Begone, Lurita, and never darken my door again

think progress quotes henry waxman from today's house oversight committee hearings...

In today’s House oversight committee hearing with GSA administrator Lurita Doan, chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA) told Doan that she should resign:

I have to say, this is my opinion, but it’s unusual for me to ever call for the resignation of a federal official. But in your case, I don’t see any other course of action that will protect the interests of your agency and the federal taxpayer. No one can be an effective leader who has abused the trust of her employees, and threatened to deny promotions and bonuses to employees for telling the truth. And no one can be an effective leader who has lost the public’s confidence, politicizing the agency and violating the federal Hatch Act, yet that is exactly what you have done.

i predict that waxman's strongly worded suggestion that doan resign, will, just like gonzo's failed no-confidence vote, merely strengthen bush's resolve to keep her... otoh, in big picture terms and, given the other crises that are biting bush around the ankles, lurita is most definitely expendable... however, i just can't see bush allowing it to look like he's acceding to waxman's request... it would be totally out of character...

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"The sound of Mr. Gonzales not being defended was deafening."

what's to defend...?

The most remarkable thing about the debate on Attorney General Alberto Gonzales this week was what didn’t happen. Barely a word was said in praise him or his management of the Justice Department. The message was clear even though the Republicans prevented a no-confidence vote through the threat of a filibuster — a tactic that until recently they claimed to abhor. The sound of Mr. Gonzales not being defended was deafening.

that there is no one to defend gonzo besides bush, and that the no-confidence vote failed is a look into the national mirror... our government and our elected leaders have completely abandoned any semblance of accountability, adherence to the rule of law, or respect for the constitution... as has been the case for the past 6 1/2 years, there seems to be nowhere to go but down...

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Solid reason vs. Rove's talking points on Gonzo

two major media outlets, more often than not known for defending (or at least not attacking) bush, aren't at all happy that gonzales is still in office...

USA Today

Blame monumental stubbornness, misplaced loyalty or failure to grasp reality. Whatever the reason, President Bush insists on keeping Alberto Gonzales, an old friend and legal adviser, as attorney general.

[...]

Monday's vote doesn't — and shouldn't — mean that the Gonzales case is closed. Questions about the prosecutors' firings remain, ones that can be answered only by White House officials, including political adviser Karl Rove.

The White House has said it will allow the officials to testify only in private, with no transcript and not under oath. That's flatly unacceptable.

The Senate Judiciary Committee has authorized subpoenas for the officials. Now it's time to get to the bottom of the White House role in the firings and, just as important, in running the department.

The Justice Department and the American people deserve better than a discredited, wounded attorney general. Even if the Senate can't muster enough votes to pass a no-confidence resolution, it's long past time for the president to channel his legendary loyalty away from his old friend and toward the public interest.

WaPo

[T]wo fundamental points: First, the president's apparently unshakable confidence in his attorney general is sadly misplaced. Second, the disturbing behavior uncovered in the investigation of the firing of U.S. attorneys cannot be dismissed as mere partisan politics, as much as the president would like to do so. Partisan politics was at work, yes, but in Mr. Bush's Justice Department...

[...]

Mr. Gonzales was the wrong choice to become the nation's chief law enforcement officer, and his conduct on the job has only served to underscore his unfitness.

meanwhile, george and the other loyal bushies stick to their scripted talking points...

our prez...

"This process has been drug out a long time, which says to me it's political," President Bush said yesterday. "There's no wrongdoing. . . . And therefore, I ascribe this lengthy series of news stories and hearings as political."

tony snow...

The Senate took time out to perform a little political theater Monday.

[...]

Gonzales doesn't deserve this. He is a man of great dedication and integrity.

[...]

The best way ... to create the foundation for some comity and cooperation in the nation's capital — is to stop slinging mud and start rolling up sleeves.

Real work beckons.

and orrin hatch...

This is purely a publicity stunt, designed to put something on the president's desk to embarrass him.

[...]

The nation's business waits while this fishing expedition continues.

real work, stunt, theater, partisan, fishing expedition, slinging mud, politics, publicity, no wrongdoing, man of integrity... note them well... they're all the same, they're all from the dark and twisted mind of karl rove, and, for sure, you haven't heard the last of them...

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BUSH'S government, not OUR government

i'm glad we got THAT little issue cleared up...

They can have their votes of no confidence, but it's not going to make the determination about who serves in my government," Bush said in Sofia, Bulgaria, the last stop on a weeklong visit to Europe.

53-38, and specter, snowe, and norm coleman all voted for it, and that miserable, rotten, worthless, piece of shit, joe lieberman, voted against it... what a piece of work that guy is...

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Specter to vote for no-confidence?

i'll believe it when i see it...

The top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee said Monday he will vote for a no-confidence resolution against Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, after long questioning the leadership and independence of President Bush's longtime friend.

specter doesn't exactly have credibility in matching his actions to his words...

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According to Novak, Bush is losing 2x with the R's, on both Gonzales and Libby

the r's think it's outrageous that bush isn't pardoning libby and even more outraged that he's retaining gonzo... at least they're thinking straight on that last one... tough shit, george... just add 'em to the list of people who hate you...

novak in the wapo today...

Washington lawyer Victoria Toensing: "If the president can pardon 12 million illegal immigrants, he can pardon Scooter Libby."

[...]

In contrast, Republican insiders are enraged by Bush's retention of Gonzales, whom they consider a political and governmental disaster.

and so, simply put, here's what novak says the r's want (never admitting, of course, that it's what HE wants too)...

[T]wo possibilities are talked about in Republican circles: Let Gonzales go, and pardon Libby. That might push Bush's approval ratings even lower, but it sure would hearten his base.

good god, the man is so out of touch...! first of all, if the r's REALLY wanted gonzo gone, they wouldn't be ready - as they are at this very moment - to scuttle the gonzo no-confidence vote... and even though george, via tony snow, said yesterday that gonzo's going to stay no matter what, they could at least go on the record strongly in opposition to keeping him... but, as i've said, they're not going to do that because they know intuitively that, like jericho, if they cut the cord now, the walls will definitely come a'tumblin' down (see previous post)...

i won't go in to the pardoning of libby other than to say that doing so would be a complete perversion of our justice system... but the other thing that blows me away is the suggestion that bush should try to appease his base even if it means he falls further in the polls... who the hell IS the base these days...? the religious right has pulled away, rightly so after being dumped by the side of the road, so novak must be referring to the likes of fouad ajami, or robert bork and his 8 other constitutional lawyers politically-connected elite buds, who not only can see themselves in libby's shoes, but are also preparing the ground for possible similar action on cheney's behalf... what novak doesn't mention, either because it hasn't occurred to him or because he's blind to the degree to which this elite "base" will try to game the system, is that bush, by pardoning libby, might also be assuring a pardon for himself later on...

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As the Gonzales no-confidence vote approaches, think of this: "Words seem inadequate in the face of such blithe noncompetence"

strong stuff...

Dan Metcalfe says he thought he had seen it all as a former senior Justice Department lawyer whose career stretches back to the Watergate scandal of the Nixon administration.

Over the years, Metcalfe says, he has taken pride in being able to work with Republican and Democratic administrations as director of the department's Office of Information and Privacy, which he co-founded in 1981.

But he says he has never seen anything quite like Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales.

Metcalfe, 55, retired in early January, just before the storm erupted over the dismissal last year of nine U.S. attorneys. The House and Senate Judiciary committees are investigating whether the prosecutors were fired in order to squelch political investigations against Republicans or failing to aggressively pursue voter fraud charges against Democratic-leaning groups.

In an interview, Metcalfe said, "I think the way in which the firings themselves were handled was abominable, the way in which the ensuing controversy was handled was abysmal, and the way in which Gonzales has handled himself is absolutely appalling."

"As a long-term Justice Department official, I am embarrassed and increasingly incensed that he is still in there," he said.

[...]

Sheer political expediency, avoidance of individual responsibility, defensive personal aggrandizement, irresponsible "consensus" decision-making, disregard for long-standing practices and principles — it was all there, and it was tainted at most every turn by unprecedented White House involvement.

[...]

To put it mildly, it's hard to imagine that anyone but the most die-hard political appointees at the Justice Department would have any confidence in Gonzales today — and even that small amount of support would be based on blind loyalty rather than painful reality.

[...]

It is the arrogance of power, the palpable disdain for the rule of law, and the utter disregard for the Justice Department's integrity that brings this so very close to the Watergate era.

[...]

Gonzales has now shown himself to be so lacking as to defy complete description; words seem inadequate in the face of such blithe noncompetence. Suffice to say that his standing relative to other attorneys general comports with how this president compares with his own predecessors.

it's difficult for me to comprehend a former senior doj official making statements like that and not having them set the country on fire... it shows just how effectively we've been dumbed down and how much we prefer our narcotic consumer pleasures to the responsibilities of citizenship... we're behaving just like congress, sticking our heads in the sand and hoping it all blows over soon...

i'll repeat what i said earlier... the r's are going to stick by bush and vote against the no-confidence measure, it will fail, bush and gonzo will congratulate themselves for pulling off another one, the dems will put their tails between their legs, continue with their various hearings, and warm themselves with fantasies of what they could be with a little more testosterone... but it's like the little dutch boy, sticking his finger in the dike, trying to hold back the sea - when it goes, it's going to go in a rush...

the r's know, if they abandon george now, the dike will most definitely give way, and they'll be standing right there, dead center, watching an oncoming wall of water... it's the classic rock and a hard place dilemma... there's only one thing left to do, and that's for congress to re-assert - aggressively re-assert - its role as a separate but equal power under the constitution, whatever form that may take... the crisis is upon us, and, even though congress is wishing mightily for it to go away, it's not going to... it's time to stand up and fight...

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The White House middle finger - it's all part of the Bush endgame

no retreat, no negotiation, no compromise, no surrender... watch the white house strategy that was announced last October unfold before your very eyes...

from think progress...

On Fox News Sunday today, White House spokesperson Tony Snow said that if the no confidence vote is passed — even with bipartisan support — it will have “no effect” on President Bush’s confidence in Gonzales. Snow claimed “nobody [has] found anything untoward in terms of what happened” in the attorney scandal. He added, “there’s an attempt to pull this [resolution] like a piece of taffy, seeing if there’s any political advantage in it.”

tony's statement is completely in keeping with the strategy the bushies announced just prior to the november elections - they will fight everything to the bitter end, no compromise, no surrender... they are only doing exactly what they said they would do... if they show any sign of weakness now, the unity among the congressional r's will totally and completely collapse and the white house knows it... so, there is only one way around this impasse, and that's for congress to force the constitutional crisis they and the nation have been assiduously avoiding since the 12 december 2000 scotus decision that installed this coup d'etat as our so-called legitimate government...

it's been a while since i posted this, but i can see it's time for a reprise...

from time magazine, october 2006...

In fact, when it comes to deploying its Executive power, which is dear to Bush's understanding of the presidency, the President's team has been planning for what one strategist describes as "a cataclysmic fight to the death" over the balance between Congress and the White House if confronted with congressional subpoenas it deems inappropriate. The strategist says the Bush team is "going to assert that power, and they're going to fight it all the way to the Supreme Court on every issue, every time, no compromise, no discussion, no negotiation."

no one in the bush white house, particularly at this stage of bush's rapidly disintegrating administration, is going to risk displaying the slightest degree of responsiveness to any assertion of oversight or deference to the balance of powers... sure, there will be the occasional ceremonial tossing of someone to the wolves, but only when the circumstances are less than critical to the preservation of executive power... thus, wolfie's resignation, which had already passed outside the white house's ability to control... the same with john bolton... rumsfeld's sacking was designed to make it appear as though bush had things under control and was simply making a wise strategic decision... but there is no way, particularly now, after all the hue and cry, that bush could dispose of gonzo and not lose the sole remaining edge he has left, and that's not even taking into account the firewall function gonzo provides to bush and rove...

the white house is in the endgame and they know it... they're desperate as are the congressional r's, who fully realize that severing the tie with bush now would mean their doom as well... bush and his fellow criminals have driven up the stakes so high, there is no longer any retreat... all that remains is for the dems to find their cojones and get busy... the clock's ticking...

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Phone, email or fax your Senators on the Gonzo no-confidence vote set for Monday

a complete directory of the u.s. senate including numbers and email contact info is here...

The Senate’s no-confidence vote on Attorney General Alberto Gonzales will take place Monday.

“If all Senators who have actually lost confidence in Attorney General Gonzales voted their conscience, this vote would be unanimous,” [Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.)] said in a statement. “However, the president will certainly exert pressure to support the attorney general, his longtime friend. We will soon see where people’s loyalties lie.”

casting a vote of no-confidence in gonzo is the only reasonable response for any senator who truly supports our constitution and our vaunted "rule of law..."

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George on Gonzo today, a page straight from V.I. Lenin's playbook

laugh...? cry...? tear out your hair...? run screaming out the door...? go hide in the closet...? eat a quart of ice cream at one sitting...? open a fresh bottle of tequila...? check to see that your passport is still current...? book a flight out of the country...? all the above...?

from raw story...

• I, frankly, view what's taking place in Washington today as pure political theater.

• He has got my confidence.

• He has done nothing wrong.

• There has been no wrongdoing on his part.

• I stand by Al Gonzales.

• I would hope that people would be more sober in how they address these important issues.

• [T]hey ought to get the job done of passing legislation, as opposed to figuring how to be actors on the political theater stage.

what a perfect example of lenin's strategy...

"This administration, I've never seen an organization that learned the lessons of Lenin as clearly as these guys," said Rep. Jim Moran (D-VA) in a Thursday interview. "These guys must tack up Lenin's philosophy on their bedstand every night. Particularly when Lenin suggested if you say something often enough, with enough conviction, everybody will believe it."

just keep beating us over the head... beat us until we're bruised and bloodied... yell, holler, accuse, threaten, demean, ridicule, disparage, attack, bluster, complain, ignore, stonewall, lie, obfuscate, spin... just keep it up... no matter what evils, crimes, misinformation, disinformation, and outright lies are revealed, just keep it up... we know we can count on you to stay the course...

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Gonzo wants to avoid "an historical black mark"

hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha... < cough, snort, sputter > hahahahahahahahaha...

think progress offers this from today's face the nation program on cbs...

SCHIEFFER: Do you, in fact, think Republicans, a sizable number, will join with Democrats on that? And what do you think the impact is going to be on the Attorney General?

SPECTER: Well, I think so. You already have six Republicans calling for his resignation. I have a sense, Bob, that before the vote is taken that Attorney General Gonzales may step down.

SCHIEFFER: Really?

SPECTER: Well, it is a very forceful, historical statement. Votes of no confidence are very rare. More than a century ago one was leveled against a sitting president. I think historically that is something which Attorney General Gonzales would like to avoid. The most important thing, though, is the inability of the department now to function. I was about to say that U.S. Attorneys met in San Antonio this past week and there was a lot of criticism and a lot of dissension. That department is very, very important, functioning for the welfare of our country. […]

SCHIEFFER: What leads you, senator, to the conclusion that he will probably step down before such a vote is taken?

SPECTER: Because of the likelihood, a very substantial vote of no confidence. I think that if and when he sees that coming, that he would prefer to avoid that kind of an historical black mark.

if gonzo was so friggin' concerned about avoiding "an historical black mark," he would not have been such a willing toady to the white house... no matter what happens, he is going to have to live with the permanent stains of leading his country down an unconstitutional and illegal path in clear violation of his oath of office... he screwed himself a very long time ago, probably starting with his first meeting with george bush which was no doubt immediately followed by selling his soul to the devil karl rove...

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Oh, those wascally Democwats and their bottomless bag of twicks

uh, 'scuse me, mr. fratto, who exactly IS it that still supports gonzales...?

Q Senators Schumer and Feinstein are going to introduce a no confidence resolution for Attorney General Gonzales next week, the Senate is going to vote on this. You have a sixth Republican, Norm Coleman, come out and say the Attorney General should resign. Doesn't this all add up to the weight that's dragging him down? And how can he be effective with all --

MR. FRATTO: I think it adds up to the bottomless bag of tricks that Democrats in the Senate would like to pull out on a weekly basis, regarding the Attorney General. The Attorney General has the full confidence of the President. He's focused on the mission of the Department of Justice, which is to keep Americans safe, protect us from domestic terrorism threats, child predators. We know that this has been a difficult period, dealing with the discussion and questions having to do with the U.S. attorneys. But the Attorney General is sticking to his job. We feel he's been a very strong Attorney General, and we continue to support him.

Q You addressed the Democratic part of that question. You didn't say anything about the six Republicans. And you also had Specter saying that he predicts that he'll resign -- Gonzales will resign, saying that he's unable to perform his duties. What about the Republicans?

MR. FRATTO: We understand that there are senators who have different views.

Q I'm talking about the Republicans.

MR. FRATTO: Talking about senators of both parties, and we understand that they have concerns and questions. We think that the Attorney General has been honest and forthright in addressing those questions; and as I said earlier, most importantly, has the full confidence of the President.

Jim.

Q But, Tony, when you say he has the full confidence of the President, and when you say you feel he's been a strong Attorney General, doesn't this erode the President's credibility when it seems like the entire rest of the political universe is on the other side of that?

MR. FRATTO: No, I don't think that's where everyone is. Look --

Q How is -- who's on his side?

MR. FRATTO: What we are focusing on, what we think the Attorney General is focusing on is the mission of the Department of Justice. I haven't heard anyone say that the Department of Justice has been weak in enforcing child predator laws. I haven't heard anyone say that the Department of Justice has been anything short of strong and aggressive in protecting America from domestic terrorism threats. Those are the things that we are focusing on, and those things have happened under this Attorney General's leadership.

if gonzo is good enough for george, he's good enough for me...

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Senate no-confidence vote on Gonzo

At a press conference moments ago, Sens. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) called on the Senate to hold a no-confidence vote on Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.

it’s about damn time they get serious about this… after reading greenwald reinforcing my own view that things are completely out of control with bush and the white house, we need to be taking some very serious and very assertive steps to reclaim our country… a no-confidence vote is a small step, but at least it’s in the right direction…

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When the president flips you off

from roll call...

With Attorney General Alberto Gonzales vowing to remain in his job and President Bush standing by him, Senate Democratic leaders are seriously considering bringing a resolution to the floor expressing no confidence in Gonzales, according to a senior leadership source....

The vote would be nonbinding and have no substantive impact, but it would force all Republican Senators into the politically uncomfortable position of saying publicly whether they continue to support Gonzales in the wake of the scandal surrounding the firings of eight U.S. attorneys.

as i posted the other day...

i fully expect gonzo to still be attorney general a week from today and, quite likely, a month from today... if george dumps him, it will not be until he can make it look like HIS decision rather than as a response to the hearings and political pressure, the same way he disposed of rummy...

and this...

so, what's a body to do...? hell if i know... what i keep hoping is that, subpoenas or not, several truly damning revelations (there would have to be more than one) backed by hard evidence come into the possession of one or more house or senate investigative committees that will blow the whole bushco criminal enterprise wide open...

a vote of no confidence notwithstanding, i hope the committee keeps on digging... if they do, they will eventually strike a vein of shit so rich, it will bring a quick end to this 6 year-old coup d'etat...


(thanks to TPMmuckraker...)

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