Alberto Gonzales list of falsehoods
U.S. Attorney General Gonzales is under fire, here are a list of reasons. The source is Scott Horton.
First, Gonzales said, under oath, that the seven of the eight U.S. attorneys were fired for performance reasons. It now turns out this was a falsehood, as the glowing performance evaluations attest.
Second, Gonzales said that he would 'never, ever make a change for political reasons.' It now turns out that this was a falsehood, as all the evidence makes clear that this purge was based purely on politics, to punish prosecutors who were perceived to be too light on Democrats or too tough on Republicans.
Third, Gonzales said this was an 'overblown personnel matter.' It now turns out that far from being a low-level personnel matter, this was a longstanding plan to exact political vendettas or to make political pay-offs, involving the president, his personal counsel and his principal political advisor.
Fourth, Gonzales stated that the White House was 'not really involved' in the plan to fire U.S. attorneys. This is now also revealed as a conscious lie.vHarriet Miers was one of the masterminds of this plan, as demonstrated by numerous e-mails made public today. She communicated extensively with Gonzales's chief of staff, Kyle Sampson about the firings of the U.S. attorneys. In fact, she originally wanted to fire and replace the top prosecutors in all 93 districts across the country (including Patrick Fitzgerald).
Fifth, Gonzales stated that Karl Rove had no involvement in getting his protégé appointed U.S. attorney in Arkansas. In fact, here is a letter from the Department of Justice prepared under Gonzales' supervision. Quote: 'The department is not aware of Karl Rove playing any role in the decision to appoint Mr. Griffin.' It now turns out that this was a conscious lie, as demonstrated by Mr. Sampson's own e-mail. Quote: 'Getting him, Griffin, appointed was important to Harriet, Karl, et cetera.'
Sixth, we were told to change the Patriot Act was an innocent attempt to fix a legal loophole, not a cynical strategy to bypass the Senate's role in serving as a check and balance. Now White House documents disclose that this was all part of a careful plan to cashier noncompliant US Attorneys as part of a political game.
First, Gonzales said, under oath, that the seven of the eight U.S. attorneys were fired for performance reasons. It now turns out this was a falsehood, as the glowing performance evaluations attest.
Second, Gonzales said that he would 'never, ever make a change for political reasons.' It now turns out that this was a falsehood, as all the evidence makes clear that this purge was based purely on politics, to punish prosecutors who were perceived to be too light on Democrats or too tough on Republicans.
Third, Gonzales said this was an 'overblown personnel matter.' It now turns out that far from being a low-level personnel matter, this was a longstanding plan to exact political vendettas or to make political pay-offs, involving the president, his personal counsel and his principal political advisor.
Fourth, Gonzales stated that the White House was 'not really involved' in the plan to fire U.S. attorneys. This is now also revealed as a conscious lie.vHarriet Miers was one of the masterminds of this plan, as demonstrated by numerous e-mails made public today. She communicated extensively with Gonzales's chief of staff, Kyle Sampson about the firings of the U.S. attorneys. In fact, she originally wanted to fire and replace the top prosecutors in all 93 districts across the country (including Patrick Fitzgerald).
Fifth, Gonzales stated that Karl Rove had no involvement in getting his protégé appointed U.S. attorney in Arkansas. In fact, here is a letter from the Department of Justice prepared under Gonzales' supervision. Quote: 'The department is not aware of Karl Rove playing any role in the decision to appoint Mr. Griffin.' It now turns out that this was a conscious lie, as demonstrated by Mr. Sampson's own e-mail. Quote: 'Getting him, Griffin, appointed was important to Harriet, Karl, et cetera.'
Sixth, we were told to change the Patriot Act was an innocent attempt to fix a legal loophole, not a cynical strategy to bypass the Senate's role in serving as a check and balance. Now White House documents disclose that this was all part of a careful plan to cashier noncompliant US Attorneys as part of a political game.
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