I thought that there was more to this story when I wrote it up some time ago. Turns out, it is not that there is more to it, just more of the same from this administration. Not a week after Scooter Libby is found guilty of lying to protect the administration, we find out that Alberto Gonzales has been lying, too.
Last October, President Bush spoke with Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales to pass along concerns by Republicans that some prosecutors were not aggressively addressing voter fraud
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The president did not call for the removal of any specific United States attorneys, said Dana Perino, a White House spokeswoman.
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But Ms Perino disclosed that White House officials had consulted with the Justice Department in preparing the list of United States attorneys who would be removed.
Within a few weeks of the president's comments to the attorney general, the Justice Department forced out seven prosecutors.
Previously, the White House had said that Mr. Bush's aides approved the list of prosecutors only after it was compiled.
The role of the president and his advisers in the prosecutor shakeup is likely to intensify calls by Congress for an investigation. It is the worst crisis of Mr. Gonzales's tenure and provoked charges that the dismissals were a political purge threatening the historical independence of the Justice Department.
The idea of dismissing federal prosecutors originated in the White House more than a year earlier, White House and Justice officials said Monday.
No bueno. Bear in mind that Alberto Gonzales denied any political involvement, under oath. These folks are lying to the press in a big way. They are lying to the American people in a big way. On the heels of one perjury probe, they seem to be anxious for another.
I will try to leave the other major lies out of this, but for being an administration so brazen in values and ensconced at the foot of the Lord, they sure do lie an awful lot.
The federal investigation into Congressional corruption is approaching a crucial deadline and potential dead end. Feb. 15 is the last day on the job for United States Attorney Carol Lam of San Diego, the inquiry's dedicated prosecutor, who is being purged by the Bush administration.
Her investigation led to the imprisonment of former Representative Randy Cunningham, the California Republican who took millions of dollars in bribes in exchange for delivering lucrative government contracts. But just as Ms. Lam was digging into other possible wrongdoing, the White House decided to force her from office without explanation.
Hmmmn. I wonder...
Ms. Lam has been investigating the dealings of Brent Wilkes, a private contractor and deep-pocketed political contributor who was designated co-conspirator No. 1 in the Cunningham case. Mr. Wilkes developed other cozy relationships. Among other avenues, the inquiry has been looking into rich government contracts secured by corporations and lobbyists with ties to Representative Jerry Lewis - the former appropriations chairman - and his staff. The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Mr. Wilkes could be indicted before Ms. Lam leaves office. The question now is whether her successor, as yet unnamed, will pursue the inquiry with the same dedication or will quietly smother it.
The outlook isn't promising.
Possibly more damning than this:
[Attorney] General Alberto Gonzales is refusing to provide Congress with details on these unmerited dismissals. He insists that there's no attempt to quash fresh Republican scandals and says only the "very best" will be named as replacements.
I second the call that this article ends with. Congress should be making this odd occurrence its business. Democrat and Republican leaders in Congress should be asking questions, but not alone. Rather than writing an editorial, the NYT should be digging deeper and asking questions. This way constituents may take more interest--particularly in this climate of anti-corruption--and force their representatives to take action.
