Late News!!Bush's Old Skull and Bones Bro to Oversee Plame CIA Leak

[Imagevision]

Leak Investigation: An Oversight Issue?
With Attorney General Alberto Gonzales recused, department officials say they are still trying to resolve whom Fitzgerald will now report to.

Associate Attorney General Robert McCallum is "likely" to be named as acting deputy A.G., a DOJ official who asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the matter tells NEWSWEEK. But McCallum may be seen as having his own conflicts: he is an old friend of President Bush's and a member of his Skull and Bones class at Yale.

One question: how much authority Comey's successor will have over Fitzgerald. When Comey appointed Fitzgerald in 2003, the deputy granted him extraordinary powers to act however he saw fit—but noted he still had the right to revoke Fitzgerald's authority.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/index.php?id=3593

kick this around!

[splat@14]

1. Ties to big tobacco, Cheney energy task "farce" investigation,

This guy fits the mold!


http://www.commondreams.org/news2005/0608-27.htm


IG Asked to Investigate DOJ Tobacco Reversal

WASHINGTON - June 8 - Reps. Waxman and Meehan asked the Justice Department Inspector General to investigate whether improper political interference contributed to the Department's surprise decision to slash its request for relief by over 90% in the RICO litigation against the tobacco industry. They also asked the IG to investigate the role played by Associate Attorney General Robert McCallum, a former tobacco industry lawyer, in the decision. The text of the letter to the IG follows:

June 8, 2005

The Honorable Glenn A. Fine

Inspector General

US Department of Justice

Office of the Inspector General

950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Suite 4322

Washington, DC 20530-0001

Dear Mr. Fine:

We request that the Office of the Inspector General investigate whether improper political interference led to yesterday's sudden reversal by the Department of Justice in the landmark tobacco case in U.S. District Court. Despite the testimony of a key government witness and leading national expert that $130 billion is necessary to fund smoking cessation programs, the Justice Department, without explanation, asked the Court for only $10 billion.

We also ask you to investigate the role of Associate Attorney General Robert D. McCallum, Jr., a former tobacco industry lawyer, in this surprising reversal.

During the trial, a key government witness was Dr. Michael C. Fiore, who is considered the leading expert in the United States on smoking cessation. At the request of former Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy G. Thompson, Dr. Fiore recently led the Subcommittee on Cessation of the Interagency Committee on Smoking and Health. This subcommittee included experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Cancer Institute, the American Cancer Society, the American Medical Association, the American Association of Health Plans, state health departments, and leading research institutions.<1>