Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Aren't you glad Harriet Miers

Didn't get to the Supreme Court?

Harriet Miers is nothing if not loyal to her bestest buddy Bush: (my bold)

Sampson sent an e-mail to Miers in March 2005 that ranked all 93 U.S. attorneys. Strong performers "exhibited loyalty" to the administration; low performers were "weak U.S. attorneys who have been ineffectual managers and prosecutors, chafed against Administration initiatives, etc." A third group merited no opinion.

At least a dozen prosecutors were on a "target list" to be fired at one time or another, the e-mails show.

Only three of those eventually fired were given low rankings: Margaret Chiara in Grand Rapids, Mich.; Bud Cummins in Little Rock; and Carol S. Lam in San Diego. Two were given strong evaluations: David C. Iglesias in Albuquerque, who has alleged political interference from GOP lawmakers, and Kevin V. Ryan in San Francisco, whose firing has generated few complaints because of widespread management and morale problems in his office.

Update: TPM Muckraker has the timeline.

Update: Res Ipsa Loquitur at Rising Hegemon notes:
... in December 2005, Specter's chief counsel "slipped a provision into the Patriot Act reauthorization bill that made it possible to replace U.S. Attorneys permanently without Senate confirmation."

Am I supposed to think that Specter didn't know what was going on? That his chief counsel, who, I assume, he supervises, just happened to make it easier for the administration to can U.S. Attorneys the administration thought unfriendly to their great and glorious Republican revolution? Was Specter negligent? Is he stupid -- or does he merely think I am stupid?

The Attorney General is not the only one with some explaining to do.

1 comment:

ellroon said...

Hmmm. So if we fire all the chiefs of staff...chief of staffs, we will suddenly have an administration that is not corrupt? I think we need to fire a few more.

I am imagining Bush wandering through the West Wing going,'Hello? Hello?'....