The Scandal Sheet

[raysr]

by Peter Dizikes. Did anyone see this on Salon Premium? I have it and could paste it but it's pretty long. How long a story is allowed?1. Memogate: The Senate Computer Theft The scandal: From 2001 to 2003, Republican staffers on the Senate Judiciary Committee illicitly accessed nearly 5,000 computer files containing confidential Democratic strategy memos about President Bush's judicial nominees. The GOP used the memos to shape their own plans and leaked some to the media. The problem: The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act states it is illegal to obtain confidential information from a government computer. The outcome: Unresolved. The Justice Department has assigned a prosecutor to the case. The staff member at the heart of the matter, Manuel Miranda, has attempted to brazen it out, filing suit in September 2004 against the DOJ to end the investigation. "A grand jury will indict a ham sandwich," Miranda complained. Some jokes just write themselves. 2. Doctor Detroit: The DOJ's Bungled Terrorism Case The scandal: The Department of Justice completely botched the nation's first post-9/11 terrorism trial, as seen when the convictions of three Detroit men allegedly linked to al-Qaida were overturned in September 2004. Former Attorney General John Ashcroft had claimed their June 2003 sentencing sent "a clear message" that the government would "detect, disrupt and dismantle the activities of terrorist cells." The problem: The DOJ's lead prosecutor in the case, Richard Convertino, withheld key information from the defense and distorted supposed pieces of evidence -- like a Las Vegas vacation video purported to be a surveillance tape. But that's not the half of it. Convertino says he was unfairly scapegoated because he testified before the Senate, against DOJ wishes, about terrorist financing. Justice's reconsideration of the case began soon thereafter. Convertino has since sued the DOJ, which has also placed him under investigation. The outcome: Let's see: Overturned convictions, lawsuits and feuding about a Kafkaesque case. Nobody looks good here. -much more-

[JoMama49]

1. If it's a copyrighted article, you are only allowed to post

4 paragraphs of it here.

[Liberty Belle]

2. Copyright law prohibits posting entire articles without permission.

You can post up to four paragraphs of a long article with a link to the full text. For short articles of just a few paragraphs, you'd be limited to less.

[raysr]

3. It's pretty telling.

It got e-mailed to me in it's entireity. All the Bush scandals.Intel Inside ... The White House The scandal: In early 2001, chief White House political strategist Karl Rove held meetings with numerous companies while maintaining six-figure holdings of their stock -- including Intel, whose executives were seeking government approval of a merger. "Washington hadn't seen a clearer example of a conflict of interest in years," wrote Paul Glastris in the Washington Monthly. The problem: The Code of Federal Regulations says government employees should not participate in matters in which they have a personal financial interest. The outcome: Then White House counsel Alberto Gonzales, spurning precedent, did not refer the case to the Justice Department.

[Liberty Belle]

6. I think that article originated at www.salon.com.

I saw an excerpt elsewhere today that attributed it to salon.

[aquart]

4. They really are the scum party.

Please tell me why we never had the brains to put disinformation on our computers? Is it time for the Democrats to have a code book?

[raysr]

5. I'm not so

sure anymore that they Dems don't let this shit happen.

[aquart]

7. Does Charlie Brown LET Lucy take away the football?