Tuesday, September 30, 2003
Just Standard Procedure; So Says The Attorney-General
The Dept of Justice is moving forward on an investigation of who outed Ambassador Joseph Wilson's wife, Valerie Plame as a CIA, well a CIA something or other.
This after having the referral from the CIA, based on their own investigation establishing that a potential crime had been committed, for at leasts two months. Just standard procedure, claimed General Ashcroft. Just standard procedure to wait until the subject blows up in the media. Sounds about right to me.
So White House personnel will have had at least twenty-four hours before it's spelled out for them what they should be preserving in the way of materials. Not that I don't trust each and every last person who make up that personnel, but I can't help but remember how the Republicans, all Republicans, every last bloody one of them, never stopped haunting and taunting the Clinton White House on the assumption that any possible opening for dishonesty meant that a dishonesty could be assumed to have happened. What would they have made of that twenty-four hours notice to get rid of anything that might prove embarrassing if it had been pre-suicidal Vince Foster. Dare one even imagine?
Damands by Democrats that a special prosecutor be appointed? Purely partisan, we're told by Republicans, with the straightest of straight faces.
Remember when Clinton had agreed to ask for appointment of an Independent Councel to investigate the Clinton's investment in the Whitewater property, and any ties they might have had to Madison Guarantee, despite the fact that all of that was under investigation by the RTC, and AG Reno consulted with congressional Republicans before appointing, with their approval, a Republican independent councel, and once the Independent Councel Act was reauthorized, Republicans demanded, and then got from a panel of Repuglican Judges appointed by Republican Chief Justice Rhenquist, removal of that independent councel on the basis that his appointment, just his appointment, mind youl, by the administration's AG constituted the appearance of conflict of interest? Remember that? But Bush's AG doing the entire investigation of a potential felony committed by someone high up in the adiministration? Not to worry, you partisan fools.
What must these thugs really think of the American polity? Methinks laughing all the way to the bank, just about covers it.
For additonal insight, Cal Pundit has some terrific stuff up, especially his summary of the evidence for Valerie Plame's status as a deep cover agent, and including a link to this fascinating summary by Alan Brill at Right Christians of the reaction by Christian Hawks, (his nomenclature)to the L'affaire Plame. Great stuff. Don't skip the comments.
Also, don't miss this worthy addition to the discussion by James C. Moore, who wrote the book, ("Bush's Brain") on Karl Rove, in a reluctant Buzzflash editorial.
And it gets better.
This after having the referral from the CIA, based on their own investigation establishing that a potential crime had been committed, for at leasts two months. Just standard procedure, claimed General Ashcroft. Just standard procedure to wait until the subject blows up in the media. Sounds about right to me.
The Counsel to the President, Alberto R. Gonzales, informed the White House staff in a message this morning that the Justice Department would be sending a letter instructing employees to "preserve all materials that might be relevant to its investigation."
The letter, Mr. Gonzales's message said, "will provide more specific instructions on the materials in which it is interested, and we will communicate those instructions directly to you. In the meantime, you must preserve all materials that might in any way be related to the Department's investigation."
Mr. Gonzales's message said the White House had been notified of the investigation on Monday evening.
So White House personnel will have had at least twenty-four hours before it's spelled out for them what they should be preserving in the way of materials. Not that I don't trust each and every last person who make up that personnel, but I can't help but remember how the Republicans, all Republicans, every last bloody one of them, never stopped haunting and taunting the Clinton White House on the assumption that any possible opening for dishonesty meant that a dishonesty could be assumed to have happened. What would they have made of that twenty-four hours notice to get rid of anything that might prove embarrassing if it had been pre-suicidal Vince Foster. Dare one even imagine?
Damands by Democrats that a special prosecutor be appointed? Purely partisan, we're told by Republicans, with the straightest of straight faces.
Remember when Clinton had agreed to ask for appointment of an Independent Councel to investigate the Clinton's investment in the Whitewater property, and any ties they might have had to Madison Guarantee, despite the fact that all of that was under investigation by the RTC, and AG Reno consulted with congressional Republicans before appointing, with their approval, a Republican independent councel, and once the Independent Councel Act was reauthorized, Republicans demanded, and then got from a panel of Repuglican Judges appointed by Republican Chief Justice Rhenquist, removal of that independent councel on the basis that his appointment, just his appointment, mind youl, by the administration's AG constituted the appearance of conflict of interest? Remember that? But Bush's AG doing the entire investigation of a potential felony committed by someone high up in the adiministration? Not to worry, you partisan fools.
What must these thugs really think of the American polity? Methinks laughing all the way to the bank, just about covers it.
For additonal insight, Cal Pundit has some terrific stuff up, especially his summary of the evidence for Valerie Plame's status as a deep cover agent, and including a link to this fascinating summary by Alan Brill at Right Christians of the reaction by Christian Hawks, (his nomenclature)to the L'affaire Plame. Great stuff. Don't skip the comments.
Also, don't miss this worthy addition to the discussion by James C. Moore, who wrote the book, ("Bush's Brain") on Karl Rove, in a reluctant Buzzflash editorial.
I am very tired of writing about Karl Rove. Lately, though, I have felt a kind of moral obligation, and almost a patriotic duty to remind people of the man who really runs the White House. Politically, and strategically, nothing has happened in the Bush Administration without Rove's imprimatur. Reporters have discovered Rove’s steely control in the form of what they call a leak proof White House. Nothing comes out of the Bush White House without Rove's approval. Generally, that means nothing comes out of the White House.
Until Karl Rove wants something to leak.
And it gets better.
