House finds White House officials in contempt of Congress

[babylonsister]

House finds White House officials in contempt of Congress
By Alexander Bolton and Klaus Marre
Posted: 02/14/08 02:21 PM


The House voted Thursday to hold White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten and former White House counsel Harriet Miers in contempt of Congress for refusing to testify before a panel investigating the firing of several United States attorneys.

Ahead of the vote, Republicans had walked out in an effort to show that they want to work on a permanent update to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) rather than be part of a “partisan fishing expedition,” as House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) put it.

The contempt vote raises the stakes between the White House and Congress in the battle over the fired U.S. attorneys and could set up a constitutional showdown between the legislative and executive branches.

The matter will now be referred to the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia.

If the fight comes to a head without a compromise having been reached, it could pit Congress’s power to hold White officials in contempt against the president’s right to assert executive privilege.

more...

http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/house-finds-white-house-officials-in-contempt-of-congress-2008-02-14.html

[spanone]

1. Kicked and Nominated

[LakeSamish706]

2. Damn, it's about time these Congress Critters began to do the peoples business. n/t

[Subdivisions]

3. Damn that was FAST! n/t

[baldguy]

7. See what they can get done w/o the GOP?

[McCamy Taylor]

4. WOOT!

:applause:

'Bout Time!

[seemslikeadream]

6. WOOT IS RIGHT!

[seemslikeadream]

9. WOOT IS RIGHT!

[seemslikeadream]

5. Oh happy day

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2azX548ppo

[malaise]

8. Sweet

Why don't these fucking whiny Rethugs leave Congress and work for Bush.

[lumberjack_jeff]

10. This is not only a battle that congress needs to fight, it is one they need to win.

Failure is totalitarianism. Period.

[smiley_glad_hands]

11. About fricking time.

I want the waters filled with the political blood of W and rethugs alike. Take no prisoners. Make no compromises. Obama can then come in and promote reconciliation--seeing how he wants to unify everyone and what not. But before that, I want our dem leaders kicking rethug ass.

Pelosi just made my friends list again.

[L. Coyote]

12. AND, only a very few Rs stood up to be counted as the BUSH Junta.

[gratuitous]

13. Don't miss this little nuance

The report cites the president’s “right” to assert “executive privilege.” There are just two things wrong with that: There is no “right” to executive privilege, and there is no right to “executive privilege.” Besides that, the folks subpoenaed never asserted anything; they just didn’t respond. There is nothing in the Constitution or the U.S. Code that says a person can just ignore a duly-served subpoena.

This contempt action is long overdue, and the Democrats should simply ignore all Republican pissiness over it.

[L. Coyote]

21. Good points. To ignore a duly-served subpoena from the People (Congress). Unthinkable!

Not to mention, as we see, criminal!

[katty]

14. After 7+ years - uh, what took you so long?!

[Lerkfish]

15. Hey! can we arrange to make the repugs walk out EVERY day?

:)

[The Traveler]

16. RULE OF LAW

How many times did we hear that one in the nineties? Well, we all see now how important rule of law is to the conservative movement ...

We need to shove that one right down their throats, right now.

[lame54]

17. K&R - But, Beware of wolves...

in Wolves' clothing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hr8k8WHTzN0

[gateley]

18. Man, that just SOUNDS so good, doesn't it? nt

[chemp]

19. After a loooong day at work

This is the best news I had all day.

Now go to their offices and arrest them. Drag to congress.
Do


Your


Jobs.

[alfredo]

20. Can Mukasey forbid the USA from acting? If then, could the Sgt at Arms

be dispatched to arrest them?

[Triana]

22. US Attny for the D of C is...

..a bu$h appointee, no?

If so, expect him to do exactly nothing.