92
Opinion of the Court
District Court's assessment of the defendant's greater need for rehabilitation. Id., at 51-53. The Court of Appeals thought this justification was inapplicable, viewing the § 3C1.1 enhancement as a punishment for obstructing justice without the time and expense of a separate perjury prosecution. 944 F. 2d, at 184. Second, the Grayson Court cautioned that "[n]othing we say today requires a sentencing judge to enhance, in some wooden or reflex fashion, the sentences of all defendants whose testimony is deemed false." 438 U. S., at 55. According to the Court of Appeals, "[t]he guidelines supply precisely the 'wooden or reflex' enhancement disclaimed by the Court," 944 F. 2d, at 184, and this rigidity "makes the § 3C1.1 enhancement for a disbelieved denial of guilt under oath an intolerable burden upon the defendant's right to testify in his own behalf," id., at 185.
Over a dissent by four of its judges, the Court of Appeals declined to rehear the case en banc. 950 F. 2d 149 (CA4 1991). We granted certiorari. 504 U. S. 940 (1992).
II
A
Sentencing Guideline § 3C1.1 states in full: "If the defendant willfully impeded or obstructed, or attempted to impede or obstruct the administration of justice during the investigation or prosecution of the instant offense, increase the [defendant's] offense level by 2 levels." USSG § 3C1.1 (Nov. 1989). See also USSG § 3C1.1 (Nov. 1992). Both parties assume the phrase "impede or obstruct the administration of justice" includes perjury, and the commentary to § 3C1.1 is explicit in so providing. In pertinent part, the commentary states:
"This section provides a sentence enhancement for a defendant who engages in conduct calculated to mislead or deceive authorities or those involved in a judicial proceeding, or otherwise to willfully interfere with the dis-
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