The Justice Department is freaking out.

[Justice Is Comin]

This makes me positively giddy.

http://www.rawstory.com/showarticle.php?src=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.usnews.com%2Fusnews%2Fblogs%2Fnews_blog%2F070319%2Fparalysis_sets_in_as_doj_faces.htm




Update: The Justice Department now says the document dump will contain closer to 2000 documents.

"You have no idea," said one Justice official, "how bad it is here."

The fear that virtually any piece of communication will have to be turned over has paralyzed department officials' ability to communicate effectively and respond in unison to the crisis, as has the fact that senior Justice officials themselves say they still don't know the entire story about what happened that led to the crisis. So they are afraid that anything they put down on paper could be viewed as lies or obfuscation, when in fact, the story is changing daily as new documents are found and as the Office of Legal Counsel conducts its own internal probe into the matter.

The paralysis will affect the calculations that Gonzales must make this week as to whether he should stay or go. If Gonzales doesn't resign, there's little doubt that he will get few of his initiatives through for the rest of his tenure and that his people will spend months churning out documents at the behest of angry Democrats who will be investigating virtually anything that moves. But this could also give Gonzales an exit strategy, officials say. He could say that while neither he nor his subordinates did anything wrong, he has decided to resign for the greater good of the department and for justice at large.

The Bush administration is making its own calibrated calculations. A stubbornly loyal individual, the president has had trouble cutting his ties to his embattled cabinet secretaries. However, if he chooses to keep Gonzales on, he is at risk of seriously eroding political capital at a time when his administration is being criticized even by party loyalists.

But if he decides to let him go, then who can fill Gonzales's place? For one thing, who would want the job? And who could Bush find that could get Senate confirmation, since Democrats now run the show? It would have to be a seasoned insider, a consummate veteran or an elder statesman who has bipartisan respect and acceptance and a squeaky-clean record.


Then says problem is, nobody comes to mind. HA HA HA

[halobeam]

1. I am chomping at the bit right now LOL

[whoneedstickets]

2. What happens when an agency full of careerist lawyers....

...starts scrambling to cover their asses?

CHAOS!

[lovuian]

3. Rofl

:rofl:

[MichiganVote]

4. The pretzel president and his made up puppets strike again

Well done *. Take a bow.

[napi21]

5. WHAT??????

It would have to be a seasoned insider, a consummate veteran or an elder statesman who has bipartisan respect and acceptance and a squeaky-clean record.

Do you know any Pubs like that??????

[smoogatz]

9. James Baker III.

That scary enough for you? But Bush hates him, and will never go for it.

[Canuckistanian]

21. But, other that him - who have they got?

A bunch of pimply-faced sycophants and washed-up old-timers trying to reclaim the 'glory-days' of Bush the Smarter and Ray-Gun.

Some stable.

[napi21]

22. He's also WAY TOO OLD to want to do the job of an AG!

If Baker wanted to get back into politics every day, he's be a GREAT replacement for Condi! HE could actually do the job!

[kath]

15. yeah- a Repug with a squeaky-clean record?!?!? On what friggin'

planet would anyone think we could possibly find such a creature??

[Rydz777]

6. The gift

The Democratic victory in November 2006 is the gift that keeps on giving. They are just beginning to drain the cesspool.

[Justice Is Comin]

7. They never thought they would lose

the congress in a million years. They thought the felonies were free and fail safe for as long as they wanted.

But whoops. If we have ten hearings a day until the election, we still won't have drained this swamp.

But I have a feeling a lot of republics will have a change of lifestyle....the ones who don't go to prison will be in therapy.

[antonialee839]

19. And I'd be willing to bet part of the reason

Rove was so confident the repukes wouldn't lose was his foolproof plan to sick the U.S. attorneys
on democrats in critical voting areas before the election. Looks like something may finally bite
this piece of filth in the ass. Oh the irony.

[ProgressiveFool]

25. Wow, I actually felt sorry for that "something"

A mouthful of Rove's filthy ass? :puke:

[Hand]

20. Roger that!

Better start building some BIG rehab facilities. :rofl: :evilgrin:

[sam sarrha]

8. 9 got fired.... the rest did what they were told to do.. we will tell them to go to jail, dont pass

Go

[kath]

17. Yes - the OTHER 84 or 85 are *definitely* in need of some intensive investigation.

Mind-bogglingly slimy deeds were likely done in order for them to keep their jobs.

[Ninja Jordan]

10. Sounds like it will be Chertoff, who is somewhat digestible.

He's never struck me as overly-partisan.

[alcibiades_mystery]

12. ROFL

Chertoff is Mr. Replacement fuck-up. Hilarious.

[MN ChimpH8R]

18. I dunno. Skeletor has a lot of baggage

fom Katrina and the aborted Dubai ports deal.

[Bucky]

23. While a good compromise candidate, I doubt Chertoff would take it

Who wants to run thru a Judiciary Committee gauntlet right now? Not an ass coverer like Chertoff. I think Bush may fall into his old pattern of appointing a Texas buddy. Someone like Rob Mosbacher (son of Poppy's Sec'y of Commerce Robert Mosbacher and something of a new generation Jim Baker). He might even play his trump card and appoint a senator--always a sure-fire walk-thru. I can see Jim DeMint, John Cornyn, or even Judd Gregg if he thinks he's got too many southrons in the cabinet. No wait, New Hampshire's got a Democratic governor, so Gregg's out.

[seafan]

11. Patrick Fitzgerald would be a fine Attorney General. Finish cleaning out this rats' nest.

Replace the fired US Attorneys back into their former positions immediately and allow them to continue their cases unimpeded.

That would be a good start.

[Alizaryn]

13. Does anyone know how long it will be until they are

public?

[mikelgb]

14. Carol Lam for Atty General!

[Bucky]

24. But first we'll have to use all that frozen over ice from Hell to fight global warming.

I applaud your sense of poetic justice, if not you scheme's plausibility.

[Flying Dream Blues]

16. I think he might have found just the job for his

"work wife", Harriet Miers.
:puke: