Well, that title doesn’t have a great pun, now does it. Heck, I once had a dart team I named “Future Rodeo Clowns of America,” and I thought that was the wittiest thing in the whole world, at least for a while. But I digress. . . .

We’ve all been speculating about who Bush will pardon when he leaves office. Sure, some would say he’s already started the pardoning, but no big fish as yet. Still, I’m not seeing lists of names or anything. The speculation that Bush would pardon Cheney, then resign and Cheney would pardon Bush is all the rage. Wouldn’t that be cute?

OK, I’ve got some names. At the very least they are candidates for a gathering a few years from now at a reunion at the Crawford Ranch of the last people to support Bush, those he pardoned in the waning days of the administration.

OK, the Washington Post does have some names. Michael Milken wants his record clean, and given the good works of his family foundation and his prostate cancer foundation, I actually support the move, except for the timing. We are in financial crisis right now, in case nobody noticed, caused by some slick Wall Street types who securitized risky mortgages. Wasn’t Milken convicted of a similar crime?

The WaPo list also includes Randy “Duke” Cunningham, one of the poster boys for the Republican “culture of corruption,” and Edwin Edwards, former Governor of Louisiana, also convicted on corruption charges. Were Bush to pardon them, then it would be a public relations problem for the GOP, reminding us all that the Republican Brand stands for corruption nowadays. Still, Bush has no fear of ruining his own already soiled reputation, so I think he’ll likely go for it. Ted Stevens has not applied for a pardon.

Now for some new possiblities, some Republicans who just might qualify in time for a Bush pardon by the end of his tenure in office, or perhaps should get a premptory pardon. How about Katon Dawson, the current candidate for RNC Chair? Sure, it is not a crime to belong to a Whites Only club, but this kind of stupidity probably indicates Dawson is guilty of something somewhere. Hey, and maybe a Bush pardon could get him free of the charge of the stupid move of thinking he could lead the Republicans even though he’s belonged to such a club for 10 years? Seriously, in the Whites Only Republican Party, one that says it wants to appeal to all Americans, isn’t this about as stupid as they come?

Of course, we’ve got to include Alberto Gonzales. Bush likely thinks he’s an All-Star Patriot, despite the extreme lengths Gonzales went to defend syping on his countrymen, torture, and politicizing the DOJ. But maybe we should add Mike Mukasey to the list, just out of principle, and also for spending DOJ money for Gonzales’ defense.

Hey, the Jack Abramoff gift that keeps on giving has given us another corrupt Republican. Maybe James F. Hirni is a good candidate for a late pardon by Bush. Here’s his crimes detailed from the Associated Press:

James F. Hirni will be charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, according to papers filed by the Justice Department in U.S. District Court.

A Hirni spokesman said he is cooperating with the Justice Department.

“He regrets one single instance as a first-time lobbyist over five years ago when a mistake in judgment by agreeing to a client’s request led to an unfortunate chain of events on one evening,” spokesman Scott Sobel said. “Jim has acknowledged his role and the involvement of those responsible for that incident.”

Hirni, who most recently worked for Wal-Mart Stores Inc., was implicated on Thursday as part of a plea agreement reached by federal prosecutors with former congressional aide Trevor L. Blackann.

Blackann pleaded guilty in federal court to not reporting more than $4,100 in illegal gifts from lobbyists on his 2003 tax forms, including tickets to the World Series, concerts and sporting events.

Court documents say that one of the lobbyists who provided the World Series tickets was Hirni. In exchange, “Blackann agreed to provide favorable official action to, and to use their influence on behalf of, defendant Hirni,” two other unnamed people and an unnamed equipment rental company.

Come on, W, it was just a pair of World Series tickets involved in this quid pro quo! This guy obviously just loves baseball and wanted to reward a fellow baseball fan! Pardon him!

Of course, this list is not exhaustive. I didn’t even mention Larry Craig! It would take too much work to list all the Bush pardon possibilities. What is instructive is that so many Republicans are lining up hoping to be the beneficiaries of Bush’s pardon pen, and so many of them are connected to some corruption or other. Were Bush to fully exercise his rights and pardon lots of corrupt Republicans, and then later have a convention of the Bush Pardonees, he’d likely have to rent out the Alamo Dome to hold them all. Hey, maybe they could just hold such a meeting in conjunction with the Republican Convention in 2012?