If There’s Nothing To Hide, Start Naming Names
By on Aug 17th, 2005 at 2:47 pm
If There’s Nothing To Hide, Start Naming Names
An important detail in today’s Washington Post about Roberts’s missing affirmative action file:
As part of a vetting process before Roberts’s formal nomination by the White House in late July, the two lawyers requested and were granted special access to the Roberts files. Neither the White House nor the Justice Department would name the lawyers…
If these lawyers didn’t do anything wrong why can’t we know who they were? If they returned the documents, why don’t they go on the record and say so? Why do these administration officials have a right to anonymity?
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Bush & Company love their secrets!
August 17th, 2005 at 2:50 pmPeople with nothing to hide — hide nothing.
Isn’t the Reagan library supported with OUR TAX DOLLARS? Why isn’t the access logs public record?
IOKIYAR
August 17th, 2005 at 2:51 pmRoberts is probably another criminal. When has Bushie suggested that we hire anyone but criminals?
August 17th, 2005 at 2:58 pmWho’s gonna ask them, Judd? The MSM? And if that oddity should occur, the answer will be a stone wall.
August 17th, 2005 at 3:09 pm“Security” of some bullsh– like that.
Nice to see thinkprogress take on Anderson Cooper, the EPA website, Dobson, the Globe, Bob Dole and so on… all these issues need to be addressed and thanks for that.
However the single most critical issue facing our country is IRAQ. If an exit strategy is to be discussed, what better venue than this forum? It’s high time we “think” about “progress” in Iraq, otherwise the warmongers end up winning the “we can’t leave Iraq” debate simply because nobody’s debating them.
So TP bloggers, if you share my frustration, please read this petition and if you agree, SIGN it..!
http://pdamerica.org/petition/iraq-withdraw-petition.php
August 17th, 2005 at 3:11 pmJust make sure you remember this. Make sure you teach your kids about this. The price of liberty is eternal vigilance. These corrupt, fascist pigs came to power because we let them. We cannot ever let them come to power again.
August 17th, 2005 at 3:12 pmHowever the single most critical issue facing our country is IRAQ. If an exit strategy is to be discussed, what better venue than this forum? It’s high time we “think†about “progress†in Iraq, otherwise the warmongers end up winning the “we can’t leave Iraq†debate simply because nobody’s debating them.
I think you need to ask yourself the question, would Bush have authorized the attack on Iraq if 9/11 never happened? We all know that the answer to this is no. Not that the threat of terror against us would have been any less. In fact, President Clinton was considering action against Sadam since he failed to comply with any of the U.N. resolutions. Why is the left so obsessed with the WMDs? We did find them. Their names were Sadam, Uday and Qusay. I think the left is trying to make political hay where there is none to be had. Time will tell with the next election however. I would commend Bush with making a real difference in the Middle East. In Iraq, we are witnessing the first democracy in that part of the world, where there will finally be a chance for human rights to exist. Using Iraq as the model, other nations in time will follow suit. Why is that concept so hard to imagine. I know, its because Bush did it and not someone from your party.
August 17th, 2005 at 3:24 pmthe concept is hard to imagine because that is not what is happening, unless you count unending chaos as success. your right that time will tell in the next election, lifer republicans are jumping the sinking bush ship. ‘06 and ‘08 will really tell.
August 17th, 2005 at 3:28 pmLet’s Start Talking Impeachment:
From January 28, 2003, the day the President stamped his approval on the prior and ongoing perjuries and criminal actions of his administration, I have always expressed in my various writings that there is a strong case; even more, a dire need for our representative government to pursue impeachment of the President and criminal charges for all who have deliberately perjured themselves before Congress and the American people to serve the agenda of the President, Vice President and their collective benefactors.
If it were possible to remove all of the murk and purposeful watering down from this horrible injustice perpetrated on the United States, we would see clearly the criminal nature of our own President’s agenda for our nation.
Thankfully, as the events surrounding the President’s ill deserved vacation unfold on his doorstep, our weakened voices are getting louder and more of us who have been bellowing out our demand for justice are getting notice.
Indeed, it is a great sigh of relief to witness the world taking notice of the message of the opposition; however, I feel that the message is once again falling victim to a vast intent to subvert its consequence.
This policy goes beyond the usual suspects. Frankly, Mr. Mehlman, Mr. Ailes, and the rest are finding themselves ever more frustrated in their lack of success in exploiting the ignorance of their faithful audiences. The real problem is with the outlets of at least slightly more integrity. For example, CNN is airing a special report on Sunday entitled Dead Wrong: Inside Intelligence Failures, which, on its surface, seems to advertise the unseen program’s intent to avoid any question of criminality from the Administration. Note that I have not yet seen the program; but I am inclined to conclude this way in light of the way the program has been advertised.
A better example was shown in today’s CNN interview with Anthony Shafer, a Navy supervisor for the Able Danger operation. In the interview, Soledad O’Brien seemed more interested in setting a tone that questioned the credibility of Shafer than she did unraveling the details of Shafer’s claims.
It seems there is methodology in the presentation of these issues by the more credible news organizations as well as the ones who have jumped off of the credibility wagon long ago. It is as if the question of criminal activity is being purposely left off of the table. “For what reason,†I am afraid, would be the subject of another essay that I haven’t the enormous time or strength that it would take to compose.
In spite of what the “big boys†are thinking and doing, I am firm in my belief that our time of merely complaining is at last coming to a close. I believe that while we must still express our dissent, we must not squander our growing capabilities. We are now on the verge of having the collective power to seek a tangible sense of justice; but we must act swiftly.
I implore all of you; all of you who have written about this, all of you who have spoken openly about this, and all of you who have the ear of those who can reach the broader mass of Americans, to begin replacing your grievances with tangible demands.
We must express our outrage, yes; but we must begin sending a clear message that we demand justice for these crimes.
The President and his constituency have at the very least perjured themselves before every single institution in our government. Upon their illegitimate victories, the President and his administration have broken multitudes of domestic and international laws to perpetuate their various activities.
The proof is as substantial as it is glaring, and it is staring our idle government right in its face. It is time that we use every ounce of our growing power to seek justice, to seek truthful answers to our inquiries, and to face the realities that are a direct result of the crimes and misdemeanors committed by the President. We can only then realize the gravity of the consequences and work together as a nation to repair the damage.
August 17th, 2005 at 3:30 pmHowever the single most critical issue facing our country is IRAQ.
The hell it is!
August 17th, 2005 at 3:31 pmI know where the missing files are. They are with the 9/11 security tapes of the Pentagon, the surveillance tapes of the Pentagon from the gas station and the Marriott, the stock transaction records of pre-9/11 airline short-selling, the recent tapes of Abu G. torture and rape etc.etc.etc.etc.etc. A Forgetful bunch.
August 17th, 2005 at 3:32 pmIf we find the above, will JFK’s autopsied brain be there, in that full warehouse ?
Iraq and oil prices are not the most critical issues facing our country. If you think they are, to paraphrase Harry Truman, “If you give the people a choice between a neocon and a neocon, they will choose the neocon every time.
August 17th, 2005 at 3:34 pmthe stock transaction records of pre-9/11 airline short-selling
That’s nonsense. The SEC found nothing, there are no records that went missing. You need to stop wearing that tin foil hat 24/7. Try leaving it on for just a few hours each day, OK?
August 17th, 2005 at 3:43 pmSarcasm off.
August 17th, 2005 at 3:54 pmMy sarcasm is on 24/7.
RIP GOP
http://www.onnnews.com/Global/story.asp?S=3733689&nav=LQlCdRIj
August 17th, 2005 at 3:59 pmOnce again, paranoia strikes deep. Once again, there is no there there.
Judd has mischaracterized the content of yet another article. Here is a key excerpt from the article he cites above:
“As part of a vetting process before Roberts’s formal nomination by the White House in late July, the two lawyers requested and were granted special access to the Roberts files. Neither the White House nor the Justice Department would name the lawyers yesterday, but sources said one works for White House counsel Harriet Miers and the other is an aide to Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales.
“Upon the lawyers’ arrival, Archives officials said, they asked to inspect various folders, and as they were pulled from the boxes, a marker was inserted in their place and the lawyers signed a checkout sheet. An attendant present in the room at all times did not, as a matter of routine, sign a form signifying the return of each folder.
“Nonetheless, Fawcett said, ‘we are quite confident that the records were returned to us.’ Asked why, she said that while the attendant does not recall seeing the affirmative action file in question put back, the marker was not in the box after the lawyers departed. ‘It would have been very difficult, given the circumstances in the room,’ for the lawyers to have retained the file because they were separated from their bags, she said.
“Instead, the folder was evidently lost later when all of the Roberts documents were transferred to new, acid-free folders and reorganized in anticipation of their disclosure to the Senate and news media.
“It is ‘very difficult to believe it’s anyone other than ourselves responsible for this loss,’ Fawcett said.”
I agree that if anyone deliberately stole this file he should suffer the consequences, just like Sandy Berger. However, with Sharon Fawcett taking presumptive responsibility for the loss of this file, it is hard to see how anyone could blame the lawyers who reviewed the file – especially the lawyer who helped resconstruct it.
It appears from the article that (1) the lawyers complied with all applicable procedures, including the return of the file, and so there is no special need to identify the lawyers; and (2) Ms. Fawcett has already stated that the file was returned, so there is no special need for the lawyers to “go on the record and say so.”
For better or worse, anonymity has been a fact of life in Washington for decades. In this case, given Ms. Fawcett’s comments, the evidence seems clear that the unnamed lawyers did nothing wrong, so there is no in identifying them.
August 17th, 2005 at 4:00 pmWhy does TP keep omitting the fact that the archivist at the Reagan library said it was inconceivable that anyone other than people working for the library lost the files?
And in any event, it’s likely safe to say that Roberts wrote a bunch of disparaging remarks about affirmative action programs during his time in the Reagan Justice Department, don’t we already have one such memo?
August 17th, 2005 at 4:00 pmWould you like a link? That SEC story of suspicious pre 9/11 stock trades has been debunked.
August 17th, 2005 at 4:01 pmHey, you guys don’t like it you can always vote with your feet. I’m sure they miss you over at Freep and LGF. We won’t miss you.
August 17th, 2005 at 4:02 pmAs the Rude Pundit would put it, “What are you trying to hide?”
As usual, this administration works in secret even though this is supposed to be an open preocess. This doesn’t have anything to do with the “global struggle against extremism” or homeland security.
What is the Bush administration trying to hide?
Why do they continue to subvert any questions that the public may want to ask of a lifetime appointee?
Why does this administration have so much contempt for the American people?
August 17th, 2005 at 4:03 pmBSr,
Since when do you believe anything the “liberal media” reports anyway?
August 17th, 2005 at 4:04 pmSarcasm off.
Comment by KillcCon2005 — August 17, 2005 @ 3:54 pm
#15,
I can always change my name. I’ve got a million of them that express my feelings about the right.
I’m that creative and that angry. Anger is a gift.
August 17th, 2005 at 4:06 pmWe’ll just look for the foaming mouth ,thank you.
August 17th, 2005 at 4:09 pmMy faith in any article depends a lot on what a source says and whether the source is quoted by name. In this case, Sharon Fawcett is quoted by name as saying the loss of the file in question is very likely an internal problem, rather than a case of theft. That ought to cause fair-minded individuals to at least question Judd’s suggestion that two lawyers conspired to violate federal law by stealing this file.
August 17th, 2005 at 4:13 pmI still find it odd that parts of the file are missing, how often has this happened? did they just fall behind a sofa or something?
August 17th, 2005 at 4:38 pmBSR – The files dissapeared after the two lawyers looked over the records. The libraries don’t have a record of getting these specific files back from the two lawyers.
Why do you find it so hard to believe that these lawyers probably didn’t give the fiels back? Isn’t that the first case scenerio when the order of events is shown as such?
I wonder, did you castigate Clinton when he parsed the definition of is? Now look in the mirror and repeat the known timeline and facts of this case.
August 17th, 2005 at 4:57 pmIn this case, Sharon Fawcett is quoted by name as saying the loss of the file in question is very likely an internal problem, rather than a case of theft.
LMAO! Yeah, when Rummy or Ricey or any other political hack is quoted by name we all just accept it as fact. You are too clueless for words. I wonder what kind of people get jobs at the Reagan library? What do you think?
August 17th, 2005 at 5:15 pmCONCERNS THAT BUSH IS “LOSING IT”
http://www.capitolhillblue.com/artman/publish/article_7218.shtml
“Buy beleaguered, overworked White House aides enough drinks and they tell a sordid tale of an administration under siege, beset by bitter staff infighting and led by a man whose mood swings suggest paranoia bordering on schizophrenia. They describe a President whose public persona masks an angry, obscenity-spouting man who berates staff, unleashes tirades against those who disagree with him and ends meetings in the Oval Office with ‘Get out of here!’
In fact, George W. Bush’s mood swings have become so drastic that White House emails often contain ‘weather reports’ to warn of the President’s demeanor. ‘Calm seas’ means Bush is calm while ‘tornado alert’ is a warning that he is pissed at the world.
Decreasing job approval ratings and increased criticism within his own party drives the President’s paranoia even higher. Bush, in a meeting with senior advisors, called Senator Majority Leader Bill Frist a ‘god-damned traitor’ for opposing him on stem-cell research. ‘There’s real concern in the West Wing that the President is losing it,’ a high-level aide told me recently.
‘I was really very unsettled by him and I started watching everything he did and reading what he wrote and watching him on videotape. I felt he was disturbed,’ (psychiatrist) Dr. Justin Frank said. ‘He fits the profile of a former drinker whose alcoholism has been arrested but not treated.’ Dr. Frank’s conclusions have been praised by other prominent psychiatrists, including Dr. James Grotstein, Professor at UCLA Medical Center, and Dr. Irvin Yalom, MD, Professor Emeritus at Stanford University Medical School.”
August 17th, 2005 at 6:24 pmThere is no compromising with tyrants. Bring them to justice now!
August 17th, 2005 at 6:40 pmOne of the “staffers” that the Washington Post claims may have taken the Roberts “affirmative action” files works for Harriet E. Miers, old Bush friend and White House Counsel.
August 17th, 2005 at 8:05 pmHer home telephone number in her Texas dwelling is:
5115, Royal Crest Dr
Dallas, TX
(214) 692-7955
Link to Yahoo! People finder page:
http://phone.people.yahoo.com/py/lg:us/lc:us/psPhoneSearch.py?FirstName=&LastName=Miers&Business=&City=&State=TX&PostalCode=&srch=bas&total=104&index=31
From crooksandliars.com
Bill O’Reilly Poll on Cindy
Do you respect what Cindy Sheehan is doing?
Bill has been pounding on her for days now. Here’s his site and you actually don’t have to pay to vote in the poll.
August 17th, 2005 at 9:21 pmhttp://billoreilly.com/
My conclusion, drawn from observing too many political polls, is that one in every two americans are mentally ill.
Watch someone make an assumption about which side i’m talking about. :P
August 17th, 2005 at 10:03 pm#6 Killcon is right — the price of liberty is vigilance. Teach your children.
August 17th, 2005 at 10:25 pm#9 Andrew is passionate and he’s also right. We should start talking up impeachment — remember Bush is in through 2008 and a lot can happen in three years — look at the past three years.
#28 – WELL DONE…
Most people know that as a child (age wise) his parents were imbarrassed for him.
He would torture animals, act out, throw temper tantrums. You know the kind of brat-bully.
Now most little boys that torture animals and act like that don’t become president……
THEY USUALLY BECOME SERIAL KILLERS.
food for thought.
August 18th, 2005 at 12:08 amMarie, the impeachment movement began a long time ago. Go to votetoimpeach.org and sign Ramsey Clarks petition.
Hundreds of thousands of people are going to the White House on Sept. 24th to demand impeachment.
I have contacted my senators and demanded impeachment.
Cindy Sheehan is joining the impeachment movement and
will be at the White House on the 24th.
Many are joining the movement. All grassroots organizations are organizing.
votetoimpeach.org
August 18th, 2005 at 2:41 amSusan, I love it, you are so on top of it!!!!
I can not believe that we think almost the same things.
I start to speak and you are already there…. amazing!
YOU ARE TOO COOL!
August 18th, 2005 at 4:32 amSince you are so ahead of me already,
Do you think they will actually impeach (chimpeach) the idiot?
All the reps and sens from my state e-mailed me back and support him… go figure… this is a KKK & Hillbilly state.
They have no need to augment the votes here. Poor people that vote chimpy really irritate me.
August 18th, 2005 at 4:34 am#35, Susan, I have signed the petition, long ago. ( I also attended the vigil last night.) My concern is that the VTI movement seems to be going nowhere — through no fault of their own – perhaps I am in deep despair and unable to see a more positive picture. I am hoping to go to Wash. DC in Sept.
August 18th, 2005 at 10:02 amKJ, your reps and senators will flip flop when they start hearing from their base.
In my republican county the demand for impeachment is growing fast. We need to get the republicans to write their reps and senators. If you know any registered republicans that have grown tired encourage them to send mail.
In addition, the 06 elections will change the majority status and then the problem will be solved.
August 18th, 2005 at 10:17 pmSorry but most of you are really sick! If you think that ‘lets count’ 5 .. woops a couple of repeats there, think that you as a “super minority” have anything to say on an “impeachment” get a life. As we have allready found out ‘dont mean anything anyway”
August 18th, 2005 at 11:10 pmwhat? – I guess my wingnut to english dictionary is missing….
August 19th, 2005 at 12:17 pmDumbya deserves a fair trial.
August 19th, 2005 at 12:18 pmMost people know that as a child (age wise) his parents were imbarrassed for him.
He would torture animals, act out, throw temper tantrums. You know the kind of brat-bully.
Now most little boys that torture animals and act like that don’t become president……
THEY USUALLY BECOME SERIAL KILLERS.
food for thought.
August 19th, 2005 at 12:19 pm2357
Please visit some information in the field of 501
November 5th, 2005 at 11:13 pmJim Crow Laws Employment Law Us Supreme Court
I can not agree with you in 100% regarding some thoughts, but you got good point of view
April 14th, 2008 at 2:06 am