Gonzales Hearing Showcases Policy Shift
Most of the public dissection of Attorney General Alberto Gonzalesâ testimony last week dwelt on the pummeling he took at the hands of the Senate Judiciary Committee, particularly from members of his own party. But beyond the relentless back-and-forth combat between Gonzales and hostile senators, some crucial details emerged about how management of the Justice Department has changed during the Bush administration.” (Legal Times)
The GOP: Waiting for Him to Walk
“The pressure on Alberto Gonzales to resign intensified last week following his daylong grilling before the Senate Judiciary Committee. GOP senatorsâhoping for a strong performanceâwere visibly pained when Gonzales couldn’t remember a crucial Nov. 27, 2006, meeting (noted on his calendar), when he was briefed by his chief of staff about the firing plan.” (Newsweek)
Administration Facing Swarm of Scandals
The Associated Press looks at the scandals that are currently rocking a President who seven years ago promised to “restore honor and integrity” to the White House and to usher in a new era of bipartisanship. Meanwhile, they provide a laundry list of over a dozen Bush appointees who have suffered or currently face conflicts-of-interest allegations.
House Panel Weighs Subpoenas
“House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Henry A. Waxman (D-CA) sought yesterday to pressure the Bush administration into divulging sensitive policy information, scheduling a committee vote for Wednesday on his plan to issue four subpoenas for the information. In letters to officials at the White House, the Republican National Committee and the State Department, Waxman wrote that he scheduled the vote because he has not received documents and testimony needed for the committee’s wide-ranging investigations.” (Washington Post)
GOP Learns Lessons on Ethics
“Burned by a series of scandals in the 109th Congress that played a deciding role in costing House Republicans the majority, GOP leaders and the rank and file are taking a tougher stance toward colleagues with alleged legal woes this time around. ‘I think [Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH)] early on decided that he would have zero tolerance for corruption or the perception of corruption,’ Rep. Ray LaHood (R-IL) said Friday. ‘If we are going to earn our way back to the majority we simply cannot countenance these things.'” (Roll Call)
Key Initiative of “No Child” Under Federal Investigation
“The Justice Department is conducting a probe of a $6 billion reading initiative at the center of President Bush’s No Child Left Behind law, another blow to a program besieged by allegations of financial conflicts of interest and cronyism, people familiar with the matter said yesterday. The disclosure came as a congressional hearing revealed how people implementing the $1 billion-a-year Reading First program made at least $1 million off textbooks and tests toward which the federal government steered states.” (Washington Post)
Similarities Are Adding Up Between Doolittle, Ney
“When Rep. John Doolittle (R-CA) stepped down from his position last week on the House Appropriations Committee because of the unfolding Abramoff investigation, he added yet another ominous similarity between himself and Rep. Bob Ney, the Ohio Republican who is the only member of Congress so far to have been brought down by the scandal. Ney pleaded guilty to conspiracy in October and is serving a 30-month prison sentence for accepting gambling chips, luxury travel and other benefits in exchange for taking official actions that helped GOP lobbyist Jack Abramoff and his clients.” (McClatchy Newspapers)
Doolittle Defiant in Face of Probe
“Rep. John Doolittle declared Friday that he won’t resign and will run again for Congress, vowing a vigorous defense if political corruption charges are filed against him or his wife in an investigation into their relationship with imprisoned lobbyist Jack Abramoff. In measured but defiant tones, Doolittle evoked the recently dismissed Duke University rape case to suggest his family is being targeted in a misguided political probe.” (Sacramento Bee)
Buchanan’s Rise Puts Her on Hot Seat
“Cracking down on drugs and pornography was big business in former U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft’s Department of Justice. When federal prosecutors in California passed on cases involving glass bongs and hard-core sex movies, Pittsburgh-based U.S. Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan swooped in and stole the show.” (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)
Two Fired Attorneys Had Ties to Buchanan
“The relationship between at least some of the eight fired U.S. attorneys and officials at the Department of Justice continued to be cordial almost to the day those attorneys received a phone call dismissing them. Two of the terminated prosecutors said they had received positive feedback from their superiors as well as from Mary Beth Buchanan, the U.S. attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania and the former director of the Executive Office for United States Attorneys, which helps put together teams that review U.S. attorneys.” (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
Land-Swap Plan Causes Trouble for Congressman
“As they dig for nickel, copper and other commodities in the far corners of the earth, the world’s largest mining companies, Rio Tinto PLC and BHP Billiton Ltd., are used to solving geological problems. Here, though, the problems they encountered were political. North America’s largest copper lode is believed to be buried more than a mile beneath Apache Leap but first Congress needs to approve a federal land exchange.” (Wall Street Journal)
