WASHINGTON, 4 July 2007 — The White House yesterday dismissed a storm of political outrage over President George W. Bush’s decision to spare former top aide Lewis “Scooter” Libby from a two-and-a-half-year jail term.

Just five hours after a federal appeals panel ruled on Monday that Vice President Dick Cheney’s former chief of staff, I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby, could not delay his prison sentence further, President George Bush gave a trusted and loyal aide a presidential get-out-of-jail-free card.

In wiping away the jail time, Bush left intact the other aspects of Libby’s sentence including the $250,000 fine he had been assessed. Bush insisted he had made the right decision and refused to rule out an eventual full pardon for Libby, a day after commuting the sentence handed down after a trial bound up in the drive to war with Iraq.

As a rationale for commuting Libby’s sentence the president called the jail time of 30 months excessive punishment for lying to a grand jury and obstructing justice.

However, cynicism greeted Bush’s decision to spare a former White House aide from going to prison, with some Americans saying people with presidential connections have long been above the law. Several people interviewed yesterday said Bush, already unpopular in the polls, had lost all credibility with Monday’s announcement he had commuted the sentence of Libby.

As well as flak from Democrats, Bush faced the ire of conservatives angry that he had not wiped out the conviction entirely for Libby, once a trusted former member of Vice President Dick Cheney’s inner circle.

“I thought that the jury verdict should stand, I felt that the punishment was severe,” Bush told reporters yesterday. “As to the future, I, you know, rule nothing in or nothing out,” Bush said, when asked whether Libby could ever benefit from a full presidential pardon.

A White House spokesman rejected claims Libby was getting off lightly, after he was convicted of obstructing an investigation into the outing of CIA spy Valerie Plame, wife of a vehement critic of the administration over Iraq.

“This is hardly a slap on the wrist, in terms of penalty. It is a very severe penalty,” said the spokesman, noting Libby still faced a $250,000 fine, two years of probation and was saddled with a felony conviction. “The president also believes, for those who are arguing on behalf of a pardon, that you need to respect the jury system. Scooter Libby was tried before a jury of his peers.”

Democrats kept up the heat on the White House yesterday seeking political advantage from Bush’s move. “I’m outraged,” senior Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer told supporters in an e-mail.

“President Bush commuted Scooter Libby’s prison sentence, wiping away two-and-half-years of jail time with the stroke of a pen. “We expect more from our president. We expect honor and integrity, we expect moral leadership.”

Democrats reacted swiftly on Monday to news of Bush’s move. “The president’s commutation of Scooter Libby’s prison sentence does not serve justice, condones criminal conduct, and is a betrayal of trust of the American people,” House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi said. “The president’s decision to commute Mr. Libby’s sentence is disgraceful,” Senate Majority Reid said.

Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald, who brought the case, disputed Bush’s use of the term “excessive,” stressing in a statement that Libby “remains convicted by a jury of serious felonies, and we will continue to seek to preserve those convictions through the appeals process.”