Treasongate: Say "Ashcroft should recuse himself" - not "special counsel"

[scottxyz]

"Ashcroft should recuse himself" has traction.

"Independent counsel" can be too easily spun as payback. For example: "Surprise, surprise, they are calling for a special counsel. My goodness," said House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A28612-2003Oct1.html

Makes me think the whole Monica thing was some kind of "pre-emptive payback."

[proud patriot]

1. Sounds like something to contemplate

hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

[BQueen]

2. But their definition of recuse probably does not include

taking it completely outside the DOJ and Asscrack's purview. Remember Jeb "recused himself" in Fla 2000, but still had all his underlings/minions handle it the same way he would have. I can't recall the exact issue, but it seems to me I've heard of Asscrack "recusing" on something else, but still keeping the case in-house.

Investigation of your boss' boss is still a conflict of interest, imo. Not that I don't think there are still some honest career attorneys in the DOJ, but I wouldn't want to be the one to have to deal with the backlash of doing that job in the current DOJ atmosphere.

What they did to the DOJ ethics attorney who told them Lindh should not be interrogated without the counsel his dad hired is typical, I'm sure. A New Yorker article (which I lent to my sister so I'm not sure when it was published - I want to say summer-fall of '02) detailed how they ignored her warnings, deleted memos and e-mails from the file (set up to look like she didn't do her job), gave her a scathing perfomance review (after uniformly glowing ones) including the warning that it would only get worse if she stayed, and, when she found work elsewhere, got her fired by telling her new employer that she was under an unspecified criminal investigation.

So, while I understand the political mileage DeLay, etc. will try to make out of the "payback" angle, I don't think anyone should back off on use of the phrase "independent investigation." Too much wiggle room.

I don't know anything about the career DOJ attorney (Dion) they have in charge of it now, though. But if Asscrack declines to appoint a special prosecutor, I wonder if an action in mandamus would be possible? (Generally, it's not used much, because it's a tough standard to meet, but it's a way to force public officials to do their job. It's even more difficult where the act you want them to perform is discretionary, as this one is.) Problem is, it would probably go to the DC Circuit Court, which we all know and despise, and even if they surprised us all, he'd probably still get to name the prosecutor.

[BQueen]

3. P.S. Tom Delay saying "My goodness" - how ironic

I don't think the man HAS any goodness to claim as his own...

[thebigidea]

4. he's got a touch of the Rummy

"My goodness!"

[HFishbine]

5. "pre-emptive payback"

Like when my dad would give me pre-emptive spankings?

[proud patriot]

6. Well I have contemplated this

I think "Recuse" sounds more partisan than "Independent"