Senior Bush Official May Have Violated Law Trying To Block Pelosi From Appearing At Event
Senior Bush Official May Have Violated Law Trying To Block Pelosi From Appearing At Event
House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA) has uncovered more potentially illegal activity by the head of the General Services Administration, Lorita Doan.
Waxman has discovered that Doan “used a January 2007 teleconference to ask senior GSA officials to help ‘our candidates’ in the next elections through targeted public events, such as the opening of federal facilities around the country.” Doan discussed with GSA officials “how to exclude House Speaker Nancy Pelosi from an upcoming courthouse opening in San Francisco and how to include Republican Senator Mel Martinez.” Doan’s activity is now being investigated as a potential violation of the Hatch Act, which prohibits partisan campaign activities on federal property.
Doan’s inappropriate (and potentially illegal) behavior extends beyond partisan hackery. Last summer, Doan signed a $20,000 no-bid contract for a 24-page report “promoting GSA’s use of minority- and women-owned businesses.”
Doan made the deal with a firm called Diversity Best Practices, headed by Edie Fraser. Waxman has discovered that Doan “had a long-standing business relationship with Ms. Fraser that has not been disclosed previously. Moreover, “Fraser used her professional connections to advance Doan’s nomination to GSA and to provide personal favors, and…Ms. Fraser continued to provide services with the expectation of payment to Ms. Doan after she became GSA Administrator.”
Waxman released an email from Fraser to Doan on 9/6/06:
Lurita, I will do anything for you and will do for the rest of my life… But I have spent so much time at GSA from the report planning to these sessions with ZERO $$. How do we solve
Fraser’s $20,000 contract was eventually canceled because, at the time, GSA contracts worth more than $2,500 had to be competitively bid. But Doan wouldn’t go down without a fight. According to Waxman, Doan pushed her staff “behind the scenes to find a way to award the contract to Ms. Fraser,” even suggesting “that if GSA were to make the contract available through a competitive bid, Ms. Fraser could write the ‘Statement of Work’ describing the award for which her company would be competing.”
More details HERE and HERE. Doan will appear before the oversight committee on March 20.
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51 Responses to “Senior Bush Official May Have Violated Law Trying To Block Pelosi From Appearing At Event”
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Ms. Fraser’s “umbrella” of companies produce low grade PR of questionable value - most if it related to “awards ceremonies” that recognize CEO’s and companies for their “achievements” in diversity and womens’ issues.
I read her “Public Affairs Group (PAG)” was recently sold by iVillage. No surprise.
Fraser is incredibly good at stroking business leaders egos, particularly those who are thin skinned. The products and services that come out of her deals, however, are at best questionable.
March 7th, 2007 at 1:52 pmThey’re so frigging stupid and above the law, they don’t even know or care when they’re breaking it. Christ, even someone who enjoys watching Law and Order reruns knows more about the law and how to go about applying it than they do.
March 7th, 2007 at 1:55 pmIs anybody calling for her resignation?
March 7th, 2007 at 1:58 pm“Lurita, I will do anything for you and will do for the rest of my life…” - - That’s oogy, on so many levels.
March 7th, 2007 at 2:00 pmpatisan hacks that don’t understand that the US and our principals come before their hate & war mongering party. Another one that is going to end up in the big house
March 7th, 2007 at 2:01 pmShocking! Another Partisan Hack in this Administration! The DOJ should investigate!
Wait, that would be the Atty. Gen., right??
March 7th, 2007 at 2:03 pmThese sleezy bastards just never find a depth to which they will not stoop. Every federal employee (including agency heads) is given ample opportunity to be made aware of the Hatch Act and its provisions. If this twit says she didn’t know she’s as honest as our boy Scooter. The mind fairly boggles when you compare what Bill Clinton did a couple times under the oval office desk compared to what these malingering bastards do almost daily.
Where is the righteous indignation from the morality squad in the reich wing? Do they only wig out over blow jobs and blue dresses?
March 7th, 2007 at 2:03 pmWhores.
March 7th, 2007 at 2:03 pmDoan is from New Orleans. Guess Bush is helping one resident at a time. He’ll get to the rest….uh…never.
March 7th, 2007 at 2:09 pmApparently like every other Bushie Ms. Doan thinks none of the laws apply to her.
I am reminded of people who litter and how they come to rationalize it.
If only I drop one piece of trash it won’t hurt anything.
[except millions are rationalizing the same thing]
And how this fits into rationalizing their political or business mindset.
If I only do this political favor for a few of my people, it won’t hurt anything.
[Except when many politicians take part in it it becomes a culture of corruption and undermines our Democracy and eventually their own party]
Tsk Tsk.
March 7th, 2007 at 2:17 pmI am saddened at the state of our union and the unethical behavior that I am seeing today.
edie fraser and the spiders from mars
March 7th, 2007 at 2:18 pmIs there any part of the Dubya maladministration that is not malignly crooked and can’t be bought? Any part?!?!?
Not only are they the worst administration ever in terms of competence, but they rival if not surpass the likes of the Harding administration for out-and-out corruption…..
Cheers,
March 7th, 2007 at 2:21 pmGiven the looks of Ms. Fraser , it’s kind of a meager promise, to do anything, for the rest of her life…
I guess now we know what Alberto Gonzales meant, when he said he was to busy to respond to congressional subpeonas and requests for information, what with so much corruption and crime rampant …
March 7th, 2007 at 2:24 pmI’m sure this case is on your desk, right Mr. Attorney General?
Sir?
Mr. Gonzales?
Has anyone seen Attorney General Gonzales?
Corruption is hard work…
March 7th, 2007 at 2:29 pmg.o.p + absolute power = corruption absolutely.
March 7th, 2007 at 2:30 pmIt’s simple math.
Scumbags!!!!
March 7th, 2007 at 2:32 pmGroan, groan, Ms. Doan - for your career is toast!
March 7th, 2007 at 2:34 pmThe accolytes of St. Ronnie (blessed be his name) came to Washington to “get the government off the backs of the people”. The “Contract on America(ns)” brought in lobbyists to write the actual legislation! (Oh, most wise is St. Gingrich!) In hindsight, I guess they were only looking to remove the oversight over their cronies. This robbery of the US Treasury makes Al Capone look like a 4th grade playground bully.
March 7th, 2007 at 2:38 pmThe more they are allowed to get away with, the more they will try to get away with… In the US, these people have been given permission to run amok, and so they do.
March 7th, 2007 at 2:49 pmlock her up and throw away the key
March 7th, 2007 at 2:53 pmLets kick down the door
March 7th, 2007 at 2:58 pmdrag them across the floor
down the hall and out the gate
place them on the sewers grate
for the garbage truck to take away
where the devil will make them pay
Crooks, liars, and thieves.
March 7th, 2007 at 2:59 pmINVESTIGATE her no-bid contract…
…PROSECUTE her for any infractions…
…INCARCERATE her if she’s guilty…
…and TAKE BACK our money from her…
March 7th, 2007 at 3:01 pmThe people will take back their power from these thugs now that the ugly truth about how insidious this corruption is within the GOP and all appointees of this fraudulent administration. The chicanery, deceit and criminal activities has reached the point of “no return” for these guys and their crusade is OVER. These thugs make the crime familes of the 1920’s involved in bootlegging and prostitution look like they belong on the Mickey Mouse Club. Bush & Co. have rewritten the book on crime and now americans will pay for their mismanagement of this country. It’s a very sad, dismal day in this country to now know that the law-breaking reaches the highest office in the land.
March 7th, 2007 at 3:12 pmThe email from Fraser to Doan sounds like a love letter for goodness sakes - the “blind faith” syndrome of complicity. Throw both of their slimey arsses in jail and have them do community service to pay the american people back of the money they’ve stolen from them.
March 7th, 2007 at 3:14 pmThis is just another great example of the arrogance that has marked this administration. They really think they can get away with anything, because most of the time, they do.
March 7th, 2007 at 3:15 pmYou can either spend all of your time and energy trying to hose down the flames of corruption from these pyros or you can IMPEACH.
Their collective goal is to rob us blind. Does anyone not get that at this point in time? Their policies are designed to get rid of the “people” part of “we the people…” It’s the people, you and me, who are the anathema of the GOP/Neocon or “Goper-Con”. So even if these policies were somehow attended to intelligently, we’d all be screwed. However they are so busy pulling all of the cookies out of the cookie jar, that they are utterly incompetent because they’re not actually trying to govern.
That’s why they can call Iraq a success. It’s a successful heist! Oh the war, that’s our problem, our blood, our reputation, etc. That’s not their problem.
March 7th, 2007 at 3:19 pmhmmmmm…. $20,000 no-bid contract for a 24-page report “promoting GSA’s use of minority- and women-owned businesses.â€
As a graphic designer with 25 years experience of designing and producing documents of this size and bigger, I know how these reports are constructed. They’re full of generic boiler-plate baloney text, with lousy stock photos of happy people at the computer, and plenty of jazzy pull quotes from allegedly happy and likely fictitious minority business owners. Even allowing an extremely generous 48 total working hours it would take to design this thing, that comes to over $416 an hour for the designer. Or rather, for Ms. Fraser, who would no doubt pay her abused freelance designer $20 an hour to produce this piece of drek, while pocketing the remaining $19,040 herself.
And if you’re wondering if this $20,000 includes printing, I doubt it. The GSA is going to print these things by the tens of thousands, and a full-color 24-pg piece is going to require more than $20,000 just for the printing, unless she’s having it printed at Billy Bob’s Quickee Printers ‘n’ Design Shoppe.
I want some of this action!
March 7th, 2007 at 3:22 pmNo word yet on whether Ms. Fraser demaded a coat made from dalmatian puppies.
March 7th, 2007 at 3:45 pmlet the corruption charges continue.
March 7th, 2007 at 3:51 pmor a Gary Oldman’s role in Bram Stoker’s Dracula.
March 7th, 2007 at 3:52 pmGood luck on the Hatch Act angle. While valid; how many times has Bush campaigned on military bases with uniformed service personnel as a back drop. In fact, that is the primary vehicle Bush uses for campaigning.
March 7th, 2007 at 4:30 pmIt’s time some people start going to JAIL for breaking laws, and then some others would think twice before they think they can get away with this crap.
March 7th, 2007 at 5:43 pmResigning to “spend more time with their family” is NOT JAIL TIME ! !
ahhhhhhhh ha ha ha ha ha ha
I am sitting here in my room alone just cackling my arse off!
Good one!
March 7th, 2007 at 6:26 pmWhat’s new? This is the most criminal administration in history. If you want to view a great blog, check out: http://www.plainnews.blogspot.com
March 7th, 2007 at 6:44 pmall crooks :)
ALL CRONIES
rah rah vote for me…… jimmy knows deans know….. k …. …..
the elf
got their hand in the cookie jar :)
unfortunately it’s OUR cookie jar to the tune of a whopping 50%
March 7th, 2007 at 6:48 pmTotal disregard for the law permeates the entire party. Oust every one of them from the top down. We would be better off without them.
March 7th, 2007 at 7:19 pmI think it was Lord Acton who said power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
business as usual for Righty.
March 7th, 2007 at 7:23 pmNico - A suggestion for Progressives and TP. Start touting the positive things Dems and Progs are FOR!! You might be able to transform the progressive reputation of “whiny” to “winning”. Nah…..stating what you are FOR might take more effort than you have to expend.
March 7th, 2007 at 8:49 pmComment by valiant venus
No credibility.
No standing.
March 7th, 2007 at 9:10 pmNico - A suggestion for Progressives and TP. Start touting the positive things Dems and Progs are FOR!! You might be able to transform the progressive reputation of “whiny†to “winningâ€. Nah…..stating what you are FOR might take more effort than you have to expend.
Comment by valiant venus — March 7, 2007 @ 8:49 pm
That’s ironic, because most americans only know what you Cons are against, hate, or ‘whine’ about. As for ‘winning’, you can’t even define that sufficiently to satisfy the country either.
But stating what you are FOR (with honesty) would never win you votes the way ‘wedge’ issues do - right mighty c*nt?
Oh, as for ‘whining’, you really should drop the whole ‘whining’ about minorities and especially gays. It makes you look bitter, hateful and foolish. Oh wait - that IS your platform. St*pid c*nt.
March 7th, 2007 at 11:30 pmIs there a Republican out there who isn’t a corrupt immoral criminal?
March 8th, 2007 at 9:33 amWow, these GOP crooks surely have some gall. Hell, they’re not even afraid of being caught. I guess they know that the Bush DOJ will go easy on them.
March 8th, 2007 at 1:29 pmLurita Doan and Edie Fraser–THE SHENANIGANS OF THE FABULOUS IGUANA SISTERS!!!!! Lurita IGUANA and Edie IGUANA, SEPARATED AT BIRTH, UNITE AGAIN TO CHEAT HONEST FOLK AND PRACTICE UNDERHANDED repugnant-repub rightwingnut crank fudge-pachyderm politics AT ITS WORST, TRYING TO PULL THE LEG OF THE HONOURABLE MADAME SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, MS. NANCY PELOSI!!!!! WHAT A FARCE, WHAT A RIDICULOUS AND PATHETIC SIGHT TO SEE THESE TWO MISERABLE LUDICROUS, EVIL, HARD-UP HARRIDANS TRY TO FOOL EVERYONE WHEN THESE FABULOUS IGUANA SISTERS ENDED UP ONLY FOOLING THEMSELVES–HA HA HA HA HA!!!!!
March 8th, 2007 at 8:52 pmAh, a couple little contracts, give the kid a break. After all, it was in the name of diversity…
absurd thought -
March 10th, 2007 at 7:33 amGod of the Universe says
democrat corruption OK
.
[…] activities are now being investigated as potential violations of the Hatch Act, which prohibits partisan campaign activities on federal […]
March 26th, 2007 at 2:44 pmAt the time that the GSA contract was in the making, I was the VP of communications for Edie Fraser’s company. It was to be my job to manage the production of the 24-page report in question. From my point of view and limited perspective, it seemed to be a run-of-the-mill project for which we would be adequately compensated. Yet, once we were advised that the contract was in violation of GSA policy, and received an order to stop working, we ceased any activity on this project. In fact, no money ever changed hands from GSA to the Public Affairs Group.
The news accounts of this issues paint Lurita Doan and Edie Fraser as crooks, an adjective that hardly describes the person I know. While my contact with Lurita was limited , I think I know Edie fairly well, having worked with her for a year.
She could be pig-headed, short-sighted, duplicitous and falsely cheerful on occassions, but I don’t believe that her alleged actions were any more egregious than countless others where people employ a network of contacts, acquaintances, friends and collegues to develop business and generate revenues.
If any wrongdoing is proven, it would completely surprise me that Edie was the initiator in this issue.
Has anyone ever considered that this entire incident started as a result of Lurita’s clash with her Inspector General? Has anyone considered that he leaked the dispute and associated documents to the Washington Post because he had his own axe to grind? Lurita pissed off a civil servant, who then used an old ploy in Washington politics …the art of the leak. Shame on them all for wasting taxpayers time and money with this issue.
March 26th, 2007 at 10:57 pm[…] Henry Waxman (D-CA) has discovered that in January, Doan asked “senior GSA officials to help ‘our candidates’ in the next elections through targeted public events.” Doan discussed with GSA officials “how to exclude […]
March 27th, 2007 at 12:56 pm>
Are you kidding? Do you really mean to defend sleaze and hackery by heaping scorn on the person who might have blown the whistle on it?
That doesn’t sound like a “seasoned 20-year veteran in the areas of journalism, corporate communications and public relations.” Or maybe it does.
March 27th, 2007 at 7:46 pmWhat a complete waste of time, freaking out about this issue! There is nothing here; can we please focus on important issue in this country.
March 29th, 2007 at 12:28 amTo Randall2: I wouldn’t characterize the Inspector General at GSA as a “whistleblower,” rather he was a person simply doing his job to the best of his ability. But, it remained, in my view, an internal policy matter within the GSA until he and Lurita took their disagreements on other issues public, namely her decision to cut the IG’s budget.
Upon discovery that the proposed contract was in violation of GSA policy, why was it necessary to divulge documents, letters, e-mails, etc to the Washington Post? If the contract was canceled, shouldn’t that have been the end of the issue? I think it should have been, but I believe (and I have no proof) that the IG’s office leaked info to the press that, for good or bad, has led to the uncovering of other cases of alleged malfeasance.
Lurita’s tenure as GSA administrator should and will likely be closely examined for her partisan political gambits. The GSA/PAG issue is a non-issue in my view, given that the contract was terminated under the law and no money changed hands in any transaction related to the contract.
Sleaze and hackery are par for the course in Washington, D.C., and I’ve certainly seen my share as a “seasoned” communications professional in this town.
Look, I got canned from the company partly because of how the press attempted to portray the firm, so I have no skin in the game to defend Lurita or Edie. But, nor am I a person with an axe to grind against people not yet proven guilty.
April 2nd, 2007 at 2:28 pm