: They gave him his own show on Fox Business Channel?? That’s the Fox equivalent of “buried in the bureaucracy”, innit?
AxelFoley
Holy–Napolitano said that?
Norwegian Shooter
Here’s the direct link to the whole show. By the end, I actually had more sympathy for Nader.
In case you don’t watch it, it should be noted that Napolitano makes an exception from Libertarianism for abortion. He says a separate life begins at conception and that the fetus has all the rights of a person, thus abortion is murder. So from Fox’s point of view (may-I-never-see-it-that-way), he’s got that going for him.
Lex
I can’t find the cite at the moment, but if memory serves, making a false statement to Congress is a crime whether or not under oath, and making false statements to other federal officials even when not under oath can be a crime in certain specific circumstances (statements regarding international shipping, aliens, some other stuff).