U.S. Attorney Resignation Made on Threat of Immediate Firing (Lam)

[Hissyspit]

http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/003470.php

U.S. Attorney Resignation Made on Threat of Immediate Firing

By Paul Kiel - June 19, 2007, 4:15 PM
When a Justice Department official asked eight U.S. attorneys for their resignations last December, most of them went quietly (initially at least), agreeing to resign on relatively short notice and with no public fuss. But one U.S. attorney, Carol Lam in San Diego, had contentious private exchanges with Department officials about her end date.

http://www.imgred.com/

An email released to Congress last week shows just how heated those discussions got. When Lam delayed announcing her date of resignation -- wanting more time to tend to several high profile cases, the expanded Duke Cunningham investigation among them --, Justice Department officials prepared to have the president fire her immediately.

The email was amongst those (pdf) released by the Justice Department to Congress last week. Writing to William Kelley, an attorney in the White House counsel's office, Kyle Sampson, Alberto Gonzales' former chief of staff and the orchestrator of the U.S. attorney firings, wrote:

FYI – our USA in SD is refusing to resign (though we’ve given her until 5pm eastern); recommendation that she be removed immediately should be over to you by the end of the day.

The January 16th email was written just as the U.S. attorney firings controversy was beginning to simmer. On January 12th, The San Diego Union-Tribune first reported Lam's firing. The next day, the paper quoted the head of the San Diego FBI office as saying "I guarantee politics is involved” in Lam's firing. And on January 16th, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) made her way to the Senate floor to announce her concern and suspicion about the U.S. attorney firings (which had just become public).

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[originalpckelly]

1. "THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH DUKE CUNNINGHAM! QUIT SAYING THAT!"

Not so much:
"...wanting more time to tend to several high profile cases, the expanded Duke Cunningham investigation among them --, Justice Department officials prepared to have the president fire her immediately. "

[BlooInBloo]

2. lol! Reminds me of when I was little, and my fingers were bleeding around the nails...

... My mom looked at me knowingly, and I snapped at her "It has nothing to do with me biting my nails". She busted up laughing at that point.

[aquart]

3. Impeachable offense 756? 8903? I can't keep track.

[Supersedeas]

4. no time to tidy up the Cunningham investigation--out the door NOW...that's Justice?

[sellitman]

5. Paris Hilton

Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton Paris Hilton

[cascadiance]

6. I called her office shortly after that article was published...

Recommending that she "HANG IN THERE" and that we in the community fully supported her doing so. I also called in to KLSD that weekend on Scooter's show there to encourage others to do the same! Hope we helped encourage her to be "obstinate" at that time!! :) There were also three Letters to the Editor published in the Saturday paper about this the DAY AFTER the article of her getting fired was published!

[The Backlash Cometh]

7. Our president is a crook. A crook's crook.

[originalpckelly]

8. Indeed.

How long until people say it so loud that Bush has to repeat the infamous Nixon line?

[babylonsister]

9. Drip, drip, drip. Good for Ms. Lam-brave soul! nt

[Hissyspit]

10. .

[bleever]

11. Ms. Lam put Country before Party. There are good people in the GOP,

but Rove's working hard to correct that.