Unlike his predecessors, president Obama issued no pre-Christmas federal pardons this year and he apparently has yet to grant even a single pardon or commutation since he took office. (I'm not counting his presidential pardon of a turkey on Thanksgiving day). As one of the few attorneys who obtained a federal pardon for a client from President George W. Bush, I am especially disappointed to see the president be so stingy with pardons and commutations. According to a 1/29/09 Sentencing Law and Policy Blog Post, there have only been eight prior presidents who have failed to grant any pardon applications within their first 100 days of office. With almost 3,500 pending petitions, one would think the president could find some deserving of relief within his first year of office. See the Christmas Eve post of the Sentencing Law and Policy Blog for more pardon analysis.