Comments (75)

Nina Katarina wrote on April 18, 2007 8:55 AM:

It sounds like about the amount of time that Gonzales spent reviewing death penalty appeals when he was in Texas.

ecoast wrote on April 18, 2007 8:55 AM:

Wrong, says my security code. Really.

That's all that needed to be said.

TANK1 wrote on April 18, 2007 8:59 AM:

Rep Conyers wants to talk to this US Attorney-

"House Judiciary Committee members have asked to interview U.S. Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan, believing that she may have been consulted about preparing the list of eight federal prosecutors who were fired late last year.

The letter was sent Monday by the Judiciary Committee chair, Rep. John Conyers Jr., D-Mich., to acting Assistant Attorney General Richard A. Hertling.

She has taken some criticism because all of the corruption cases she's prosecuted have been of Democrats."

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07108/778829-176.stm

RandyR wrote on April 18, 2007 9:03 AM:

Sounds like Burger King to me. What the hell we don't need a reason employees are disposable.

Security Code: Jump like rats from a ship

JD wrote on April 18, 2007 9:04 AM:

Nothing to see here. This has nothing to do with Senator Reid.

lysias wrote on April 18, 2007 9:04 AM:

Weren't there accusations about a failure to pursue pornography cases?

Although I suspect that was just the pretext. As for the real reason, weren't there reports about Bogden allowing an investigation of Gibbons to go forward?

But they sure seem to have paid a lot more attention to Sen. Domenici than to Sen. Ensign.

SB wrote on April 18, 2007 9:05 AM:

Good grief. This is 180 degrees the opposite of the way it's supposed to work. US Attorneys are only supposed to be fired when there is simply no way that they can continue in their jobs--for example biting an exotic dancer on the arm or clutching someone else's throat (these are actual pre-Bush-43 events) or outright professional misconduct such as sexual harassment or being the subject of repeated severe criticism by judges.

"We can probably find someone better" is NEVER supposed to be cause for firing a USA. Sampson just didn't wish to say "Karl ordered this name added to the list."

bordersmuggler wrote on April 18, 2007 9:07 AM:

Comments about the 16 year veteran in the handwritten note:

Bogden - very important - terror, violent crime, drugs
- in important district
- resistant to AG priorities
- (obscenity ??? one)
- Margolis
- in over his head

Bob wrote on April 18, 2007 9:09 AM:

Here's at least one likely reason Bogden was on the list -- Harry Reid is from Nevada. The list coincidentally includes San Francisco (Pelosi) and Arkansas (Clinton). Some of these have other reasons too of course, but some may simply be on the list not in retribution for things done in the past but in expectaction of things the new USA's could do for Rove come '08. That almost certainly is the case with Griffin and Clinton.

Drits'n'Dravy wrote on April 18, 2007 9:09 AM:

What an awful thing. It's just so wrong. Even after following the US attorney purge story for a few months, this example is shocking. All of these officials were in a meeting to determine this man's fate and none of them will take responsibilty for his firing? Which one was legally responsible for the decision? These denials are like something from Kafka.

Punchy wrote on April 18, 2007 9:11 AM:

This has got to piss off Bogden to no end. He was canned SOLEY on the fact that he didn't have a wife to support.

They didn't care about him, his rep, his well-being, his career, the fact he's only 50 and jobless....only that he wasn't married and therefore "fire-able".

If I owned a microphone, I know exactly under whose mouth I'd stick it this morning.

PMS wrote on April 18, 2007 9:11 AM:

Code word is "screw", as in what DoJ is doing to the country (and the US Attorneys).

dorothy wrote on April 18, 2007 9:15 AM:

Firing someone because of marital status is completely illegal.

Mark F. wrote on April 18, 2007 9:17 AM:

One must sometimes sacrifice a rook or a bishop to win the game. Nothing personal, of course...

bibimimi wrote on April 18, 2007 9:18 AM:

What kind of collective of hubris-laden socio-psychopaths are these people to operate without fear of the details seeing the light of day? Is there an airborne evil/stupid virus being spread by KKKarl Rove?

I for one want to see Goodling barbequed.

bordersmuggler wrote on April 18, 2007 9:21 AM:

Could Bogden's firing have anything to do with an ongoing or potential investigation of Jim Gibbons?

Jim wrote on April 18, 2007 9:23 AM:

I guess they do not teach basic handwritting skills at Regent U. Bogden got less consideration than a casual laborer. The DOJ is totally broken and still has 150 Regent graduates of Pat Robertson*s fourth tier law school performing dirty deads as we blog.

CINDY wrote on April 18, 2007 9:23 AM:

NOT MARRIED = GAY?

cindy wrote on April 18, 2007 9:24 AM:

not married = gay? can't have any of those around...

Arkansan wrote on April 18, 2007 9:26 AM:

"Firing someone because of marital status is completely illegal."

Add it to the list. Pregnancy, Guard service….

Their fake reasons are no better than their real reasons. These lawyers knowledge of the law was acquired by watching reruns of Matlock.

Matt wrote on April 18, 2007 9:26 AM:

Re: Mary Beth Buchanan

She is the Western Pennsylvania U.S. D.A.

She went after Cyril Wecht, the most respected mdeical examiner in the world. His crime? Double-billing for a limo trip to the airport, a charge of $100. He just happens to be a Democrat.
I guess that satisfied her "loyalty" requirement.

shrubsy wrote on April 18, 2007 9:29 AM:

I want to hear someone ask these clowns, what grade would they give themselves? They sit around making up fake performance reasons to fire accomplished professionals.

Yet, they themselves seem like the most amateurish gang of Keystone Kops. There are many ironic, sardonic, and tragic points of history in the Chimps administration....but this one may out-exemplify all of them. A bunch of sick, twisted KIDS who never earned anything or took the straight road to any goal...are out there axing their own kind for not thwarting and perverting justice ENOUGH. And like Monica Goodling, she saw nothing but twisted wrong-doing in our society, and she thought she knew the answer....dirty, dark, backdoor perversion of the system. Reichwingers and Corporations and helping major donors escape punishment....that was the answer. God's lips to her ears.

Mark F. wrote on April 18, 2007 9:32 AM:

"What kind of collective of hubris-laden socio-psychopaths are these people to operate without fear of the details seeing the light of day?"

I think you're right about the socio-psycopathology. After six years of this crap, I've come to the conclusion that there are essentially two types of people in the world: those who believe in pursuing the truth and those who believe that the end justifies the means. And these people are clearly from the second group. Luckily for the rest of us, they all have a direct line to God, via their "christian" faith, so we can always be quite certain that they KNOW the best course in every situation. We should learn to trust our apparently arrogant, deluded, corrupt, filthy, self-serving Republican friends, for they clearly know where they want to take this nation. While things may appear dark at this point, if we follow them blindly, we will one day emerge into the shining light of a new day in corporate America where every citizen has a minimum wage job with plenty of mandatory overtime and every Republican has a castle on the beach. Doesn't that sound beautiful?

kenter wrote on April 18, 2007 9:32 AM:

Setting up the rigged game for the 08 vote (purge-gate) seems to be a strong possible motive for replacing these key USAs, and we all know that comes out of Rove's dirty tricks shop. Lam, however was all over Duke-stir and several other corrupt congressmen, not to mention Cheney's $140k furniture/Duke payoff. That one was a defensive move.

code word: "credit," as in credit the bloggers for putting this case together despite lack of subpoena powers, or the ability (and guts) to grant immunity to Monica Goodling. Also credit the blogosphere for listing in detail where the RNC email servers are located (third party - get them NOW!!)

Bob wrote on April 18, 2007 9:34 AM:

The decisive consideration in firing him was that he's not married?

This gives my single self the heebie jeebies.

Back to LavaLife!

Mark F. wrote on April 18, 2007 9:36 AM:

"Setting up the rigged game for the 08 vote (purge-gate) seems to be a strong possible motive..."

A minor step in the broader plan to take America by deceit. The Republican party is little more than a crime family.

bordersmuggler wrote on April 18, 2007 9:39 AM:

Point not to be overlooked. The task for the distinguished Regent alums in DoJ was to provide political cover for the dismissals, period. The order for the firings came from elsewhere. The true reasons for the firings may not be documented, even in Rove's deleted files. As in all organized crime families, important orders are issued by word of mouth only.

Mrs Panstreppon wrote on April 18, 2007 9:47 AM:

Was Bogden's office involved in the Gibbons assault investigation? That was the one where the parking garage surveillance video took days to surface.

Maybe Bogden, unlike John Solomon, refused to make a big deal out of Harry Reid's boxing tickets or Reid's property deal. BTW, you ever wonder where Solomon gets his ideas?

Then again, it could be something we don't know anything about.

Was Rep. Dean Heller's race close? Heller did a first-rate with the Nevada corporate records so I am reluctant to think he is a crook but then again, he is a Republican.

Pagumb wrote on April 18, 2007 9:56 AM:

"Very important district" equals Congressional seat to hold?

goldberry wrote on April 18, 2007 9:58 AM:

Paul McNulty had a heart? Jeez, how did he sneak into the Bush Administration?

Security code: white, as in all the little white lies that Monica told Paul

shg wrote on April 18, 2007 10:00 AM:

I fear that boardsmuggler is correct, and it follows that the only way we will get to Rove is for tax evasion or some similar misdeed where there is hard evidence.

These DoJ underlings (including Gonzales) are operating in a world with rules of its own, (See Goodfellas.) and from their vantage point law, decency, and - one might add - an aversion to torture all seem to them like "quaint" values, or sentimental attachment to things that super-powers (and their super-hero apparats) have left behind.

RandyBastard wrote on April 18, 2007 10:00 AM:

This is something I have been very pissed about for a long time. I even had a chance to speak directly to Kerry about this during the '04 election. You should have seen his eyes glaze over as I talked!

"Family" has been elevated in this country to such a level that single people are now a defacto underclass.

People with families always get extra consideration when it comes to scheduled time off AND unscheduled time off. When it comes to personnel cuts, they're the last to go.

Who is always asked to pull up the slack created by this deference to family? The single people of this country. That's who.

I do not have a family and that's by choice. Now I don't mind paying school taxes because I know a well-educated child is good for all society. But why should I have to re-arrange my life or be made to make considerations for people who chose to have a family?

Don't get me wrong; I don't believe this is the most important issue facing us today. But, if you're single, try to be aware of these little societal slights. I think you'll be surprised at the number of times it happens.

Richard L. Adlof wrote on April 18, 2007 10:03 AM:

Our favorite fascist plutocrats got away with canning Black in Guam . . .

They thought they were bullet-proof. The whole issue is that they got excited and tried to do too much in one shot - OR they were trying to hide heinious acts by lumping them together (like books in a bookcase).

Their real agenda has more to do with proving that democratic republicism does not work and making sure that Justice is what those who can afford it need.

Goaty wrote on April 18, 2007 10:05 AM:

Code word = crime.
No sh*t.

liz wrote on April 18, 2007 10:05 AM:

every government agency is practicing every type of discrimination.... they hate people, especially American people

mbbsdphil wrote on April 18, 2007 10:06 AM:

Act II, scene 1 :
"absolute power corrupts absolutely"

Act III, scene 3:
"all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword"

Ms. Goodling, of all people, should know what happened in her DOJ - and by extension, the rest of the Bush government (Lurita Doan, for example, or Douglas Feith)- and what comes next.

The first quote is literal, the second figurative. Just to assure the elves, and our friends at the F*I that, ironically, we are actually very fond of our Constitution and the process of peaceful change. We wish everyone were.

roooth wrote on April 18, 2007 10:07 AM:

"What kind of collective of hubris-laden socio-psychopaths are these people to operate without fear of the details seeing the light of day?"

I know, I know, the Nazi connection is soooo overused, but, really, the Nazis didn't start out with gas chambers and concentration camps. They started out just like this; rigging elections through intimidation, violence and corruption. They used terrorism and jingoistic patriotism to rally the masses. They encouraged a hatred of all foreigners. They encouraged hatred of minorities, liberals and gays - in fact, the first groups the Nazis went after were not Jews, they were liberals, and gays, and unions. The persecution of Jews came years later, after Hitler had been reelected and no one could stop them.

As incompetent as the Bushies seem, do not underestimate their capacity for evil.

jeffgee wrote on April 18, 2007 10:12 AM:

Not married, hmmm? Must be part of the "homosexual agenda".

TheraP wrote on April 18, 2007 10:12 AM:

Ok. Now we have a crime for sure!

And lawyers - I mean, LAWYERS! - did this AFTER the election, when oversight was bound to happen.

No conscience. And not even the kind of fear that little kids would have - of getting caught.

Think about it. Not even the lowest level of moral reasoning going on here.

This is horrifying. But then the crime family code takes over, doesn't it?

The whole thing is organized crime. From a to z.

casam wrote on April 18, 2007 10:12 AM:

I hear you, RandyBastard
Date: April 18, 2007 10:00 AM
"Family" has been elevated in this country to such a level that single people are now a defacto underclass"
Someone on another thread even said that because Goodling didn't have a husband or children she was likely ready to crack. Wow, I thought we were past that thinking years ago.

Mark Richards wrote on April 18, 2007 10:16 AM:

I'm a willing participant in American life (to a limit, although in the past 6 years with reduced enthusiasm) yet have always seen the demonstrated task of our government as one of harassing the general public. Crooks in politics, mega-business, and those in "authority" get off while the ordinary slug is squashed under a boot. Oh, occasionally something good is allowed to slip through, lest we begin to consider - en masse - that the deal is truly rigged the wrong way which would be a very bad day for those who currently rule.

Prime example of the inequity from my neck of the woods is the "Aqua Teen Hunger Force" advertising disaster in Boston. The two poor losers who erected those signs are being dragged through a criminal legal procedure while the corporations that sponsored and encouraged them get off by way of cash. Paying off the system works - and was accepted by the public without a whimper - in the clear light of day no less. Ted Turner ought to be in jail, along with the advertising agency that did this.

Sure, the Aqua Teen boys deserve prosecution too, but for a law that doesn't exist: total stupidity. At least our government ought to have a little mercy and get their IQ's tested, if the scales go that low.

With this perspective, a part of me has little sympathy for the federal system of "justice" which has been further deteriorating and politicizing itself - a gradual process that is decades old and spans every mal-administration I can recall (but certainly the current one eclipses the entire list).

Putting this mess under control of congress in a co-equal manner would in the least reduce the opportunity for skank. I see no other way to do it and keep it from becoming a national pariah.

Bringing it into the cleansing light of public knowledge and control could be a very good thing. Re-focusing it to the job of protecting the citizenry from each other and from corporations and criminal politicians would be a good start. This is what it's about, right? Or has it always been but a political power toy for those who are to weak to stand on their own?

kis wrote on April 18, 2007 10:23 AM:

"They themselves seem like the most amateurish gang of Keystone Kops."

Let us not forget that people more junior and inept than this were allowed to run the CPA in Iraq. Is there any wonder why the Iraqis want us out?

monicawatch wrote on April 18, 2007 10:32 AM:

kis

Yes, it's all of a piece.

Hire the young. Conscript them into crime. Then they stay employed. And they can't leave either.

That's the way all crime families work.

But now those at the top have got to be scared.

And surely monica knows.

mbbsdphil wrote on April 18, 2007 10:32 AM:

Who were the role models for these neophytes? They would have looked to the most powerful figure in government. Their lessons learned would have come from the lack of political consequences for outing Valerie Plame, and for the prisons at Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay.

With a few keystrokes, these young banal bureaucrats derailed the careers of accomplished professionals, and cost taxpayers millions by way of delayed, lost or unnecessarily appealed cases; the civil rights that went unenforced; the serious crimes that went unpunished; the deaths that went unsolved or improperly investigated; even the purchasing that went to Republican vendors, lest an innocent go to jail.

Let's let a little more sun shine on the Potomac, so that the voting public gets a better glimpse of the muck on the stable floors, who dropped it, and how much is ahead of us in cleaning it up.

Mary wrote on April 18, 2007 10:35 AM:

Bibimimi: The frightening thing about Monica Goodling and her ilk is that they think they*re doing these very unethical things in the name the God Pat Robertson taught them about. All the while, they*re ingoring the Golden Rule. All these little Bush *Christians* represent the very Pharisees Jesus absolutly despised as hypocrites. Where was her mother while she was doing this crap? Family values? Gimme a break.

Anonymous wrote on April 18, 2007 10:57 AM:

I just caught the end of the Judiciary Hearing re immunity for M. Goodling. The Republicans want a week’s delay, so the Democrats gave it to them. I’m sure the cooperation will give the Democrats positive results, as playing fair always does.

Anyway, Rep. Nadler asked what should be the first question posed to Gonzales tomorrow. M. Goodling claims to be unable to testify because in doing so she would incriminate herself. Are you aware of the crime which causes her to invoke her Fifth Amendment Right?

Nadler suggested that the reason to grant Ms. Buzzsaw immunity is to learn the answer to that question. But there is no reason Gonzales shouldn’t be asked whether he knows of the crimes in his mist as well.

EdNSted wrote on April 18, 2007 11:07 AM:

Raw Story is now reporting that the House Judiciary Committee decided late yesterday to delay voting on immunizing Monica Goodling:

http://rawstory.com/news/2007/Democrats_delay_major_moves_in_two_0418.html

But I haven't seen any independent confirmation of this information.

interested litigant wrote on April 18, 2007 11:08 AM:

What part of 'performance-related' do you not get? This ignorance of the term and relying only upon the first word, ignoring the second qualifier and therefore ignoring the context is amazing to me. Even totally stupid people get full statements correct unless they have ulterior motives.

biggerbox wrote on April 18, 2007 11:21 AM:

That's the compassionate conservatism for you. It's OK if you terminate the career of long-time employees for no specific reason, as long as you make sure there are no women or children who will be hurt.

sparkplug wrote on April 18, 2007 11:26 AM:

Margaret Chiara = not married.

was this a factor of significance to the pinheads at DOJ in her case as well?

Kimberly wrote on April 18, 2007 11:52 AM:

RE: Mark Richards above post about the Aqua Teen Hunger Force advertizing misadventure, I agree completely!

I was shocked when the two guys HIRED by marketing company, Interference Inc., (who was in turn hired by Turner Broadcastings Cartoon Network), were the only ones prosecuted.

I have many family members in their late teens and 20's, so I used this event to bring to their attention that it was only the joe schmoes like themselves who were being held responsible, while the companies that PAID them to hang the signs received a bare slap on the wrist.

Each time something like this happens, they know they can count on their aunt to point out the uneven meting out of justice. I encourage them to register and VOTE! Most of them have.

Now all we need to do is make sure their votes are counted by stopping this insane clown posse.

cevrero wrote on April 18, 2007 11:58 AM:

and when will these "loyal Bushies" be confirmed from the Senate?....90 seconds seems too quick,...it takes Bush about 6 minutes just to get his ass off a chair when the nation is under attack.

C. Wilbur Mills wrote on April 18, 2007 12:02 PM:

"US Attorneys are only supposed to be fired when there is simply no way that they can continue in their jobs--for example biting an exotic dancer on the arm or clutching someone else's throat (these are actual pre-Bush-43 events)..."

Posted by: SB
Date: April 18, 2007 09:05 AM

Any person, US Attorney or otherwise, who, having made the decision to be in the presence of an exotic dancer, and who, having made the decision to bite said dancer whether with or without consideration of all the negative employment-related consequences inevitably appertaining thereunto, proceeds to choose said dancer's arm as the optimal location for said bite, deserves to get his sorry ass fired.

Fan E. Foxxe wrote on April 18, 2007 12:21 PM:

Why Wilbur, you old goat, you! And to think the youngsters don't even know who we were!

Call me, lover.

SC: memory. As in "selective memory"

Sagrilarus wrote on April 18, 2007 12:36 PM:

So when the next republican president is elected at some point in the future, who is he going to draw from for administrative experience? Generally you bring in a few seasoned vets from a previous administration. Bush 41 was a long time ago, and who from Bush 43 will be deemed suitable given the level of scandal associated with pretty much every part of this administration?

Fe A. Kelley wrote on April 18, 2007 12:52 PM:

Politicizing choice of judges to administer justice is a mockery of "justice".

Andy K wrote on April 18, 2007 12:58 PM:

Zach Edwards at MisterApologist has been all over the Bogden aspect of this scandal. Read this entry to get the thrust of Zach's arguments:

http://misterapologist.blogspot.com/2007/03/bogden-lam-gonzales-rove-corallo.html

Security word "butter". Why am I thinkin' of "Last Tango In Paris"?

Mooser wrote on April 18, 2007 1:07 PM:

I for one want to see Goodling barbequed

Please, let's not make the poison-pet-food crisis any worse than it needs to be!
'Screw' that!

anon, too wrote on April 18, 2007 1:18 PM:

This demonstrates that Kyle has been truthful in his testimony and he is absolutely right - it's about performance. It's always been about performance - performance of whatever you're told to do without question. Blind loyalty.

You're either with them or you're toast.

anon man wrote on April 18, 2007 1:21 PM:

Ok, so he was fired becauase he wasn't married? That's legal...

RW wrote on April 18, 2007 1:31 PM:

Mary et all:

There is a recent scholarly book published just before his death by Prof George Mosse, considered by most scholars to be the quintessential expert on Fascism titled "The Fascist Revolution" 1999. (Mosse who escaped with his parents in 1932 from Berlin as his family was the publisher of the largest liberal newspaper.)

He writes and the end of his career the best understanding of Fascism and what psychologically and culturally drove the political and economic fascism in Germany and Europe.

Fascism is an unmistakable reactionary right revolution that is brought about recognizable social and cultural movements and expressed politically. It needs nationalism and a period of economic uncertainity where the middle class is being subjected by economic forces of degeneration and loss. This fosters the reaction that cultural regeneration is necessary to rebuild the way of an affluent life. This turns many in society to a reaction to the fundamentalist religions and the belief of the old black & white myths and beliefs of the old ways. In turn the big business and corporate interests also are seeking the opportunity to institutionalize and grow their immense power. Finally this movement then seeks to identify that there are perpetual and mortal enemies abroad that must be fought militarily or their way of life will be destroyed. Simultaneously the deviants and dissendents internally are enemies who are a threat to the regeneration movement and harboring or abading the external enemies. This allows the end of civil liberties where it only protects the enemies of the state.

Overlayed one can point to many of the same social and political forces are work in the US right now. The middle class is being squeezzed, dissendents and deviants are defiled by the right seeking to regenerated society in their only way as a means to protect the state. Big Business is actually growing in power and profit and then there is nationalism and the fear of the Islamic Revolution.

In practice this is what the Federalist Society, the neo-con's, the evangelical-politicos, the Bushies and Big Corporate are all about fused in the Bush Admin. It is the Conservative Revolution and it is about overthrowing the Constitution.

Yet they are being nailed which is the security code word

Andy K wrote on April 18, 2007 1:33 PM:

anon man-

The way I read it is that Bogden was put on the list for reasons still unknown. McNulty made a half-hearted stand to save Bogden's job by voicing concerns for the security of Bogden's family. When told Bogden had no family, McNulty withdrew his objection to the dismissal.

Bill wrote on April 18, 2007 1:36 PM:

I'm almost as bothered by the fact that they nearly didn't fire him for family reasons as by the fact that they did fire him for nothing.

Think about it, if their origional lie was correct, and the attorney's just weren't up to the job of protecting Americans, what the hell are they doing worrying about them supporting their families! This is serious business and we can't have someone doing the job just because we feel too bad firing them. Getting fired sucks, I know, but some jobs are too important to allow happy feelings to intrude.

Damn, I never thought I'd be bothered by a Bush lackey being too soft!

slb wrote on April 18, 2007 2:30 PM:

>> "Family" has been elevated in this country to such a level that single people are now a defacto underclass. <<

Unfortunately, RB, that is nothing new. When I first started working, management argued that married men had to be paid more because they had families to support. (Interestingly, this argument did not extend to married women, or to divorced/widowed women with children.)

When my mother was single and working as a nurse, the single nurses were expected to work weekends and holidays because, of course, the married nurses needed to be with their families.

And today, married workers at my place of employment get a bigger benefits package than the single workers. And yeah, it stinks.

(By the way, you forgot to point out that single people pay higher federal income tax rates than married ones. I am reminded of this by the security code: rate.)

Vulture Breath wrote on April 18, 2007 2:31 PM:

Thank God these horrible, pathetic details are seeing the light of day.

It brings to mind precisely the reverse discrimination visited upon Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who was denied a clerkship with Felix Frankfurter because she was married and had a child.

Agjobs wrote on April 18, 2007 2:38 PM:

The really really really scary part is the fact that these little Nazi's did not see anything wrong with their own conduct. If you have ever wondered where Hitler found people that would follow his morally corrupt orders, just look at Sampson, Doan, Feith, Goodling, Drownie Brownie, ect.. ect... Give young idealogs power without responsibility or consequences and here we are. IF they are really the Christians they claim to be you would think that the Bible would have had some kind of affect on their behavior. When Bush was finally crowned President in 2000 I remember telling a friend of mine that even though we lost, just how bad could the guy be. Well I guess we all know the answer to that one.

beowulf wrote on April 18, 2007 2:40 PM:

"I was shocked when the two guys HIRED by marketing company, Interference Inc., (who was in turn hired by Turner Broadcastings Cartoon Network), were the only ones prosecuted."

Kimberly, I suspect those two guys are being prosecuted for aggravated jackassedness. Did you see their bizarre press conference after the arrest, where they'd only taking questions about their hair? If they were that flippant when dealing with the police, then they hung themselves.

Its just like when you get stopped for speeding, you kiss the cops ass. You probably won't get out of the ticket (though you might), but if you act like a jerk, its easy for the cop to make your life quite miserable. If these Boston guys had been all apologetic and blamed Turner ("they have all these lawyers, when they said we could do this, we figured it was perfectly legal!"). The cops would have bitched them out and let them go. Somehow I doubt they were very contrite when they talked with the cops.

My Security Word is design, as in
If you fail to design, you design to fail.

Blue Patriot wrote on April 18, 2007 3:26 PM:

At what point will one of our esteemed representatives in the capitol call "Bullshit" on the GOP's use of faulty memory? How does Sampson not remember how that name got on the list? He's a lair, as is the lion's share of them since Reagan started the meme.
"You don't recall, Mr. Sampson? Perhaps 2 weeks in prison will refresh your memory, or 4 weeks if that doesn't suffice. Officer, take the witness into custody."

Will somebody please end this game?

parrot wrote on April 18, 2007 4:02 PM:

If it is true that Elston was screening out Dems and denying them jobs at DOJ then I'd say he is in a lot of hot water...given that each count of discrimination would be chargeable methinks.

seedyrum wrote on April 18, 2007 4:15 PM:

Yes, the country gone to hell. The Republicans Congress felt loyalty to Bush was more important than their loyalty to the country and its citizens. Bush "protecting" us from terrorism while the borders remain unsecured. Bush allowing border patrols to be locked up while known drug traffickers are given immunity, Drug traffickers allowed to bring in Drugs to get the whole country stoned out of their minds, Bush allowing illegal immigrants to enter the country so his friends can exploit them and "dummying" down the wages of Americans, load the judicial system with Republicans Bushies so if any Republican Bushies got caught the case would be dropped.
citizens, Bush allowing the trade deficit with China as China poison the USA citizens, We are the "richest" country in the world but yet Bush borrows money from China to wage his war of choice Iraq War. Impeach already what more does Bush has to do to get impeached? The next President will try these same stunts and have Bush fiasco as precedent "why he/she cant be impeached?
Consider other memebers of this administration who aren't getting the headlines, would you trust them? They know what is going and but choosing to remain silent. What about the firms who will hire these folks, would you trust the judgement of these firms??

On another note the DOJ, would you trust that department to do the right thing? Do they know what is right? Those attorneys who are left are they ethical, honest, and law abiding? I think not as some of them knew or know what is going on and choosing to remain silent. Isnt that complicity to the fact and after the fact?
Those attorneys, when they leave the public sector and go into private practice, are they trust worthy? What you want them as your attorney? What about the firm that hires them? The firm knows the attorney history or should know the history before hiring, would you trust the judgement of the firm??

Bush and his administration needs to be IMPEACHED NOW RATHER THAN LATER.

Karen Johnson wrote on April 18, 2007 4:20 PM:

Could be wrong...but thought I had read that a "verbal contract" can be considered and tried under RICO specifically BECAUSE it is known that corrupt organizations use such covanants to try to evade justice . If this is so, then Fitz would know. Wouldn't he also be sensative (ok that might be stretching) to indications of other types of RICO offenses?

Jillian wrote on April 18, 2007 4:31 PM:

Nevada is "a very important district" because in '06, and again in '08, all Republican majorities/control there will be up for grabs. And when they lose a swing state's overall and structural majorities to revived Democrats they know they've lost them for the whole of this political generation- see Oregon, New Hampshire, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, etc. Likely glaring extensions of the pattern in '08- Ohio, Wisconsin, Iowa, probably New Mexico, perhaps Colorado. (With Nevada, Arizona, Missouri, Florida, and Virginia at 51/49 or closer.)

At stake in Nevada in '08 is control of their state Senate (11R/10D), perhaps a recall election for governor (Dirty Jim Gibbons, approval rating in the thirties), Jon Porter's House seat (he prevailed with 48% this past November), and their five electoral college votes (52% Bush, 47% Kerry, 20,000 vote margin). At the standard 1% per year national partisan shift, the Democratic candidate should win the state by 12,000 votes. But there's so much state and national power riding on so few votes in an absolute sense that Rove and such have to be pent on a Democratic vote suppression strategy.

A Democrat won the Nevada Secretary of State office, and he's very smart and determined and active. Rove knows he has to achieve Democratic vote suppression via grassroots intimidation or via federal intimidations- i.e. DoJ. That's the "why" to the Bogden firing.

uwharrian wrote on April 18, 2007 5:28 PM:

My guess is it wasn't "nothing" with Bogden; I'm curious about the parenthetical scribble about "obscenity cases", where "cases" has been crossed out & replaced with "task force". That shows that the writer was taking notes on the fly. From whom?

Also, seriously: an obscenity task force in Nevada? WTF?

Anonymous wrote on April 18, 2007 8:00 PM:

"When I grow up, I want to be an honest lawyer so things like that can't happen." -- Richard Nixon as a boy, on the Teapot Dome scandal.

Plenty of other Nixonian gems, over at:

http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Richard_Nixon

The Teapot Dome scandal itself is interesting; especially in light of history repeating itself ... down to the Bureau of Investigation (pre-FBI) perverting justice in the 1920's.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teapot_Dome

jeffgee wrote on June 21, 2007 1:06 PM:

Is there another poster here named jeffgee? I found one posting by that name that I didn't do. I thought nicknames were unique.
Not that I disagree with it but...
On the topic, the Bushies are trying to change the Department of Justice to the Department of Just Us. Or as Colbert said yesterday, the Department of Just-Ish.