Lurita ‘Cookies On The Table’ Doan Forced To Resign As Head Of GSA
Lurita ‘Cookies On The Table’ Doan Forced To Resign As Head Of GSA
For the past couple of years, General Services Administration (GSA) chief Lurita Doan has been dogged by constant criticisms over her unethical politicization of the federal agency. Last May, the White House Office of Special Counsel found that she had violated the Hatch Act. In June, both the Special Counsel and House Oversight Committee chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA) called on Doan to resign.
Belatedly, the White House has decided to take action. Officials summoned Doan to a meeting yesterday afternoon, at which she was asked to resign. From the e-mail she sent to GSA employees yesterday, in which she said she was privileged to serve such a “great President”:
The past twenty-two months have been filled with accomplishments: together, we have regained our clean audit opinion, restored fiscal discipline, re-tooled our ability to respond to emergencies, rekindled entrepreneurial energies, reduced bureaucratic barriers to small companies to get a GSA Schedule, ignited a building boom at our nation’s ports of entries, boldly led the nation in an aggressive telework initiative, and improved employee morale so that we were selected as one of the best places to work in the Federal government.
Thanks to Doan, the past 22 months have been filled with more scandal than “accomplishments.” Doan first gained notoriety for using a January 2007 teleconference to “ask senior GSA officials to help ‘our candidates’ in the next elections.”
Doan tried to make herself into a martyr, telling GovExec yesterday, “I would rather get fired for something I believe in, and a cause I was willing to fight for, rather than to believe in nothing worth being fired for.” It’s unclear what she was fighting for, other than electing Republicans and carrying out questionable battles with GSA’s inspector general (IG), who was cleared of any wrongdoing. (Doan once referred to IG employees as “terrorists.”)
As a final treat, here’s a ThinkProgress video highlighting Doan’s testimony to Congress:
Lurita Doan: truly the wind beneath our wings.
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That’s the way the cookie crumbles…
April 30th, 2008 at 11:37 amGSA?
Girl Scouts of America? Nooooooooo!!!
April 30th, 2008 at 11:43 amShe also tried to give her PR friend a $20,000 no-bid contract.
This is a pictire of the friend who was going to get that contract.
April 30th, 2008 at 11:44 amGay Straight Alliance?
April 30th, 2008 at 11:44 amIt’s about time. I wonder what happened that forced them to take action. This could use a little investigation.
April 30th, 2008 at 11:45 amI believe it is the General Service Administration?
April 30th, 2008 at 11:46 amBut I don’t recall, I meant,; I don’t know. I can’t remember.
She left her fingerprints on the water glass during Waxman’s hearings.
Yeah, that’s the story…
April 30th, 2008 at 11:49 amEvents that finally precipitated this action need further investigation - we have learned over the years that these things don’t happen in isolation.
April 30th, 2008 at 11:49 amShe should have been fired long ago, but that said, I look for her to land a cushy lobbying job soon.
No, she really believed that she had done nothing wrong. She believes that it is right to use the GSA to steer contracts to a friend even though the agency IG tries to educate her. She believes that she should be able to support her president by using the agency for political purposes. You have to understand that this is the Republican mindset. This is why they did not learn from Watergate. This is why their administrations have always succeeded in helping corporate interests and the wealthy. This is why we see the attempt to politicize government agencies and create a one party state. They believe that they are a privileged people not bound by the normal rules that bind the rest of us. They do not believe in democracy. They believe in an aristocracy. You will not deter the Republican attempt to create a system based upon cronyism and privilege for a few until you put them down for once and all. The people believe that this is just normal politics because there are no serious consequences for these actions. Nixon was given a break, Iran Contra did not bring disgrace or consequences and we have seen what has happened during this administration. The failure of the Democrats to lead the charge to bring accountability to this administration merely validates their tactics in the minds of the Republicans and diminishes the actions as trivial politics in the minds of the people.
April 30th, 2008 at 11:49 amThere should be stiffer penalties for violating the Hatch Act.
April 30th, 2008 at 11:50 amAnd the SMITH-MUNDT ACT needs to be broadened to draw the lines between government and media. Once and for all.
To Admin:
Amanda, not to complain or anything, but a h/t to http://thinkprogress.org/ 2008/ 04/ 30/ thinkfast-april-30-2008/ #comment-4936986 would have been nice.
There is some amazing stuff in your ThinkFast every day. But the comments don’t get the “airtime” that your main posts do.
Just sayin’.
April 30th, 2008 at 12:02 pmhow come my comments aren’t making it through?
April 30th, 2008 at 12:02 pmFrom Bush: Chief LuRita cheater maid where will I be without you give us a wink and make me think of you
April 30th, 2008 at 12:04 pmaaagh., Reagan. Iran Contra. comments…not.. Working!
April 30th, 2008 at 12:04 pmAnother Bush cultist goes down. Good riddance.
April 30th, 2008 at 12:06 pm#9 JMOHR Says:
The failure of the Democrats to lead the charge to bring accountability to this administration merely validates their tactics in the minds of the Republicans and diminishes the actions as trivial politics in the minds of the people.
I couldn’t agree more. Iran Contra, I believe was the beginning of the end to accountability. The fact that Reagan and Bush got off scott-free with not even a slap on the wrist. Since that time it has all been downhill.
The average person doesn’t see this as a big deal. Not with all of the other crimes being committed by this administration on a daily basis. That is the truly tragic part. Great Post JMOHR!!
April 30th, 2008 at 12:07 pmIs there any department of our government the Bush administration HASN’T turned into a partisan arm of the Republican Party?
Heckava job Lurita….
April 30th, 2008 at 12:10 pmI always preferred to think of her as “Fingerprints” Doan after her whispered remark to her adviser as the 1st GSA hearing went on break- should she be taking her water glass with her because there were fingerprints on it & someone might get a hold of it… WTF, Lurita, didn’t they print you when they hired you, like all Fed employees?
Adios, Doan. You won’t be missed.
April 30th, 2008 at 12:13 pmA martyr????
Oh, puh-lease! Just …freakin’ gag me. Blech.
April 30th, 2008 at 12:23 pmLurida.
April 30th, 2008 at 12:31 pmAnd Yet… Says:
I always preferred to think of her as “Fingerprints” Doan after her whispered remark to her adviser as the 1st GSA hearing went on break- should she be taking her water glass with her because there were fingerprints on it & someone might get a hold of it… WTF, Lurita, didn’t they print you when they hired you, like all Fed employees?
April 30th, 2008 at 12:13 pm
_____
What’s her problem? Fingerprints aren’t private information, right?
April 30th, 2008 at 12:45 pmShe cannot help being one of dubya`s boot licking neocon whore$!!!!!!!!
April 30th, 2008 at 12:54 pmWhat took so long? Were her cookies that good?
April 30th, 2008 at 12:57 pmThis incredibly ignorant woman held on for a long time.
April 30th, 2008 at 1:18 pmDid Lurita “I Doan Remember” get caught with her hands on the cookie table???
April 30th, 2008 at 1:20 pmThe ONLY question I have is why it took the WH this long to get rid of her?
April 30th, 2008 at 1:22 pmDoan tried to make herself into a martyr, telling GovExec yesterday, “I would rather get fired for something I believe in, and a cause I was willing to fight for, rather than to believe in nothing worth being fired for.”
Yeah
The truth and the law and ethics be damned …………….
What a typically stupid and useless Chimpy crony.
April 30th, 2008 at 1:25 pmshe said she was privileged to serve such a “great President”:
You Serve the PEOPLE not just the PRESIDENT, and he is the WORST PRESIDENT and certainly not great.
April 30th, 2008 at 1:26 pm(moan, groan) don’t let the door hit you in the ass on the way out, Madame Doan! You’re nothing but a reichwing sycophant and liar. Good riddance to another of Bush’s bad rubbish.
April 30th, 2008 at 1:51 pmJMOHR Says he did a most excellent post on this, and yes you did too.
April 30th, 2008 at 2:29 pmDoan and Gonzo should go into business together. They could coach potential felons to dissemble. “Memory Inc”? “Bogus Testimony Ltd”? “LieCo”?
April 30th, 2008 at 2:43 pmThe “liberal MSM” will give this story all of 16 seconds airtime.
Faux News… 6 seconds, max.
April 30th, 2008 at 3:13 pm