Murray Waas, one of the best investigative journalists in DC, has a new piece on Attorney General Alberto Gonzales’s role in derailing a Justice Department investigation of his own possible criminality. Waas notes at the National Journal:
Shortly before Attorney General Alberto Gonzales advised President Bush last year on whether to shut down a Justice Department inquiry regarding the administration’s warrantless domestic eavesdropping program, Gonzales learned that his own conduct would likely be a focus of the investigation, according to government records and interviews.
Bush personally intervened to sideline the Justice Department probe in April 2006 by taking the unusual step of denying investigators the security clearances necessary for their work.
Waas’s superb work greatly advanced the expposure of the White House’s role in smearing an undercover CIA agent. And now it looks like this may be even bigger fish – especially if Bush knew that Gonzo was a target of the investigation that Bush derailed.
Mr. Bovard,
Maybe at last there will HAVE to be some movement towards impeachment.
I agree that Gonzales needs to go, for a whole laundry list of criminal offences. Impeach him. Get the smirking chip Shrub also, but FIRST impeach Cheney. That rat bastard is the one who must go first. If he is brought down, I think the rest would fall quite easily.
Just my 2 cents worth.
semper fi,
charlie
Replacing a dishonest, careerist, government-loving, anti-Constitution, collectivist with an honest, careerist, government-loving, anti-Constitution, collectivist might be a marginal improvement. But it doesn’t address the problem with government that is interventionist at home or abroad. It’s just another scene in the political show.
Charlie,
You have a point. The Bush administration can be compared to one of those OSHA approved lawnmowers where you have to hold a bar down to keep it running. From what I have seen of the Bush administration and the way it goes about it business impeaching and removing Cheney would be akin to removing the hand from the bar, causing the whole contraption to shut down.
Mr. Bovard,
The Reagan administration was referred to as the teflon White House. What is the Bush administration? You MAKE a war based on lies no impeachment process is seriously considered. So why would this administration have to abide by any constitutional laws. They will just replace one liar with another. I am counting the days till this entire administration is a bad memory.
Margot Radin
Ms. Radin –
I don’t pin my hopes on a moral reformation within the Bush administration.
But any change in top personnel risks letting the lids slip off of some of their earlier abuses.
I think we may already be seeing ‘scandal momentum’ – one lie leading to another… and it all could have a happy ending long before January 2009.
You’re headline was very misleading. I thought that this post had something to do with Hunter S. Thompson’s decision to commit suicide. Please do not label the Torture AG with anything that was worthwhile in this world. Thanks.
This type of confusion would not occur if Ashcroft was still Attorney General.
There is a Bush Administration procedure for removing appointees which needs be followed for the Attorney General as well and will extend Gonzalez’ tenure by at least a month or two more.
First, the White House has to schedule a photo-op wherein Bush slaps him on the back and says, “Great job, ‘Berty!”
Second, although busy printing worthless paper money, the Mint has to stamp a Medal of Freedom (appropriate, huh?) for Gonzalez, and a presentation ceremony has to be held with due pomp and praise while said medal is pinned on his proud chest.
It is only after these prerequisites are met that Gonzalez can be fired.
I expect the usual procedure may get truncated this time… Trains speed up as they get further down the mountain.