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Wednesday, July 25, 2007

Dumb Question

Okay, I think we all get that Gonzales is not only a lying sack, and not very good at it, but he's not even trying to be good at it. He really is defying Congress to do something, anything about his blatant falsehoods, changing stories, and tiresome obfuscations. Oooh, a contempt charge. Guess whose prerogative it is to deal with such a charge?

That's right, the Justice Department. Might as well rename it the Ministry of Truth and be done with it.

So Gonzales is all but flat-out telling his questioners to suck on it, that they have neither the stones nor the horses to make anything stick. And he's probably right -- so far, the only Republicans to stray off the reservation even on Iraq policy have only done so rhetorically. Push comes to shove, they meekly tuck their sacks back and side with the same incompetent thugs they made such a show of repudiating when it was convenient. Impeachment, whether of Gonzales, Cheney, or Bush would be no different. It would be several months of tedious bloviating and grandstanding, culminating in a big wad o' nothin', more flippant defiance, more toxic effrontery, just in time for the players to get their campaign faces on.

So here's the dumb question, since it seems that the biggest holes and contradictions in Gonzales' stories seem to revolve around his little midnight prowl in Ashcroft's hospital room: why not depose Ashcroft, even informally? Either he vindicates Gonzales, or he corroborates Comey, simple as that. But let's get some cards on the table, once and for all, and be done with this nonsense. The Republicans have to be badgered into doing what they already know is the right thing, so it's time to force their hand. Ashcroft would seem to be a valuable point witness to accomplish this.

At this point, Gonzales really seems to have the demeanor of a man who knows that whatever respectable career he once had is completely over. He is now bought and paid for by the Bushies, now and forever, and as such, he literally has nothing to lose by serving as an insouciant diversion to buy them time. He'll do it for another six months, if all they're going to do is wave their hands and occasionally vocalize their frustration with his bullshit. It's just another can to kick; clearly, their fallback strategery at this point is simply to run out the clock on everything.

All those backwards counters we have, clicking off the time these criminals have left in power -- and they're doing the same thing. Time's up.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

What, you think Gonzo's career is over? Maybe for the next 8 years or so, while the Dems occupy the White House (if they don't screw up massively, as only they can do). But Gonzo still has a future, under the next fascist Republican administration. He's not that old. I bet a lot of people used to say, after the Iran-Contras scandal, that the carrers of Elliott Abrams and Scooter Libby were over.

Well, think again. What the GOPers will get from this disgrace is that Gonzo is loyal -- a true Fredo you can count on, when the going gets tough.

Gonzo will be back at the DoJ in 2020. Mark my words.

Heywood J. said...

Well, I was figuring that he'd just be another $20K per speech rent-a-hack on the CPAC rubber-chicken circuit, and perhaps even be content with that. He doesn't seem to mind being the trusty, frayed ottoman for moneyed dipshits like Dubya to rest their feet on.

But you're probably right -- if animals like Elliot Abrams can be "rehabilitated" in the professional sense, then anyone can. And the 30% moron bloc can always be counted on to vote on pure spite and stupidity.

Heywood J. said...

But seriously, have I missed something, or is Ashcroft conspicuously absent in all this? It seems that since he's at the center of the most obvious part of Gonzales' sack of sorry lies, someone might actually talk to him and get his side of things.

Again, I don't see any middle ground here -- either Ashcroft corroborates Comey's testimony (and likely forces the Bushies to throw him under the bus with all the other corpses), or he somehow vindicates Gonzo, which considering Gonzo's contradictions of his own testimony seems to be logically impossible.

Anonymous said...

Have they subpoenaed Ashcroft? I don't know what the situation is. I imagine he must be seething with rage at the way he was strongarmed by Abu G, but probably believes in that old party loyalty crock, and refuses to embarrass Fredo in public. Anyway, we should have a denouement to that pretty soon.

I used to have nothing but contempt for Ashcroft, and never did I think that one can do worse than him at DoJ. Well, I guess I gotta eat some crow now.