Senior Justice Officials "Stunned" Prez Ordered NSA Probe Blocked

[Elidor]

<snip>...
To answer that question, OPR investigators needed only to review the files on the program which belonged to Justice officials. Of course, this being a secret, White House-favored program, that circle was relatively small. It probably included the Attorney General and a handful of other people. And they don't like their files gone through.

<snip>
Which explains why the news today that Bush himself had ordered the review blocked was shocking -- not only to everyday Americans, but to Justice Department officials themselves. As Murray Waas (who's responsible for this arriving in the public eye) reports today:

"The statement by Gonzales stunned some senior Justice Department officials, who were led to believe that Gonzales himself had made the decision to deny the clearances after consulting with intelligence agencies whose activities would be scrutinized, a senior federal law enforcement official said in an interview. . . .

"A senior Justice official said that the refusal to grant the clearances was "unprecedented" and questioned whether the clearances were denied because investigators might find "misconduct by those who were attempting to defeat" the probe from being conducted. The official made the comments without knowing that Bush had made the decision to refuse the clearances.

"In effect, this means that the President himself -- not the Vice President, not David Addington, not senior advisers -- believes he has the right to insulate any program he chooses from any type of review, from congressional oversight to an arcane internal audit."

http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/001158.php

[Redstone]

1. Senior Justice Officials "Stunned" That Sky is Blue.

Redstone

[AtomicKitten]

2. I would have been stunned if he didn't. n/t

[MissWaverly]

3. Let's see, Clinton ran herd on those folks about the

Paula Jones Case, seem like the big old bad boys in the Supreme Court made a point that the
President was not above the law, of course, they were talking about a Democratic President
not a Good Old Boy.

[rodeodance]

4. only the Pres. has 'inharent powers"---so of course it was Bush and few

can argue with him about this. And Gondy prob. told him to do it.



....."In effect, this means that the President himself -- not the Vice President, not David Addington, not senior advisers -- believes he has the right to insulate any program he chooses from any type of review, from congressional oversight to an arcane internal audit."

[MadMaddie]

5. They must be the only ones stunned......cuz nothing stuns me

anymore......

[Elidor]

6. It's beginning to look even more like Watergate

And actually it's worse. Even after the Supremes chopped at his heels, Bush just can't back down from his claims to omnipotence. It's a mania with him. And he won't stop until somebody up there in washington - probably a combination of congress and the courts acting in concert - finally tells him for once and for all to fuck off.

[Paulie]

7. STUNNED???

Yeah! You stunned him, just as he was wakin' up! Norwegian Blues stun easily....