Truthout Links
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Washington Post: Prosecutor Posts Go to Bush Insiders
About one-third of the nearly four dozen US attorney's jobs that have changed hands since President Bush began his
second term have been filled by the White House and the Justice Department with trusted administration insiders. Some
lacked experience as prosecutors or had no connection to the districts in which they were sent to work, the records and
biographical information show.
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McClatchy Newspapers: Scandal Gives Democrats a Chance to Investigate Rove
Allegations that politics improperly influenced the Bush administration's decision to fire eight US attorneys last year
are providing the new Democratic majority in Congress with a long-sought opening to investigate the maneuverings of
White House political strategist Karl Rove.
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Legal Times: T.R. Goldman and Emma Schwartz - GOP Loyalist Takes the Fifth, Brings a Storm
"Taking the Fifth Amendment is everybody's right. But it's a choice that can send up a red flag, often invoked by people
who have something to hide. Think of Enron's Andrew Fastow and Iran-Contra's Oliver North. So when Monica Goodling said
last week that she would refuse to talk to Congress about the firing of eight US attorneys, it was hard not to wonder
what this 33-year-old party loyalist may have done wrong," write T.R. Goldman and Emma Schwartz.
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The New York Times Editorial: Story Time in the Senate
The New York Times editors examine the latest testimony in the US attorney firings: "In his Senate testimony yesterday,
Kyle Sampson, the former chief of staff to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, tried to be a 'loyal Bushie,' a term Mr.
Sampson used in his infamous email message to describe what he was looking for in United States attorneys. But if Mr.
Sampson was trying to fall on his sword, he had horrible aim. In testimony that got so embarrassing for the White House
that the Republicans tried to cut it off, Mr. Sampson simply ended up making it clearer than ever that the eight
prosecutors were fired for political reasons."
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Los Angeles Times: Ex-DOJ Official: Bush's Long History of Tilting Justice
Joseph D. Rich, a former Justice Department official, writes: "The scandal unfolding around the firing of eight US
attorneys compels the conclusion that the Bush administration has rewarded loyalty over all else. A destructive pattern
of partisan political actions at the Justice Department started long before this incident, however, as those of us who
worked in its civil rights division can attest."
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The New York Times Editorial: The Rovian Era
The New York Times writes: "Turn over a scandal in Washington these days and the chances are you'll find Karl Rove. His
tracks are everywhere: whether it's helping to purge United States attorneys, coaching bureaucrats on how to spend
taxpayers' money to promote Republican candidates, hijacking the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community
Initiatives for partisan politics, or helping to organize a hit on the character of one of the first people to publicly
reveal the twisting of intelligence reports on Iraq. Whatever the immediate objective, Mr. Rove seems focused on one
overarching goal: creating a permanent Republican majority."
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The Hill: Waxman Wants to Depose Former White House Aide
House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) called on former White House aide
Susan Ralston to appear at a deposition April 5 as part of the panel's investigation into lobbying contacts between
former lobbyist Jack Abramoff and the White House.
ENDS