Don't be surprised if Gonzalez Fires Fitzgeralg

Push come to shove Nixon had the special prosecutor fired in Watergate so don't be surprised when they start the smear campaign on Fitzgerald once the heat gets turned up!

The organized mob in the White House screwed with the wrong people.

It's not just the White House / GOP hubris that has messed them up; they just didn't think through this clearly.

The White House mob didn't factor in the ramifications of outing and endangering not just one member of the CIA, but the whole system in which many risk their lives. These agents are professionals when it comes to manipulation. Agents who are masters of thwarting governments; masters of getting the goods on people, places and things. My bet is the White House is shitting bricks, and all the BS they are throwing out is just that - BS.

My bet is on the pissed off CIA agents.

...investigation of the outing of Plame and her network, that was the exact moment that the NeoCons knew they were toast. They are on a long downhill slide, and they know it.

another way to remove the problem in the White House.

if not moreso, now.

At one time the American people seemed capable of smelling a rat, but these days I know longer have any expectation that such a brazen move would even raise a fuss.

...would not carry out a direct command from the president and then hired on another attorney general who carried out the order. Gonzales won't hesitate to do whatever Bush tells him which will make Bush look powerful.

Richardson refused and resigned, William Ruckelshaus also refused and resigned and the Robert Bork - that Bork - who was Solicitor General did the dirty deed.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elliot_Richardson

....never realized that Robert Bork was the bastard that ultimately did the dirty deed. How well these things get hidden!

He'll have Robert Bork do it. :evilgrin:

Why should it work for bush?

and ignorant at the same time, I think.

...new marching orders.

The similarities are there, that's for sure. But they're similarities to Fisk not Watergate. Fisk, the Whitewater investigator who was to clear Clinton, was fired by Judges (the odious three). This time someone will have to step up to the plate and it has to be Gonzales. Nobody else can handle it. Fitzgerald can indict soon and get away with it. I dare them to fire him after he's done that. I think he'll surprise us. I'm thinking that Judi Miller might even be a decoy, smoke screen while Fitzgerald does some other digging. This guys tough and he'll know what to do. Indict early!

"LEAK"! :D

indict the President. :evilgrin:

Could it be he thinks that he might be indicted. Oh, the horror...

:evilgrin::rofl::evilgrin:

you alot--yaaawwnnn... Dems seem to be blowing it! it seems like all we have is Conyers!

The nightmares haven't even begun yet and this will be the least of them. There's a reason that people like McCain don't dare speak against this administration. You can see the fear in his eyes when he's questioned about the leaks and the Iraq war. He knows what's coming. Most of us have yet to wake up.

I think that's why he does a lot of ass kissing. I've always wondered why about that. I think that's why too. Fear. He doesn't want to be in Bush's wrath.

coming, then he should speak up in order to at least try to circumvent it.

He won't.

I've never had any faith in John McCain. He may have talked the talk for a long time, but he never walked the walk.

Nobody seems to remember McCain's part in the S&L scandals in the 1980s.

I wish someone in a high place would read a little history and realize that such thugs count on fear immobilizing those with good intentions. They are really bullys and cowards who fall apart when faced with some courage. I'm hopeful cause they picked the wrong guys when they picked fights with the likes of Joseph Wilson or Richard Clarke. I suspect that the CIA is full of people with more courage than what John McCain is showing.

once that happened. If Bush really made that move people could start legitimately talking impeachment, because it would mean Bush and/or Cheney were implicated.

to be said about Bush - now there has to be a crime committed and that crime must have happened on a rainy tuesday night between the hours of 5:00pm - 11:0pm

he would be impeached for recreating the "Saturday Night Massacre", I'm saying that Bush would let Rove go before he took such an action. Bush would only take such a move to protect his own ass.

possibly think that Wilson smear campaign went on without Bush & Cheney aware of it???

Wilson tld the tale of Bush fixing the policies --way back then! but no-ooo no-ne paid any attention to it until now!!!!!

follow suit as we lead up to October and the heat rises with Bush & Cheney!

...seems the media has been given different marching orders by their corporate owners.

...he specifically mentioned that Fitzgerald was "excellent".

At least Rush is on the record--on his own show--praising Fitzgerald.

If Rush and ilk begin attacking Fitzgerald--at least it will be blatantly obvious that Rush is being a partisan, biased piece of lying trash.

I'm just saying that if you see Bush firing the special prosecutor it mean that HE thinks investigation is leading to him. Remember, Nixon didn't fire Cox for investigating Watergate, he fired him because he subpoenaed the tapes, and Nixon knew that once the tapes were out he was toast.

If he claims he was out of the loop, it would be plausible to me. Not beyond him, just above him.

--IMM

--IMM

Wouldn't this send out a bad sign? This is already getting publicity and if they fire Fitzgerald they'll have to have some REALLY good excuse as to why. Then it'll show they're guilty and now they're trying to prove Rove is "innocent" (heh).

links to support this?

:-(

Except I expected it this weekend.

of Freedom - just like he did Tenet when Tenet asked for an investigation....

administration has the same weakness as the Nixon administration did. It's called hubris:
****************
hybrs) also hy·bris (h-)
n.
Overbearing pride or presumption; arrogance: “There is no safety in unlimited technological hubris” (McGeorge Bundy).
*****************
In their overbearing pride or presumption they forget that there is danger in going to far. These people, contrary to any rumors you may have heard, are not very smart. They are basically thugs.

There are two ways to get on in life. Intelligence or being a thug, someone for which no act is too low not to stoop to, no lie to ridiculous or dirty not to tell.

All I can do is compare them to Gotti or Capone. In the end, it got 'em. And it wasn't so much their crimes (although you had to justify incarceration someway), it was their arrogance, their thumbing their noses at all authority and what could conceivably be perceived as the very basic rules we have to live by and still maintain a civilized society. There isn't a moral tenet that these clowns haven't spit on, haven't drug through the dirt. In fact, I have more respect for the Capone's and the Gotti's because while they're running rampant through society's checks and balances, they at least aren't telling you that they're doing it for your own good. They are what they are. Businessmen. Not nice businessmen, but oh well. The bat shit crazy clowns in the bush** administration use every pathetic excuse there is, from "it's for your own good" to the really ridiculous "God told me to do it".

pResident Unelected and his band of theives, thugs, and felons have no idea when to quit. They're making fools out of honest people who belong to the republican party (I know that sounds funny, but there are some. And I don't mean McCain).

Nope, they've gone over an invisible line. And since they were sooooo arrogant (made so by the successful theft of the 2000 election), they didn't make any contingency plans for if their schemes and dreams all went to shit. And that is how they/we got to where we are today. It's push has come to shove time. And when they push, we need to shove back, as hard as we can. We have a few decent honest reps we can go to. We just have to do it loudly and in large numbers. THAT IS HOW NIXON WAS DEFEATED. It's going to be harder, but it can be done.

Spe3ctor today already started accusing Futzgerald of being; "over zealous"???? watch - Limbaugh hannity to take their cue...

Fitzgerald hire raises eyebrows
Staffer played key role in selecting prosecutor


By Greg Hinz

U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald, who has tormented City Hall and the White House with unrelenting probes of political misconduct, has hired a former congressional aide who played a key role in getting him his job.

Mr. Fitzgerald hired Margaret Hickey eight months ago as an assistant U.S. attorney here, earning about $142,000 a year. Until a few days before that, she was Illinois chief of staff and general counsel for then-U.S. Sen. Peter Fitzgerald, who recommended Patrick Fitzgerald to the White House.

Ms. Hickey was one of two Senate staffers who assisted Sen. Fitzgerald in making his choice.

<snip>

http://chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/news.pl?id=17218

It's out there and it's a built in excuse to fire Fitzgerald. They also will be able to say the firing is not linked to the investigation.

because the investigation involved fat-boy Rove!

Ashcroft did not hire Fitzgerald. It's important to understand how Fitzgerald was appointed, because therein lies the reason Gonzales cannot "fire" him.

recuseing himself because he knew Rove issue would come up.

You can't recuse yourself, and then take an action. Everyone familiar with the case knows who "hired" Fitzgerald.

I was under the impression that the CIA (George Tenet) requested an investigation after the leak became public? And Ashroft at the Justice Dept was responsible for choosing a Special Prosecutor? What am I missing?

It was the Deputy AG at the time; Ashcroft recused himself.

Ashcroft had employed Rove as a consultant years before. In fact, it was Rove who had personally intervened to have Ashcroft appointed Attorney General. After the CIA left messages with the chief of the DoJ's Counterespionage unit (7-24-03) and then sent two letters to the DoJ Criminal Division (7-30 and 9-5-03), Ashcroft allowed a period of time to pass before recusing himself.

The authority for the case was then passed to James Comey. He assigned the responsibility for investigating it to Fitzgerald. This included delegating his authority to Fitzgerald, something the OP fails to appreciate.

Thus said, "firing" Fitzgerald would be extremely difficult. It is unlikely that Gonzales has the authority, although the DoJ did not fully back the level of authority Comey granted Fitzgerald. (!) That Bush could fire him is not in dispute; that it would be the single worst mistake he could possibly make at this time is not, either.

With positive opinions on why Fitzgerald is now doomed.

Anything else you care to throw water on?

I just pointed to the excuse they will use if they do fire him.

investigation skick -- just warning of what may be in the near future.

Aren't you being a little over-zealous with your gloom and doom mantra?

That would not be cause to dismiss him on this case. More importantly, of course, is that in these circumstances, Gonzales does not have the authority to fire him. Only Bush does. (The circumstances of his being assigned create equal status between him and A.T.)

Shrub always gives people jobs after they do favors for him. They'd have to sack the whole administration, because he's constantly giving paybacks. Just look at bolton & roberts. 2 men responsible for his '00 Selection.

Except I think Cheney is the Godfather, not Shrub.

Odds are Hickey is too, so I don't think there is any way they can claim the appointment was partisan.

They could've done so with little media attention just a few months ago, but now it's become a huge story.

They can't just completely disregard public opinion here, either. If the Bush Administration were to fire Fitzgerald now, they'd leave little doubt in anyone's mind that they were all guilty. The 2006 elections would be too lop-sided to steal, and they'd looking at impeachment soon after.

printed on it. That's exactly what it will amount to if he's fired.

wants. And let's all just keep silent, because we can't do anything about it. Wahhhhhh!

there is no way in Hell the press, the Democrats or the CIA would let them get away with that.

You're joking, I assume?

Just what are the press, the Democrats or the CIA going to do?

To go wild... people are far too involved in this case.

suddenly points directly to him. Maybe not legally, but certainly in the eyes of the public. When push comes to shove Bush will sacrifice Rove and Libby if absolutely necessary.

Rove was going to, or had outed Plame. At least none reported.

That doesn't mean I don't think he's probably guilty as hell, but so far Bush himself, does not appear to be a target (or even a subject) of Fitzgerald's investigation -- just a witness.

However, we'd have another Cox situation on our hands. Too easy to use as a campaigning issue. Then again, there's that hubris again.


Paula

they may allow indictments to be returned. Then for the actual trial, they may assign a senior attorney to take over the prosecution, keeping Fitzgerald on the legal team in an Assistant role. Then Bush can have free rein to offer a sweetheart deal or plea bargain to Rove, Libby, et al. It would be up to the Justice Department to decide how to prosecute. They might have Rove and Libby or anyone else charged plead guilty to a minor charge and pay a fine, but do no jail time at all. I suspect this will end with payment of a fine and little more. Bush can then go before the American public and proclaim "see, I've gotten to the bottom of this" while still keeping Rove and Libby out of prison and around to serve him, although perhaps not in official government positions. This is what I think these scheming evil scum would do.

...seems very grounded in reality.

That PISSES ME OFF!
I want the fucks to BURN.

It's so frightening to think that they could just undo all this work and incriminating evidence!

So we dont have to worry about it being cut short by higher ups.

From today's Faux interview -


GONZALES: I was asked to testify. This was over a year ago. I did testify before the grand jury, yes.

HUME: And can you tell us if you at any time were aware of Valerie Plame either by name or by identification with Joseph Wilson, were you aware that she was in the CIA. If you were, did you have an idea of what kind of work she was doing?

GONZALES: Well, let me begin by answering that question by saying, Brit, that I am recused from this investigation...

HUME: I understand that.

GONZALES: ...because of the period of time that I was in the White House. And of course I have given grand jury testimony. But I had no information regarding Ms. Plame and her role at the CIA.

HUME: So you didn't know. When did you first learn about that she was CIA? Do you recall?

GONZALES: I believe I first learned about it, Brit, at the same time that most Americans did, and that's when the stories began running about her role.

HUME: So, basically, you read about it in the paper?

GONZALES: That's correct.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,163479,00.html



( pardon the ref )

...AG's chain of command.

Fitz was given the same powers as an independent counsel, and he reports only to the judges overseeing the Grand Jury.

Additionally, any attempt at this point in time to fire Fitz would be see as an admission of guilt...an image the NeoCons don't want to project.

Patrick J. Fitzgerald began serving as the United States Attorney for the
Northern District of Illinois on September 1, 2001. Mr. Fitzgerald was initially
appointed on an interim basis by Attorney General John Ashcroft before being
nominated by President George W. Bush. The United States Senate confirmed his
nomination by unanimous consent on October 23, 2001, and President Bush signed
his commission on October 29, 2001.

Mr. Fitzgerald served on the Attorney General's Advisory Committee
from 2001-2005, and he remains Chair of that Committee's sub-committee on terrorism.
He is also a member of the President's Corporate Fraud Task Force.
In December 2003, he was named Special Counsel to investigate the alleged disclosure
of the identity of a purported employee of the Central Intelligence Agency.

http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/iln/aboutus/patrickjfizgerald.html