Behind the scenes, askonim from all walks of communal life have been diligently working together in unprecedented cooperation – and using every available angle to free Jonathan Pollard. Now is your chance to stand up for the silent suffering and make a difference!!
A nationwide grass roots effort on behalf of Jonathan Pollard was officially launched today. People are encouraged to click freepollardnow.com to join the effort to help set Jonathan Pollard free.
With less than two months until President George Bush leaves office, this grass roots effort is intended to remind the White House of Jonathan Pollard’s plight and to push for a commutation of his prison sentence.
Because it is critical that the White House hear from as many people as possible in the next several weeks, visitors to freepollardnow.com are urged to call, fax, and send letters to President Bush on a daily basis. The website provides contact information for the White House, a sample letter that people can fax or mail, and an online petition that will be sent to President Bush. Visitors to freepollardnow.com are reminded that just 60 seconds a day can help Jonathan Pollard go free.
Pollard, who just began his 24th year in federal prison, has repeatedly expressed his remorse publicly and in private in letters to many Presidents and others. His health has deteriorated significantly during his more than two decades in prison.
In addition, Pollard’s life sentence is grossly disproportionate when compared to the sentences of others who have spied for allied nations. Countless elected officials, individuals from the national intelligence arena and the legal world, as well as religious and community leaders, have described Pollard’s sentence as excessive, and have called for his sentence to be commuted.
“There are individuals across the United States who have expressed interest in helping Jonathan Pollard,” said Rabbi Pesach Lerner, the Executive Vice President of the National Council of Young Israel (for identification purposes only), “This grass roots campaign gives people the opportunity to participate in a respectful and coordinated effort intended to help enable Jonathan Pollard to go home to Israel to his family.”
Rabbi Lerner, one of the driving forces behind freepollardnow.com, communicates regularly with Jonathan Pollard and his wife Esther, and is considered by Jonathan to be his clergy..
PLEASE FORWARD THIS TO AS MANY PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE!
(Yehuda Drudgestein – YWN NYC)
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19 Responses
admin, please keep this as the top billing until inauguration day, or when a mazel tov will be heard that he is commuted!
Lets do this right!
Make sure it’s a kiddush H-Shem.
IMHO, less attention, more results.
If you aren’t 100% sure your posting or letter is a kiddush H-Shem, get a second opinion before you hit send, please!
V’Shavu Banim Ligvu’lam!
President Bush Pardons 14 People
Not on the list are
the Rubashkin family and Johnathan Pollard
President George W. Bush has granted pardons to 14 individuals and commuted the
prison sentences of two others, The Associated Press learned Monday.
The new round of White House pardons are Bush’s first since March and come
less than two months before he will end his presidency. The crimes committed by
those on the list include drug offenses, income tax evasion, bank embezzlement
and violation of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act.
Bush has been stingy during his time in office about handing out such
reprieves.
While we should definitely make our hishtadlut and write, call and fax the White House to request that President Bush pardon Jonathan Pollard, we must ultimately remeber that it is in the hands of Hashem. Please have Yehonoson ben Malka in mind when you recite the Brocho of Matir Asurim every morning.
if you might have been wondering why Bush pardonrd may and why not Jonathan Pollard, the answer is very simple, because Hashem is waiting for us to make a world wide Yom Tefeliah to pray for his release. Lev Melochim V’sorim BeYad Hashem Bush is doing what Hashem has puts into his mind, Jonathan Pollard is being used as a wake up call to all of us to do a real Teshuva this includes all Jews around the globe no matter of our background, religious or not no difference, we all have to unite and pray with all our might to Hashem, the results will be that he will be out of prison immediately, united back with his family in Eretz Yisroel
3, the CBS radio report I heard yesterday made it sound as if the pardons went to lightweight criminals.
And it doesn’t seem that now is the time for a Rubashkin appeal; it’s too new and all the info isn’t out. There may be other avenues of hishtadlus but I can’t see how Bush could get a way with a pardon. Jonathan Pollard, OTOH, is another story. Even his most vociferous critics should appreciate a pardon based on his having spied for an ally, his admitting guilt, the time served, and his health.
Let one or more of the present or former chief rabbis come to the states and and a few xan leaders to take them to meet with Bush and ask for his commutation of the prison sentence. Bush would be very hard-pressed to say no to a few of his pastors.
TO NUMBER 3 PRES BUSH CANT PARDON RUBASHKIN AS THEY WERENT EVEN SENTENCED THE PRES CAN COMMUTE A SENTENCE ONCE HANDED DOWN HE CANT THROW OUT A CASE!
AND BTW I CANT SEE ANY EQUATION BETWEEN JP WHO IS SITTING IN JAIL 24 YEARS THROW AROUND AS A POLITICAL FOOTBALL TO RUBASHKIN ??
I just sent this e-mail to the Whitehouse:
Dear Mr. President,
Thank you for the last 8 years -you have protected America against our enemies. I don’t know if any American could have done a good a job as you.
I’m not going to criticize you on your recent pardons because I don’t know details of the cases. But as a Jewish American, one case I’m familiar with is Jonathan Pollard. He deserves a pardon for many reasons. I’ll list a few – I believe his conviction and life sentence are a miscarriage of justice. The gov’t made a plea bargain with him, which was broken. This should have given him the right to withdraw his guilty plea.
As a matter of fact, one of the Circuit Judges wanted to re sentence him. If you look at the section that the Judge believed Mr. Pollard was entitled to, it also lists re-trial. Even if you believe that the two Judges weren’t mistaken in their call and he isn’t entitled to be found guilty in a court of law; you should still pardon him on the grounds that he has served longer time than most spies found guilty of spying to enemy governments, let alone to a friendly government like Israel.
This continued incarceration not only is it affront to all people who believe in democracy and true justice, it is also a grave sin in G-d’s eyes. Please do not let his injustice to continue.
Sincerely,
Contacting the White House
Mailing Address
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500
Phone Numbers
Comments: 202-456-1111
Switchboard: 202-456-1414
FAX: 202-456-2461
TTY/TDD
Comments: 202-456-6213
Visitors Office: 202-456-2121
E-Mail
Please send your comments to [email protected]. Due to the large volume of e-mail received, the White House cannot respond to every message. For further up-to-date information on Presidential initiatives, current events, and topics of interest to you, please continue to use the White House website.
Note: Please submit messages in text format only. This inbox is unable to receive e-mails that contain graphics or attachments. After it arrives, you will receive an e-mail confirmation indicating successful delivery.
Vice President Richard Cheney: [email protected]
I just called the White House and asked the receptionist to “please ask the President to pardon Jonathon Pollard.” I don’t know why I haven’t been doing this until now because it was so easy and took 20 seconds of my time. In the age of cell phones, there’s no reason why every Yid shouldn’t be doing this once every single day (at maximum until President Bush leaves office). Power in numbers!! LET’S GET OUR BROTHER OUT OF JAIL!! (incidentally, our brother who was trying to us!!) If you agree with me, then get involved and text your (close) friends to call as well. Don’t send around impersonal forwarded text messages which simply get discarded. Just text your close friends/relatives and urge them to do the same. Be sure to point out that the President gets a count on the number of requests. Let’s get the ball rolling…
This can be the easiest Mitzvah you do today. Stand up and be counted. ACHDUS!
first of all I have send out a text message to ppl with number of the white house urge pll to call &second of all I think they should launch a text messaging system to contact the white house
He’s not eligible for a pardon. You have to have served your full sentence. He is eligible to have his sentence commuted. I just sent an email to the White House and hope that many others will follow suit.
15. you are technically incorrect. he can be pardoned. he is not asking for a pardon, but for a commutation of time served. a pardon makes the conviction null. a commutation means the guy is guilty but the president is haveing rachmonus. the 14 people pardoned last night were all in jail.
#3: you are very wrong. the presidnet can pardon anyone for crimes committed. that does nto mean that they have to have been convicted. the trial would still happen, if the d.a. would want, but at the end of the trial, it would be nullified. the president is probably going to do this for all people who did things for him, so that the next administration cant bring them up on charges. (border security, clandestine operatives, government officials, etc.)
It is important to enlist also non-jews, from all over the country, as many as possible, to ask the president to pardon Mr. Polard.
I also sent a letter to the White House, but since learned that the pardon/commute process is a very scripted one. You must follow a “process”.Letter writing is helpful IF the process is made. There is a special “office of Pardon” that present the applications to the President. Someone must file the paperwork with them, otherwise it is all for naught. Sadly, I don’t know the process, other than mentioned, but I’m sure the Govt of Israel (ha ha) knows.. or can find out. So can the Agudah HAA HAA…
see:
http://www.usdoj.gov/pardon/
sorry for the PS’s..
http://www.usdoj.gov/pardon/forms/commutation_form.pdf