Gonzales & Guam (The Nation)

[marmar]

BLOG | Posted 03/21/2007 @ 10:10am
Gonzales & Guam
Ari Berman


Last February, The Nation published an article of mine, "Can Justice Be Trusted?" raising questions about whether the White House and the Justice Department replaced the US Attorney in Guam, Fred Black, because of an investigation he had opened into Jack Abramoff's lobbying activities on the island in 2002. This story is worth revisiting in light of the Bush Administration's firing of eight top US prosecutors.

Fred Black was the acting US Attorney in Guam between 1991 and 2003. In November 2002, Black began investigating a contract between Abramoff and Guam's highest court and asked for DOJ's assistance. Since Black's communication happened to raise serious questions about the integrity of a high-level federal official who was being renominated to his post, Justice passed the information on to then-White House counsel Alberto Gonzales.

A grand jury, convened by Black, subpoenaed the Abramoff contract on November 18, 2002. The next day the Bush Administration announced that Black would be replaced as US Attorney and demoted him to Assistant US Attorney, after twelve years on the job. His replacement, Leonardo Rapadas, had close ties to the Guam Republican Party, including the support of Abramoff and another lobbyist with access to Karl Rove.

A subsequent Justice Department Inspector General report found that none other than Kyle Sampson, Gonzales's disgraced chief of staff who resigned on March 13, handled Black's dismissal. ....(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.thenation.com/blogs/notion?bid=15

[Botany]

1. Drip Drip Drip

[Ilsa]

2. Kick for Obstruction of Justice. Let's hope

we can find proof of Rove, et al intervening and working with Sampson to make this happen.