Alberto Gonzales Serves At The Pleasure of The President

I love The Daily Show!

Bush White House Wanted to Say 'You're Fired' 93 Times

We learned this morning that the Bush administration considered firing all 93 U.S. attorneys.

I wonder what went wrong?

* Did these attorneys chose the wrong color napkin during a "create the perfect bridal reception" elimination challenge?

* Did they sell fewer bottles of gourmet salad dressing than the boys in the sheriff's office during a competition at an area organic food super center?

* Did they underperform in a competition involving creating a line of sexy new swimsuits?

Maybe these 93 men and women deserved to be fired? Without competitive skills in all these areas, especially the ability to create sexy swimsuits and kiss Karl Rove's political ass, they may not deserve these jobs that are so critical to the health and functioning of our beloved democracy.

My Five Least Favorite Attorneys

1. The guy who prosecuted Santa Claus in Miracle on 34th St.

2. District Attorney Jim Trotter III, who prosecuted the adorable Marisa Tomei in My Cousin Vinny.

3. John Milton, the managing partner in The Devil's Advocate, who also turns out to be SATAN.

4. Hamilton Burger, the prosecutor from Perry Mason, who seemed to have a knack for wasting taxpayers' dollars by only prosecuting innocent people.

5. Alberto Gonzales.

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Department of Injustice

Truly, truly scary.

Karl Rove and The Wood Chipper

QUOTE OF THE DAY, on the fired U.S. Attorneys:

"I think the signal is quite obvious. Remember, we are talking about here are people who are Republican appointees. These are not, you know, professional whistle blowers. These are the ultimate team players. And these are also people that are quite conservative and who showed a great deal of loyalty to the administration. What they apparently did not show was a type of lock step obedience that the Justice Department wants.

"And I have to say is that one of the more troubling legacies of the Bush administration has been the politicization of the Department of Justice. U.S. Attorneys are supposed to retain an element of independence. They're not supposed to be constantly looking over their shoulder to see if Karl Rove is coming on them with a wood chipper. They're really supposed to be able to conduct themselves in the interest in justice, not just in the interest of Karl Rove or in the interest of the President alone ... they serve justice; not him (the president) personally."

Jonathan Turley
George Washington University law professor,
and a constitutional scholar

Even without any other scandals in the Bush administration, this push for Activist Attorneys just might be the most troubling. In fact, it is incredibly scary.

Think about it, OK?

Political Wizards Invited To Oz Party

This weekend, Dick Cheney, Scooter Libby and Scooter Libby's defense team are invited to my house for an Oz-watching marathon. I'll be serving light snacks, but please (I'm talking to you Dick) bring your own beer. And please, no firearms!

Also welcome to attend: any member of the Bush administration plus Sen. Pete Domenici, Alberto Gonzalez or any person in any way responsible for the firing of those U.S. attorneys who had the audacity to resist political pressures from the Bush White House.

Oz aired for six seasons and 56 episodes, so we won't get very far into the series this weekend. Maybe, by this fall, Mr. Libby and other members of the Bush administration will have plenty of not-so-free time to catch seasons 2-6.

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More background on this Katrina-like disaster here and here.