Open Letter to Patrick Fitzgerald - Fmr WH Counsel John W. Dean

http://writ.news.findlaw.com/dean/20051118.html

An Open Letter To Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald From Former White House Counsel John W. Dean

By JOHN W. DEAN


November 18, 2005
The Honorable Patrick J. Fitzgerald
Special Counsel
Bond Federal Building
1400 New York Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20530

Dear Special Counsel Fitzgerald:

Excuse my being so presumptuous as to send you this open letter, but the latest revelation of the testimony, before the grand jury, by Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward has raised some fundamental questions for me.

<snip>

In light of your broad powers, the limits and narrow focus of your investigation are surprising. On October 28 of this year, your office released a press statement in which you stated that "A major focus of the grand jury investigation was to determine which government officials had disclosed to the media prior to July 14, 2003, information concerning Valerie Wilson's CIA affiliation, and the nature, timing, extent, and purpose of such disclosures, as well as whether any official made such a disclosure knowing that Valerie Wilson's employment by the CIA was classified information."

If, indeed, that is the major focus of your investigation, then your investigation is strikingly limited, given your plenary powers. To be a bit more blunt, in historical context, it is certainly less vigorous an investigation than those of your predecessors who have served as special counsel -- men appointed to undertake sensitive high-level investigations when the Attorney General of the United States had a conflict of interest. (Here, it was, of course, the conflict of Attorney General John Ashcroft that led to the chain of events that resulted in your appointment.)


The Teapot Dome Precedent

<snip>

Several years ago, I had an opportunity to spend several weeks at the National Archives going through the files of Special Counsels Roberts and Pomerene. I urge you to send a member of your staff to do the same, for they are highly revealing as to the aggressive -- yet appropriate -- nature of their investigation and actions.

What you will find is that Roberts and Pomerene, before figuring out exactly who was to blame and going after them, first sought to protect the interest of the United States by ending the further dissipation of the nation's oil reserves to Doheny and Sinclair, and seek restitution.

In brief, they started by taking protective civil measures. Only with that accomplished did they move on to criminal prosecutions. Why have you not done the same?

<snip>

The Watergate Precedent

Even more troubling, from an historical point of view, is the fact that the narrowness of your investigation, which apparently is focusing on the Intelligence Identities Protection Act (making it a crime to uncover the covert status of a CIA agent), plays right into the hands of perpetrators in the Administration.

Indeed, this is exactly the plan that was employed during Watergate by those who sought to conceal the Nixon Administration's crimes, and keep criminals in office.

The plan was to keep the investigation focused on the break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters -- and away from the atmosphere in which such an action was undertaken. Toward this end, I was directed by superiors to get the Department of Justice to keep its focus on the break-in, and nothing else.

<snip>

When Archibald Cox was appointed special counsel -- under pressure from the U.S. Senate as a condition to confirm Attorney General Elliot Richardson -- he immediately recognized what had occurred. While no Department of Justice lawyer was found to have engaged in the cover up, their timidity had facilitated it. Cox was fired because he refused to be intimidated. His firing became a badge of honor for all those who do the right thing, regardless of the consequences.

<snip>

While I have no reason to believe you are easily intimidated, all I can say is that your investigation, thus far, is falling precisely within the narrow confines -- the formula procedure -- that was relied upon in the first phase of the Watergate cover-up by the Nixon administration.

So narrow was your investigation that it appears that you failed to learn that Bob Woodward had been told of Valerie Wilson's CIA post until after you had indicted Scooter Libby. While I have no doubt you know your way around the Southern District of New York, and the Northern District of Illinois, Washington DC is a very different place.

With all due respect, Mr. Fitzgerald, I believe you are being had. I believe that you were selected with the expectation that you would conduct the narrowest of investigations, and it seems you have done just that.


The leak of Valerie Wilson's status did not occur in a vacuum. Republicans in Congress do not want to know what truly happened. You are the last, best hope of the American people in this regard.

<snip>

Full text:

http://writ.news.findlaw.com/dean/20051118.html

this letter needed to be written, and I'm very pleased that J.W. Dean took the initiative and published it. He doesn't get the attention he deserves for calling this white house worse than WaterGate in the second year of this administration.

He's been on Keith Oberman's the past couple of nights in response to the outing of Woodward's involvment in the Plame Gate and has put forward important questions, but this letter is definitively on point and timely.

I hope Fitzgerald reads it and takes it to heart.

I don't know if it will be helpful to write letters to Fitzgerald or not, i'm simply unclear if that is a route that we c/should be embarking upon as concerned citizens. I'm thinking it is, and how can it hurt? Be interesting to see what others think of it.

Time is of the essence, and just taking into account that the second rise of Rove's empowerment is disconcerting (among others) when at the very least it's clear he (and others) should have been prosecuted by now.

I've heard him on TH shows trying to make these points.

"Now, with a Republican-controlled Congress and a Republican President, you (a Republican appointee) are the last bulwark of protection for the American people. We must hope you will keep faith with them."


That says it all.

Excellent.......thanks for posting this

:bounce:

be a stand up guy. He did just indict Black. I hope he is just being cautious, because KKKarl can swift boat just about anyone.

I've been paying pretty close attention, but this name escapes me.

As to your point hopes dashed, yes mine too. and there is the new Time article :

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1132544,00.html

Woodward expressed some surprise that Fitzgerald hadn't contacted him earlier in the probe, but had high praise for the prosecutor whose investigation he has openly criticized on television. During his time with the prosecutor, Woodward said, he found Fitzgerald "incredibly sensitive to what we do. He didn't infringe on my other reporting, which frankly surprised me. He said 'This is what I need, I don't need any more.'"


This comment totally disappoints me.

Hollinger; a newspaper conglomerate. He used the company like a piggy bank for his friends and him.
http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000006&sid=aoRR7KIBbKNM&refer=home here's an update on his scummy actions. This doesn't show his cast of felonious characters, but you can google him.

Interesting times, indeed.

...degree of trust in Dean's assessment. A bit disappointing to read. This is the part that sums it up for me.

With all due respect, Mr. Fitzgerald, I believe you are being had. I believe that you were selected with the expectation that you would conduct the narrowest of investigations, and it seems you have done just that.

Go to firedoglake and scroll down a few stories to "Gimme a Break"--

"...Now I have tremendous respect for John Dean, but let's just say that his politickin' skills might not always be as polished as his legal ones.

Fitzgerald is trying to gracefully waltz through landmines. The moment any of the foaming lunacy of Joe DeGenova and his fingernails-on-a-chalkboard wife Victoria Toensing threaten to gain traction in the media and turn public opinion against him, there will be all manner of obstruction thrown in his way. Being quite humble, quiet and crafty has served him well, and what Dean is suggesting has the potential to completely derail his efforts to land the Great White Cheney. Dean's offstage urging of him into the role of Ahab risks dooming him to Ahab's watery fate.

I think these kind of suggestions are better laid at the feet of members of Congress. Fitzgerald has his hands quite full at the moment, and I see no reason to believe that he is not handling all the players with considerable skill as he maneuvers them into unleashing all their worst impulses on one another unfettered by any restraint. ...

http://firedoglake.blogspot.com/

Jane and ReddHedd write a terrific blog, chockful of insight on the CIA leak case. Great discussions there too.

...political savvy nor legal knowledge to sort this out or even begin to argue it intelligently. What I can say is that I sincerely hope Jane Hamsher is right, still, my gut says Dean's letter is on the mark.

that suggests what Dean is urging Fitzgerald to deal with really needs to be done by Congress.

In effect, it's a call to action - and this is where We the People can have a role, just as we do with most other policy issues.

We call on our Representatives and Senators to commence holding independent congressional hearings ASAP.

Not a Cover Up Commission, like the 9/11 debacle but an independent investigation committee to hold public hearings.

oh yeah... isn't that what John Conyers was trying to push for sometime last summer or fall?

hmmm.. let's go to afterdowningstreet.org and see if we can discover if any action has commenced and/or gained some ground on this...

http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/?q=node/5

Oh yeah, that's right. It was the call for a Resolution of Inquiry on the Downing Street Memos which illustrated how the Blair and Bush administration were fixing the facts to fit the rationalization to invade Iraq and was being orchestrated almost year before the invasion.

and even though this inquiry really only goes to the so called Phase II that the Democratic Senators was forced to shut down the Senate floor a few weeks ago - (right after Fitzgerald inndicted Scooter Libby for lying and obstruction of justice)no action has gone forward.

So that's one initiative we can't let slide by when they back from recess after thanksgiving. We need to pressure that inquiry to go forward but with a push for a joint house or independent investigation (conducted in public hearings of course)when they return i think.

Congress members and Senators are returning home to meet with Constituents. This is an important time to contact and or meet with them in our districts.

In summary, we can take Dean's important concerns and lay them at the feet of our Senators and Representatives - pushing for them to investigate all these matters.