Hastert Tells W.House He Won't Extend 9/11 Panel

[Jersey Devil]

http://www.reuters.com/printerFriendlyPopup.jhtml?type=politicsNews&storyID=4437913

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - In a blow to the commission investigating the Sept. 11 attacks, the speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives has told the White House and fellow Republicans that he will not bring up legislation to extend its May 27 deadline, officials said on Wednesday.

<snip>

But the speaker's spokesman, John Feehery, said Hastert told the White House and members of the House Republican conference that "it's a bad idea to extend the commission and ... that we're not going to bring any legislation up."

<snip>

But Hastert cast serious doubt on its prospects for passage in the Republican-controlled House. "He thinks the (commission's) report is overdue and we need to get the recommendations as soon as possible. He is also concerned it will become a political football if this thing is extended and it is released in the middle of the presidential campaign," Feehery said.

[Timefortruth]

1. What a courageous stand.

The White House must be horrified.

[Jersey Devil]

2. LOL, yes, they are probably so upset they are crying

What a farce.

[Poiuyt]

11. Now bush can say, "I tried to extend it."

Do you think there was some collusion between the WH and Congress?

[Leilani]

3. This is an outrage!

The 9/11 families have been screwed every which way by this administration & the cronies in Congress.

[lovedems]

5. I hope they remind the voters of that too.

I am sure they will not be happy with this news and I am sure they will not be happy with the final report. Let's hope they organize and find strength to speak out against this absurd notion that elections are more important than the family members they lost.

[RedEarth]

4. The Nazi's rule the show right now.....

Raising the media ownership cap and now the 911 investigation. We have got to do everything we can to take back not only the white house, but also the senate and the house. Until we do, I honestly think, the future our country is at stake. Very scary times.....

[grytpype]

6. WHAT ARE THEY HIDING? WHO ARE THEY PROTECTING?

Will anyone ask?

[stepnw1f]

7. I just did...

Won't get an answer...but if enough people ask and they feel heat, then bingo,... results!

[grytpype]

8. Kerry should respond to this.

Something like, "If we have to re-investigate 9/11 during my Administration, we will. America deserves the complete truth about 9/11, not a bit less."

[0007]

9. The 911 Investigation is a joke anyway...

Thomas Kean the chair of the Commission is a crony of junior and the bush family. The Commission has no subpoena power. Yawn! Condoleezza Rice decided she didn't want to testify! And who's gonna make her? Now the House Republican, Hastert sez no more time. LOL!! These folks are killing me.

The Bending end or the bum's rush?

[indypaul]

10. This commission has

been stymied by the administration previously, now
by the legislative. There is sufficient disregard
of their purpose by both in disregarding requests
for documents and now an extension of time to perform
their purpose. If the members of the commission have
any integrity at all they should immediately resign.
Any future report will have no credibility after
forcing the commission to function under these
circumstances.

[gauguin57]

12. these people stink

to high heaven. The whole rotten lot of them. The White House, the Republican leadership ...

They must be removed from office. I hope the 9/11 victims' families raise such a stink that Hastert wishes his sorry, incompetent ass was never BORN!

[TacticalPeek]

13. Josh Marshall nails this "dingbat kabuki" show at TPM.

Wouldn't you have just loved to have been a fly on the wall at that brutal moment when long-time Bush family retainer and current White House Chief of Staff Andy Card begged Speaker Hastert to let the commission keep investigating the administration, and Hastert replied, "Buddy, your word just doesn't carry the weight it used to in this town," and then walked out the door?

I really think the folks at the White House must be out of touch with how quickly their credibility with the public and the media is falling if they think that anyone will buy this stuff.

A few days ago the president sends out his campaign manager to peddle a wholly unsubstantiated claim that the president tried to go to Vietnam, when the president himself said this wasn't true not two weeks before.

Now, after the president had said he would get behind extending the deadline for the 9/11 commission's report, they whip up this dingbat kabuki with Hastert to get them off the hook.

It's like they're losing touch.

Josh Marshall, TalkingPointsMemo

Check it out.

[JasonDeter]

14. I'm sure there were alot of flys with all the bulls$%t flowing

between Card and Hastert.

[radfringe]

15. political football - either way, IMHO

if 9-11 commission is extended, yes the extention will be an issue -- it will be seen as a delay tactic to avoid making 9-11 an issue

if 9-11 commission is not extended, and the report contains damaging information - it will be an issue

if 9-11 commission is not extended and the report is "whishy-washy" - then it will raise more questions than it answered

9-11, and what did bush* know and when did he know it is going to be an issue no matter what

[dusty64]

16. More outrageous fodder they

are handing us. What could they possibly be SO afraid of? What are they hiding?

[Loonman]

17. Traitor to his country

Hastert doesn't care.

[underpants]

18. Hastert is still the speaker? Hmmm haven't heard much from him lately

This is pretty simple the WH can't come out and kill the extension so they get Hastert, Delay runs the Hill everyone knows that, who hasn't been heard from in a while and you stands no chance of NOT being re-elected to do this for them. The only reason Hastert became Speaker was that after the Livingstone mess they wanted someone who like chicken legs better than womens' legs.

I suspect we will hear about as much from Hastert in the near future as we have in the last few years. He kills it and basically no one is blamed.

[TacticalPeek]

21. Hastert was made the speaker? Hmmm never heard of him before that.

That was a totally weird scenario.

Gingrich resigns in disgrace. Livingston pre-resigns in disgrace.

Then out of the blue pops . . . Dennis Hastert? Never noticed him in the leadership pool before then.

Dick Armey was there. Tom Delay was there. (Bill Paxton probably rues having quit just short of the jackpot.) But none of the expected hats were to be found in the ring. Must have been fear of Flynt.

Hastert must have had to prove that he'd never had sex with a woman, man, animal, vegatable or mineral. A perfect eunuch for attachment of Delay's strings.

[underpants]

22. They said he was a "moderate"

He might very well be but he did just sort of POP up didn't he?

Hastert sits in the big chair and Delay runs around doing what he does.

[indepat]

19. This alone should spell defeat for Hastert, DeLay and all their ilk but

sadly it won't.

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

20. "Hastert Tells W.House He Won't Extend 9/11 Panel"

Or is it htthe other way around?

[CaptainClark23]

23. Treason

Treason Treason Treason Treason Treason Treason

[Malva Zebrina]

24. just another outrageous aggression on the part of Republicans

He is also concerned it will become a political football if this thing is extended and it is released in the middle of the presidential campaign,

Bush made it into a political football. He used the tragedy as his achoring point in many speeches. He made a spectacle out of it, demanding a badge from a firefighter's mother so he could wave it around like his Daddy waved around a badge. Declaring he won the "trifecta" was a stupid , unfeeling and crass joke. Having the convention in NYC on the anniversary of the WTC attack is more political grandstanding and classless, insensitive use of it further

Does Hastert read the papers? America will just go blandly on it's way--it's gone, why bother bringing up stuff now. He should be scared it will be brought up--I have a feeling Bush will bring it up thinking he is the quarterback running the play.

[myomy]

25. How dare anyone seek the truth.

It's downright un-replug-lican.

[TankLV]

26. "No more time". Now where have we heard this before?

Ahhh, yes.

Stop the recount.

Delay.

Then approve the recount process - but, opps, "no more time" - gotta run, but thanx anyway.

Disgraceful.

Bastards.

Criminals.

I am soooo surprised by this - NOT!

Kerry should start shouting loudly that the repukes care more for their party than the country.

And - how come when dems get investigated, they find the most rabid, partisan repuke to do the investigating, but when the repukes get investigated, as if that ever happens, they find the most rabid, partisan repuke to do the investigating?

Shouldn't the Dems be screaming at the repukes to proove they are not hiding anything by having some prominent Democratic lawmaker and ONLY a Democratic lawmaker head an investigation? After all, to be fair...

I won't hold my breath!

[iam]

27. These maniacs

have decided that the political damage from not investigating is less than the political damage from the completion of the investigation. What are they hiding? Talk about providing aid and comfort to terrorists, the bush* admin IS terrorist.