Tuesday, January 23, 2007

FBI and Justice officials misled reporters ...

* wapo via laura:
"The FBI erred by failing to notify anyone in the House of Representatives about questionable e-mails sent to a former page by former Florida Republican lawmaker Mark Foley, according to a new report released today.

The review by Justice Department Inspector General Glenn A. Fine also found that FBI and Justice officials misled reporters last fall by claiming that the activist group that first provided the FBI with the e-mails had not been cooperative.

In fact, the report found that the group, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), notified the FBI within days of receiving the e-mails and that the FBI never sought any additional information from the group."
tpmm has more.

* laura:
"A knowledgeable reader says that Empty Wheel's liveblogging of the Libby trial at Firedoglake is by far and away the best reporting going on of the case today."
I'm SHOCKED!

* tpmm:
"Now, the Wall Street Journal says that federal prosecutors are under orders to deliver a grand jury indictment against Wilkes by Feb. 15.

A note of caution: a Wilkes indictment has been rumored for months. But this has a ring of truth to it. Why? Because according to WSJ the order comes directly from just-ousted U.S. Attorney Carol Lam, who's been overseeing the case -- and who gave the order to take Wilkes down before she leaves on -- you guessed it -- February 15.

Wilkes is involved -- some say centrally -- in more than the Duke Cunningham scandal: prosecutors chasing Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-CA) also think he holds secrets that would help make a case against the former House Approprations Committee chairman, WSJ says. One of his companies was also the recipient of a questionable earmark courtesy of Rep. John Doolittle (R-CA), who is also under scrutiny by federal investigators."
hmm. i've always wondered if wilkes was TBTF. we'll soon see, it seems.

* SOTU drunkblogging here. (thnx Doug) - i guess we'll have our own version here. that sort of thing has become a habit, right? who's in?

* wsj via TNH: "
Just 22% of Americans say they want the president to set policy for the country, while 57% want Congress to do so. "

* atrios:
"How It Works
Regarding Iran, we have of course been here before. People start running around talking about how "serious people" all understand the "dire" threat posed by some country or other, headed up by the latest incarnation of Hitler. What should be done isn't quite clear, but serious people understand that something has to be done. Pretty soon all "serious people" understand that we must have the "courage" to "face the threat" with the appropriate degree of seriousness, and all proposals of "what we must do" which don't involve the blowing up of nontrivial numbers of people are quickly relegated to the "unserious" camp."

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Of course now Carol Lam looks to now be trying to get things wrapped up with an indictment of Wilkes. Might she be getting more than that? From the sounds of this story, the prosecutor's office here has also been talking to Duncan Hunter at least for a subpoena! My wishful thinking... !

Anonymous said...

This entire episode has inspired some fantasies . . . will the local bar get behind a pushback of some sort on this abomination? Do you suppose that career deputies in the U.S. Attorney's offices around the country where this crap has been going on will step up?

Do I have any idea what I am talking about?? No, but since the rest of the country has noticed there is something rotten in this particular Denmark, does anyone think some of the smart people in those offices will know what to do to protect ongoing investigations from these bu$hCo creeps?

Please???

If it's not too much trouble???