Sometimes a really big story is sitting there, right in plain sight. That’s the case with the firing of San Diego US Attorney Carol Lam and the on-going Duke Cunningham investigation.
As per Washington conventional wisdom we’re now supposed to accept that the firing of seven US attorneys around the country was, yes, perhaps unprecedented, but more an example of Bush cronyism than an effort to short-circuit one or more investigations. But the firing of Lam just doesn’t bear out that reading.
Earlier this month, Lam indicted Brent Wilkes, Dusty Foggo and John T. Michael.
By almost any measure this is a public corruption indictment of historic proportions. Wilkes corrupted the sitting US congressman who got the longest sentence ever given to a member of Congress. Foggo was the executive director of the CIA, the number three guy, the one who actually ran the agency on a daily basis. Michael helped bribing Duke and he also appears to have lied to investigators. He’s also the nephew of Tommy Kontogiannis, a key player in the scandal who is listed as an unindicted briber-and-coconspirator in Duke Cunningham’s plea agreement. One of the big mysteries in this case is why Kontogiannis still hasn’t been indicted, especially now that his nephew — whose role in the case was secondary to that of his uncle — has. On Kontogiannis, it’s probably worth considering the widespread reports of his role on the fringe of the intelligence and criminal underworlds to see why he might, as yet, have drawn a pass.
In any case, a pretty weighty indictment. And the prosecutor gets forced out so that she only barely has time to bring the main indictments? That sounds very fishy.
And what’s the reason for her firing?
We were originally told that she was let go on the basis of poor performance and management. But McClatchy later reported that, like other fired US attorneys, Lam’s performance reviews were strong.
So why was she fired?
We’re now asked to believe that she was canned because a few conservative congressmen were complaining that she wasn’t doing enough on the illegal immigration front.
Please.
A look at the cases against the men in question leave little doubt that this investigation wasn’t over. But the job of the person who’s led the prosecution from beginning is.
Who’s foolish enough to believe this is all a coincidence?
