Criminal investigation of Goldman Sachs opened

By GottaLaff

Via an e-mail alert:

WASHINGTON (AP) AP source: US attorney's office in Manhattan opens criminal investigation of Goldman Sachs.

About time.

More details as they come in.

UPDATE:

In its preliminary stage, the investigation by the Manhattan US Attorney's Office is focusing on whether the financial giant or its employees committed securities fraud in connection with its mortgage trading, people familiar with the probe told the daily.

They said the criminal investigation stems from a referral from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

O'Keef Watch: Connected white people rule

By GottaLaff

UPDATE:

Via an e-mail news alert:

Federal prosecutors have filed reduced charges against conservative activist James O'Keefe and three others accused of trying to tamper with the phones in Sen. Mary Landrieu's New Orleans office, the Associated Press reports.

For more information, visit washingtonpost.com:

Via MSNBC, he pleaded guilty to get the reduced charges.

ORIGINAL POST, BUMPED UP FROM AN EARLIER DATE:

Connected white people, indeed, "rule", and the injustice is nauseating. How nice for relatives of U.S. attorneys that they get breaks the rest of us don't.

Imagine if these little conservative brats had been "unconnected", "liberal" African Americans who approached a white employee... while duping the public into thinking they were dressed as pimps/hookers at the time.

Now imagine those same African Americans popping into a U.S. Senator's office to snoop around with a hidden camera, checking out the phones. Yeah, that would have gone over well:

Louis Moore, the magistrate judge for the federal district court in New Orleans, agreed Wednesday to motions on behalf of the four to extend the time by which the U.S. attorney's office for the Eastern District must seek a felony indictment, press misdemeanor charges or drop the case.

Moore said the extension, which was unopposed by prosecutors, would offer the parties "additional time to conduct informal discussions and discovery and avoid or lessen additional proceedings," suggesting the possibility of a plea deal that would likely spare the four from facing felony charges.

At the time of their arrest Jan. 25, O'Keefe, 25, Joseph Basel, 24, Stan Dai, 24, and Robert Flanagan, 24, were charged with entering federal property under false pretenses for the purposes of committing a felony, a crime that carries a maximum term of 10 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.

Whitewash.

H/t: Cody

Max Baucus: Relationship Was Not An 'Affair'

By GottaLaff

Senate Finance Chair Max Baucus (D-Mont.) wasn't really having an affair with his former State Director Melodee Hanes, see. And we believe him, because what possible reason would he have to mislead anyone?

“Mel and I have a wonderful relationship. We are living together and enjoying spending time with each other and our families. I'm as happy as I've ever been. Mel and I were both separated from our former spouses when we got together. It wasn't an ‘affair.’ As we grew closer and things progressed, we knew it was time to begin the process of Mel transitioning out of my Senate office” [...]

Baucus also didn't really nominate "Mel" for U.S. attorney in Montana.

“As a highly qualified prosecutor who tried more than 100 jury trials and as a former law professor, Mel would have been an excellent U.S. Attorney for Montana. [...] I for one did not want her relationship with me to disqualify her from applying for the position. I appointed an independent, third-party reviewer and established an open and fair process that resulted in 3 names being sent, unranked, to the White House for consideration,” Baucus said in the statement.

So they thought the better of it, you see, and Mel withdrew her name.

And then they lived together.

And then Mel applied for the DoJ job all by her lonesome. And lo and behold, she got it.

So the not-affair not-affected and not-led to the not-job that she got on her own.

Not-clear?

Aide: Baucus nominated girlfriend for US attorney

I can't even get outraged over this asswipe pulling this crap. But, as OW points out, this guy is the brain trust that has been screwing us over health care all year.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus was romantically involved with a former staffer when he recommended her earlier this year to become the next U.S. attorney for Montana, a spokesman said.

The Montana Democrat and his former state office director Melodee Hanes began their relationship in the summer of 2008 after Baucus separated from his wife, Ty Matsdorf told The Associated Press late Friday.

Baucus nominated Hanes for the U.S. attorney post in March. But she later withdrew, saying she had been presented with other opportunities she couldn't pass up.

The Senate leader who's been a major proponent of Democratic health care legislation had submitted six names to a third-party reviewer, who whittled those to Hanes and two others. Matsdorf said the senator sent the three names to the White House with no ranking to select a nominee.

Matsdorf said Baucus' relationship with his girlfriend had nothing to do with his decision.

Alberto Gonzales Won't Be Charged Over Eavesdropping Testimony

By GottaLaff

Bush made me do it! It's his fault. I just followed orders:

Alberto Gonzales, pilloried for allegedly misleading Congress about the Bush administration’s warrantless eavesdropping program, has been exonerated — sort of. According to public records and interviews with federal law-enforcement officials, the Justice Department has concluded that there’s insufficient evidence to bring criminal charges against the former attorney general.

However....

Gonzales also remains under investigation by the Justice Department for matters connected to the wiretaps and the firings, thought to be politically motivated, of nine U.S. attorneys — scandal aplenty.

Better that it be prison time aplenty.

So why skating so easy for someone who consistently trips over his own tongue and falls on his face?

A major reason he escaped criminal charges [...] : that many of his most controversial decisions (first as White House counsel, and later, as attorney general) in authorizing, overseeing, and concealing the eavesdropping program were done at the specific direction of the former president. In other instances, Gonzales and his attorneys argued that his actions were done in furtherance of the Bush administration’s policies — meaning, for what it’s worth, that he did not act with personal intent to do wrong.

Well, as long as his intentions were good...

Isn't that a little like saying you were told to rob a bank to give to the poor? Robin Hood would be proud. And Boy Georgie is snickering. Heh-heh-heh.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
The Bush Years: Jon's Dubya Impression Mashup
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Health Care Crisis

(Jon Stewart's impression of Bush's laugh at 3:14)

Gonzales remains under investigation by the Justice Department he once led for two matters: the firings of those nine U. S. attorneys, and — this should sound familiar — whether Gonzales and other government attorneys acted properly in authorizing and overseeing the eavesdropping program.

Our legal system needs a legal system.

More of Murray Waas' piece here.

H/t: Alan Colmes

First openly gay US attorney begins job in Washington State

When I get grumbly and cranky over Obama not doing some stuff, I have to remember this kind of thing would have never happened under McCain. Sometimes you have to celebrate the little victories as well.

SEATTLE -- The new top federal prosecutor in Seattle knows the significance her role carries for many people: She's apparently the nation's first openly gay U.S. attorney.

But as a daughter of privilege - her dad was a powerful Democratic state senator, and she had all the benefits of a comfortable upbringing and a good education - Jenny Durkan also recalls what someone once told her: "You're the most non-diverse diverse person I know."

"I don't think I can fully appreciate how important it is to many people to have someone in a role like this who is gay," Durkan said this week in an interview with The Associated Press. "The more people are able to see people in situations where pretty soon that's an invisible characteristic, the better it is for the entire community."

Gay rights activists say her appointment reflects a growing acceptance in the U.S. as well as the attitude of President Barack Obama's administration. Earlier this month, Obama nominated an openly gay police sergeant to be the U.S. marshal in Minneaopolis; she would be the first openly gay U.S. marshal.

VIDEO: U.S. Attorney Firing Scandal's Tim Griffin Running For Congress

By GottaLaff

TPM has the details:

US Attorney firing scandal luminary Tim Griffin, the Rove protege who was installed as US Attorney in Arkansas after his predecessor Bud Cummins was fired, has just announced he's running for Congress.

Whoever his opponent is, we support, we donate, we make sure he/she beats Griffin. That's an order!

Here's a refresher course on Griffin:

Press release: New facts on Karl Rove/Harriet Miers interviews

By GottaLaff

Via TPM, we have the press release from the House Judiciary Committee about the transcripts of interviews with Harriet Miers and Karl Rove. There are new facts about the politicization by the BushCo Department of Justice of the U.S. Attorney firings. Besides the interviews, there were 5,400 pages of White House and RNC e-mails:

House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.) today released over 700 pages of on-the-record interview transcripts of Karl Rove and Harriet Miers on the U.S. attorney firings and the Bush administration's politicization of the Department of Justice. Conyers also released over 5,400 pages of Bush White House and Republican National Committee e-mails on these subjects.

The released materials reveal that White House officials were deeply involved in the U.S. attorney firings and the administration made a concerted effort to hide that fact from the American people. "After all the delay and despite all the obfuscation, lies, and spin," Conyers said, "this basic truth can no longer be denied: Karl Rove and his cohorts at the Bush White House were the driving force behind several of these firings, which were done for improper reasons. Under the Bush regime, honest and well-performing U.S. attorneys were fired for petty patronage, political horsetrading and, in the most egregious case of political abuse of the U.S. attorney corps - that of U.S. Attorney Iglesias - because he refused to use his office to help Republicans win elections. When Mr. Iglesias said his firing was a 'political fragging,' he was right."

Key new facts revealed in the materials released today include:

* 2005 White House "Decision" to fire David Iglesias - It has previously been known that New Mexico Republicans pressed for Iglesias to be removed because they did not like his decisions on vote fraud cases. New White House documents show that Rove and his office were involved in this effort no later than May 2005 (months earlier than previously known) - for example, in May and June 2005, Rove aide Scott Jennings sent e-mails to Tim Griffin (also in Rove's office) asking "what else I can do to move this process forward" and stressing that "I would really like to move forward with getting rid of NM US ATTY." In June 2005, Harriet Miers e-mailed that a "decision" had been made to replace Iglesias. At this time, DOJ gave Iglesias top rankings, so this decision was clearly not just the result of the White House following the Department's lead as Rove and Miers have maintained.1

* Iglesias criticized by Rove aide for not "doing his job on" Democratic Congressional Candidate Patricia Madrid - An October 2006 e-mail chain begun by Representative Heather Wilson criticized David Iglesias for not bringing politically useful public corruption prosecutions in the run up to the 2006 elections. Scott Jennings forwarded Wilson's email to Karl Rove and complained that Iglesias had been "shy about doing his job on Madrid," Wilson's opponent in the 2006 Congressional race. Just weeks after this e-mail, Iglesias' name was placed on the final firing list.2

* An "agitated" Rove pressed Harriet Miers to do something about Iglesias just weeks before Iglesias was placed on the removal list - Karl Rove phoned Harriet Miers during a visit to New Mexico in September 2006 - according to Miers' testimony, Rove was "agitated" and told her that Iglesias was "a serious problem and he wanted something done about it."3

* Senator Domenici personally asked Bush's Chief of Staff Josh Bolten to have Iglesias replaced - In October 2006, Senator Domenici stepped up his campaign to have Iglesias replaced. According to White House phone logs and emails, as well as Rove's own testimony, Domenici spoke with President Bush's Chief of Staff Josh Bolten about Iglesias on October 5, 2006, and during October 2006, Domenici or his staff spoke with Karl Rove at least four times.4

* Todd Graves removed in Rove-approved deal with Republican Senator - Kansas City U.S. Attorney Todd Graves was removed as part of a White House-brokered deal with U.S. Senator Kit Bond. In exchange for the administration firing Graves, Senator Bond agreed to lift his hold on an Arkansas judge nominated to the Eighth Circuit federal appeals court. A White House e-mail stated that "Karl is fine" with the proposal.5

* Miers obtained favorable statement on Rick Renzi in violation of DOJ policy - When rumors of the FBI investigation of Rep. Rick Renzi surfaced in October, 2006, one of Rove's subordinates contacted Harriet Miers, who called Deputy Attorney General McNulty seeking a possible statement that would have "vindicated" Renzi. Even though this was contrary to standard DOJ policy, such a statement was issued several days later.6

"I have provided a copy of the materials released today to special U.S. Attorney Nora Dannehy to assist in her effort to determine whether federal criminal charges are appropriate and to pursue any such charges," said Conyers. "In the meantime, the committee has honored its pledge to get on-the-record statements from Karl Rove and Harriet Miers, as well as the relevant White House documents, and is pleased to make this unprecedented collection of Bush administration materials directly available to the American people by posting it online.

"I am especially grateful to the Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, and the House Democratic leadership for their strong and unwavering support of this investigation, including the citations for contempt of Congress issued by the House in 2008. I also thank all members who voted in support of those citations and authorized the historic litigation that was instrumental in bringing us to this point. Today's release marks a powerful victory for the rule of law, and should be celebrated by all who cherish our constitutional system of separation of powers and open, transparent government."

An electronic copy of the materials released can be found on the Committee's Web site at linked here. The release is pursuant to an agreement reached in March 2009 between the committee and the former Bush administration, with the assistance of the Obama administration, to resolve the committee's lawsuit and the contempt citations issued by the Judiciary Committee and the full House of Representatives with respect to the refusal of the Bush administration to produce subpoenaed White House documents or permit the testimony of former White House officials Karl Rove and Harriet Miers on the U.S. attorney firings.

1 May 2,2005, e-mail from Scott Jennings to Tim Griffin (HJC 00173); June 9,2005, e-mail from Harriet Miers to Leslie Fahrenkopf (HJC 00177); June 28, 2005, email from Scott Jennings to Tim Griffin (HJC 00180).
2 October 15, 2006, e-mail chain including Heather Wilson, Steve Bell, Scott Jennings, Karl Rove and others (HJC 00340-41).
3 Miers Interview Transcript at 40-48.
4 Josh Bolten phone log (HJC 00489); October 10, 2006, e-mail from Scott Jennings to Karl Rove (HJC 00334); Karl Rove phone log (HJC 00490); Rove Interview Transcript 123-24.
5 December 21, 2005, email from Richard Klingler to Harriet Miers (HJC 00194-A).
6 October 24, 2006, e-mail from Harriet Miers to Scott Jennings (HJC 00344-45).

1May 2,2005, e-mail from Scott Jennings to Tim Griffin (HJC 00173); June 9,2005, e-mail from Harriet Miers to Leslie Fahrenkopf (HJC 00177); June 28, 2005, e-mail from Scott Jennings to Tim Griffin (HJC 00180).

2October 15, 2006, e-mail chain including Heather Wilson, Steve Bell, Scott Jennings, Karl Rove and others (HJC 00340-41).

3Miers Interview Transcript at 40-48.

4Josh Bolten phone log (HJC 00489); October 10, 2006, e-mail from Scott Jennings to Karl Rove (HJC 00334); Karl Rove phone log (HJC 00490); Rove Interview Transcript 123-24.

5December 21, 2005, e-mail from Richard Klingler to Harriet Miers (HJC 00194-A).

6October 24, 2006, e-mail from Harriet Miers to Scott Jennings (HJC 00344-45).

Let's hope this is the beginning of the end of Karl Rove and Co.

Emails Implicate Rove in Prosecutor Firings

By GottaLaff

From the Department of Tell Us Something We Don't Know:

"Political adviser Karl Rove and other high-ranking figures in the Bush White House played a greater role than previously understood in the firing of federal prosecutors almost three years ago, according to e-mails obtained by the Washington Post, in a scandal that led to mass Justice Department resignations and an ongoing criminal probe."

Emptywheel has more.

Spy for the US Military Exposed: Spent Last Two Years Spying on Activists

By GottaLaff

First BushCo wanted to send American troops into Buffalo. Now it appears that Posse Comitatus was violated again:

A Yale Law School faculty member and military law expert said he is disturbed by allegations that Fort Lewis employed a civilian who spied on an Olympia-based anti-war organization.

Eugene R. Fidell, a former judge advocate for the Coast Guard and the president of the National Institute of Military Justice, said such a practice appeared to violate the Posse Comitatus Act, a federal law that prohibits the use of the Army for conventional law enforcement activities against civilians.

Last week, members of Olympia Port Militarization Resistance presented evidence that John J. Towery, a civilian employee of Fort Lewis Force Protection, infiltrated the group using an assumed name and conducted surveillance of its members for about two years.

OlyPMR member Brendan Maslauskas Dunn said that after the information came to light, Towery admitted that he was spying on members using the name John Jacob. As John Jacob, Towery was one of five administrators of OlyPMR’s listserv e-mail list, giving him names, addresses, phone numbers and e-mail addresses of all members.

OlyPMR opposes the Iraq war. [...] OlyPMR member Drew Hendricks has said that Towery was privy to members’ observation strategies and operations before the group conducted protests at local ports.

Hendricks said OlyPMR is committed to nonviolence and has never threatened or tried to harm soldiers. [...]

“What you’ve told me is enough to think that there’s a domestic spying program at Fort Lewis,” [Fidell] said. “And if there is, that’s a big deal.”

Yeah, that's a big deal. The sad thing is, it's not all that surprising any more.

Attorney Larry Hildes of the National Lawyers Guild has made numerous attempts to get information from the military and federal agencies for court cases and civil suits connected to the port protests, only to run into the repeated refusal of Brian Kipnis from the US Attorney’s Office in Seattle to give this information to Hildes and other defense attorneys. Kipnis explicitly told the US Army not to give information to Hildes and others. Kipnis is also the same lawyer that prosecuted Lt. Ehren Watada and was involved with a number of Guantanamo cases. This information is perhaps the beginning of a larger network of surveillance across the nation.

More here and here.

H/t: My former student and forever pal, Matt

Rove deposed in U.S. attorney probe

By GottaLaff

Eight hours of Karl Rovian deposition, and what do we get? Nothing. It's a big fat secret:

Former White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove was deposed Tuesday by attorneys for the House Judiciary Committee, according to Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), the panel’s chairman.

Rove’s deposition began at 10 a.m. and ended around 6:30 p.m, with several breaks, Conyers said.

Conyers would not comment on what Rove told congressional investigators, what the next step in the long-running Judiciary Committee investigation would be or whether Rove would face additional questioning.

Oh, come on! Just a teensy weensy little hinty winty? For meeeeee? Pleeeeaaase?

“He was deposed today,” Conyers said in an interview. “That’s all I can tell you.”

Fine. See if I tell you about that dream I had the other night... Ooops. Forget I said that.

Prosecutor in anthrax, Blackwater cases resigns

By GottaLaff

President Obama is looking for a replacement:

Washington U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Taylor, a holdover from the Bush administration, will leave the Justice Department on Friday. He will join the auditing firm Ernst & Young, where he will lead their fraud investigation practice.

Taylor inherited the anthrax and Chandra Levy investigations and declared both long-unsolved matters closed. [...]

Taylor also announced manslaughter charges against Blackwater security contractors involved in the deadly 2007 shooting of Iraqi civilians. The case involved the unprecedented question of whether overseas State Department contractors could be charged in the U.S.

Taylor previously served as counselor to Attorney Generals John Ashcroft and Alberto Gonzales. He has also served as counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee and as a line prosecutor in San Diego.

Via BuzzFlash, more back story on botching the biggest ever tax fraud case, and more.

Prosecutor to question Karl Rove on Friday

By GottaLaff

What's the big deal? I've been questioning KKKarl Rove for years. There is no expectation here at TPC that he will tell the truth. None. Zero. Zilch. Nada:

Former Bush administration official Karl Rove is scheduled to be interviewed Friday about why a number of U.S. attorneys were fired in 2006, according to an attorney in private practice familiar with the case.

Rove will be questioned by Nora Dannehy, a Connecticut prosecutor who was appointed last year to lead an investigation into whether any Bush administration officials broke any laws in connection with the dismissals.

Rove is as familiar with the truth as Georgie Bush is with the National Guard, the English language, and sobriety.

Doing the right thing

By GottaLaff

Sweet justice (no pun):

[...] Nevada U.S. Attorney Daniel Bogden, along with six other U.S. attorneys, was told by the Bush Justice Department to resign [...] Murray Waas reports that there is “a real possibility” that the Justice Department will re-hire him:

A Justice Department official told me that the idea of hiring Bogden back is in fact a real possibility, and said that the White House counsel’s office has been quietly vetting his background in anticipation of his possible reappointment — not a difficult task, considering that he has been employed by the government for the majority of his adult life.

Bogden still “has no official explanation as to why he was fired, or even who made the decision.”

Washington Post spinning U.S. Attorney story to create Obama scandal?

By GottaLaff

DKos has a post up that makes one contemplate why WaPo would want to start something with Team Obama. Aren't the days of preemptive attacks over?

The Washington Post's Carrie Johnson writes today that it is "unclear" how Obama will handle replaicing U.S. Attorneys [...]

Any potential scandal would not be in President Obama choosing to put in place his own picks, but if he decided down the road to fire any of them who were refusing to use their offices for political purposes. Like his predecessor did. [...]

Mary Beth Buchanan, the U.S. attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania, who oversaw a recent FBI raid of fundraisers close to Rep. John P. Murtha (D-Pa.), told local reporters after the November election that she did not plan to voluntarily resign. [...]

"It doesn't serve justice for all the U.S. attorneys to submit their resignations at one time," Buchanan told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette last year. "I am open to continuing further service to the United States." [...]

Ms. Buchanan [who held top political jobs in the Bush Justice Department, is a member of the conservative Federalist Society legal group and cultivated close connections to former senator Rick Santorum (R-Pa.), an advocate for antiabortion and Christian groups] serves at the pleasure of the President. If the President decides to fire her, whether or not she's involved in the Murtha investigation, it will not be a political decision on the part of President Obama, however the WaPo is choosing to preemptively spin it.

Media bias again? Don't be silly. Clearly, they're all liberal propaganda sheets. This one exception just slipped through the cracks.

Rove Can Claim Privilege Only When Asked About Bush

By GottaLaff

As usual, Bush is off limits:

Are any subjects off limits?

The scope of the interviews will be limited to: (1) facts relating to the evaluation of, decision to dismiss, or decision to replace the former U.S. Attorneys in question; the alleged decisions to retain certain U.S. Attorneys; and any allegations of selective prosecution related thereto; and (2) testimony or representations made by Department of Justice officials to Congress on the U.S. Attorneys matter. For the period beginning on March 9, 2007 (the date of the Committee's first written demand for information from the White House), interviews will not include the content of conversations involving: (i) Mr. Rove and members of the White House Counsel's office; or (ii) Ms. Miers and members of the White House Counsel's office. In the case of Mr. Rove, the interview also will include facts relating to the prosecution of Alabama governor Don Siegelman.

And when can Rove and Miers claim executive privilege?

As to official privileges, counsel will direct witnesses not to respond to questions only when questions relate to communications to or from the President or when questions are outside the scope of questioning set forth above.

You can see a copy of the agreement here.

My frustration level just rose again.

Rove/Miers deal: The sequel

By GottaLaff

I'm digging up more details. These are from Newsweek's Michael Isikoff, and I'm not happy with some of them:

Craig at times took a hard line in trying to get both sides to make concessions, the sources said. At one point this week, he even told House Democratic lawyers he would authorize Obama's Justice Department to oppose them in court if they didn't back down from some of their demands to complete access to the material.

But in the end, it would appear, it was Bush's lawyers, represented mainly by former associate White House counsel Emmett Flood and his former boss, Fred Fielding, who made the most concessions. Under the agreement, lawyers for Rep. John Conyers's House Judiciary Committee will get immediate access to most of the White House documents in Craig's office. But four documents that cover direct discussions with President Bush about the U.S. attorney firings will still be withheld. The contents of these documents will be described by the former president's lawyers to the House.

Then, after the documents are reviewed, Rove and Miers will be questioned in private by lawyers for the Judiciary Committee, with a transcript of the interviews made. But their testimony will not be given under oath and it will not be in public—at least not initially. The judiciary panel will have the right to call the witnesses again later to testify in public if they wish, though this seems unlikely in the case of Miers; her former position as White House counsel will allow her to invoke some attorney-client privileges. House lawyers say the fact that the witnesses will not be testifying under oath is not particularly significant because they can still be criminally charged with making false statements to a congressional committee if it can be proved that they lied. [...]

Wednesday's agreement allowed all sides to claim victory. In a statement, Conyers called the deal "a vindication of the search for truth" about the U.S. attorney purge. Craig said in a statement that the agreement was the product of a "tremendous amount of hard work, patience, and flexibility on both sides," and that Obama was "pleased" that the parties were able to resolve their dispute. Bush's lawyers could not be reached, but even Rove's lawyer called the deal "good news" and said his client "looks forward to addressing the committee's concerns."

Rove's lawyer, Robert Luskin, did acknowledge that even he has not been given access to the documents in question, which are believed to include internal emails about the U.S. attorney firings that either mentioning Rove or were sent to him. Whether Rove will still be looking forward to testifying after those emails are turned over to congressional investigators is, at the moment, the biggest question mark hanging over the case.

Of course, this is a step in the right direction, but... well, that there are "buts".

Karl Rove may have to testify as Obama's lawyers get involved

By GottaLaff

I'm not sure which is more appropriate here, optimism or skepticism:

White House counsel Gregory Craig issued a statement late Friday encouraging former Deputy White House Chief of Staff Karl Rove to cut a deal with Congress, an indication the new administration has begun to put pressure on President George W. Bush's former chief adviser.

"The president is very sympathetic to those who want to find out what happened," Obama's White House counsel Gregory Craig said in a statement yesterday to The Washington Post's Carrie Johnson. "But he is also mindful as president of the United States not to do anything that would undermine or weaken the institution of the presidency. So, for that reason, he is urging both sides of this to settle."

[pouting] No. Don't wanna settle. Wanna throw Rove in prison.

Moreover, the Obama White House is now trying to work out an agreement with former Bush administration staff -- seemingly going over the head of the man some once dubbed "Bush's brain."

Craig's statement does, however, seem to suggest that Bush's former adviser will be granted some leeway as to the form of his deposition to Congress in lieu of President George W. Bush's claim that Rove is protected by executive privilege.

[holding breath until I turn blue] No. No leeway. Testify. Then, prison.

The winds appear to be changing. Obama lawyers and Bush representatives are now "engaged in discussions that could clear a path for congressional testimony by onetime Bush aide Karl Rove, three sources familiar with the talks" told Johnson for Saturday's Post.

The negotiations surfaced on the same day House Judiciary Chairman John Conyers (D-MI) issued his third subpoena compelling to Rove to testify in less than two years. Seeing that Conyers is not backing down, Rove's attorney has hinted at a more conciliatory position, and Bush advisers seem to have all but conceded that they must allow Rove to testify in some form.

"Democrats say President Obama's view of the matter may open the door for Rove's eventual appearance on Capitol Hill," Johnson said.

Why do I feel sqeamish?

But Conyers said he would not accept testimony about Siegelman without testimony about the US Attorneys.

"I do not believe it is acceptable for the Committee to allow witnesses to unilaterally determine what they can and cannot testify concerning," he wrote yesterday.

Just. Don't. Cave. Please, Prez O, that's all we ask.

Here are the rules: No immunity. Under oath. On the record. Then, prison.

Fitz stays

By GottaLaff

I know Patrick Fitzgerald is very popular, and I like him just fine. I'm just not sure he's the hero so many think he is:

U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald, who brought criminal fraud charges against Rod Blagojevich and Scooter Libby, "will be staying in his job in the Obama administration, even though he was appointed to the position by President George W. Bush," NBC News reports.

"U.S. attorneys are political appointees. The normal practice, when there's a change of political parties in the White House, is for the incoming administration to replace all 93 U.S. attorneys with appointees from the new president's party."

I'm glad he's staying on. There'd be no reason to fire him.

Sen. Leahy Proposes ‘Truth Commission’ for Justice Department

By GottaLaff

Remember truth? I do, vaguely. It had something to do with not telling lies, if I'm not mistaken:

Sen. Patrick Leahy, who heads the Senate Judiciary Committee, proposed establishing an independent “truth and reconciliation commission” to investigate several allegations of wrongdoing at the Justice Department during the Bush administration.

Inhale that for a second. I'll wait. Come on, you can do it: De-e-e-ep breath. Hold it. ... Hold it... longer... you know, as you would if you were taking a hit of... truth! What did you think I meant? Who do you think I am, Michael Phelps?

Sorry, you can exhale now. Your lungs are now truth-filled. Wasn't that refreshing? Are you high on life yet?

The Vermont Democrat said the commission should investigate the department’s once-secret warrantless wiretapping program, the politically motivated firings of some U.S. attorneys and the department’s highly controversial memos on the treatment of terrorism detainees.

Time for another hit.

Anyone got any Twinkies?

Leahy said his proposal marked a middle ground between prosecuting former officials in President George W. Bush’s administration and doing no investigations at all.

The truth commission should have subpoena power and witnesses would not face charges except if they commit perjury, he said. “Rather than vengeance, we need a fair minded pursuit of what actually happened,” he said.

Oh man, what just happened? This turned this into a totally bad trip. Whoa. Seriously. I'm so bummed. What was I thinking? Commissions are meaningless. And toothless ones are even more meaningless.

Anyone got a 750 ml bottle of Patron Silver and some limes?