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Dead Constitution
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Title: Daschle: Gonzales Trying to "Rewrite History" by Blaming Congress for Ashcroft Spying Crisis (I.E., GONZALES LIED)
Source: TPM Muckraker.com
URL Source: http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/003768.php
Published: Jul 24, 2007
Author: Spencer Ackerman
Post Date: 2007-07-24 18:32:27 by aristeides
Keywords: None
Views: 72
Comments: 3

Daschle: Gonzales Trying to "Rewrite History" by Blaming Congress for Ashcroft Spying Crisis

By Spencer Ackerman - July 24, 2007, 6:05 PM

Tom Daschle, the former Senate Democratic leader who received briefings on the Bush administration's warrantless surveillance programs, says Alberto Gonzales isn't telling the truth about what Senate and House leaders were told in March 2004 about the program's utility and legality.

In testimony today to the Senate Judiciary Committee, Gonzales attempted to give "context" for his infamous hospital trip to a convalescent John Ashcroft on March 10, 2004, after acting attorney general James Comey refused to authorize the surveillance program. It was only after a briefing for the so-called "Gang of Eight" bipartisan congressional leaders demanded that the program continue, Gonzales said, that he and then-White House chief of staff went to "inform" Ashcroft of the Gang's wishes.

Daschle was one of that Gang of Eight. In a statement e-mailed to TPMmuckraker, he all but calls Gonzales a liar.

"I have no recollection of such a meeting and believe that it didn't occur. I am quite certain that at no time did we encourage the AG or anyone else to take such actions. This appears to be another attempt to rewrite history just as they have attempted to do with the war resolution."

Daschle's statement bolsters one that his former Gang of Eight colleague, Senate intelligence committee chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), gave to Dan Eggen of the Washington Post: Gonzales is "once again is making something up to protect himself," Rockefeller said.

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#1. To: All (#0)

Dan Eggen is the Washington Post reporter who Gonzales said today at the hearing a subordinate of his issued a correction to of an earlier misstatement by Gonzales. Looks like Eggen may not be supporting that story.

To reason, indeed, he was not in the habit of attending. His mode of arguing, if it is to be so called, was one not uncommon among dull and stubborn persons, who are accustomed to be surrounded by their inferiors. He asserted a proposition; and, as often as wiser people ventured respectfully to show that it was erroneous, he asserted it again, in exactly the same words, and conceived that, by doing so, he at once disposed of all objections. - Macaulay, "History of England," Vol. 1, Chapter 6, on James II.

aristeides  posted on  2007-07-24   18:33:51 ET  Reply   Trace   Private Reply  

Some interesting comments from that "context" link:

Here's a hypothetical, everyone.

Let's say, during the the course of your job -- presumably not as important as being Attorney General of the United States -- you're asked to remember specific details, meetings, and major conversations.

And it turns out that after these important events and strategizing, you can't remember a goddamn thing.

Now, given you can't, the question would be raised: If you can't remember anything, shouldn't we replace you with someone who can?

If you're not involved in any major decision making, shouldn't we replace you with someone who is?

The standards that are held for the rest of working America don't apply to Abu.

The incompetence is staggering. And the thugs continue to defend him, to their eternal embarrassment and shame.

Posted by: biltud

Date: July 24, 2007 12:58 PM

--

...

So now Gonzales claims that he wasn't trying to get Ashcroft to reverse Comey "if in fact he wasn't fully competent to make that decision." He just happened to walk in to Ashcroft's ICU room bearing a reauthorization order from the White House for the program. TPM's view that this is something it's hard to believe Gonzales would have carried if he wasn't trying to get Ashcroft to reauthorize the surveillance regardless of his condition gives Gonzales far to much credit. Gonzales and Ashcroft had undoubtedly discussed this program before -- the views that Ashcroft expressed were the same as Comey's. So Gonzales very well knew that if Ashcroft was competent he wouldn't sign the order. And Ashcroft summoned enough of his remaining strength in order to say precisely that. So what was Gonzales doing there? Most likely,he wanted to be alone with his hand picked witness and find Ashcroft sufficiently out of it that Gonzales could claim that Ashcroft had signed when Ashcroft hadn't. Fears that this was what was up would explain why Mueller ordered his FBI to be sure that Comey was allowed to remain so that Gonzales would not be alone with Ashcroft.

...

Posted by: Jane

Date: July 24, 2007 1:06 PM

I just want you to know that, when we talk about war, we're really talking about peace. — George W. Bush, June 18, 2002, 10:30 A.M. EDT

rack42  posted on  2007-07-24   21:38:32 ET  Reply   Trace   Private Reply  

Maybe Gonzales really wasn't at that meeting with the Gang of Eight. I don't think he ever said yesterday that he was. It's been reported that Cheney does a lot of the briefing of people in Congress on intelligence matters. Maybe Cheney was at that meeting, and later reported -- or misreported -- on its results at the White House meeting before Gonzales and Card went to the hospital.

That would be consistent with Cheney being the one at the White House meeting who asked -- or ordered -- Gonzales and Card to go to the hospital. Which would explain Gonzo's refusal to testify on who told him to go.

Maybe Cheney flat out lied about the Gang of Eight approving a continuation of the controversial program. Or maybe he took agreement by the four Republicans - - or by the four Republicans plus Harman -- to constitute a consensus of the Gang of Eight.

To reason, indeed, he was not in the habit of attending. His mode of arguing, if it is to be so called, was one not uncommon among dull and stubborn persons, who are accustomed to be surrounded by their inferiors. He asserted a proposition; and, as often as wiser people ventured respectfully to show that it was erroneous, he asserted it again, in exactly the same words, and conceived that, by doing so, he at once disposed of all objections. - Macaulay, "History of England," Vol. 1, Chapter 6, on James II.

aristeides  posted on  2007-07-25   10:10:53 ET  Reply   Trace   Private Reply  

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