Congress to White House: "Reality Bites"

[mloutre]

And about damn time, too.

For the first time since taking office, Bush confronts political furors on multiple fronts and an opposition Congress armed with the subpoena power to investigate them. ... The response to the dispute over dismissed federal prosecutors underscores the inexperience of a White House accustomed to having its own party in control on Capitol Hill. After first brushing aside suggestions from a Congress that had been reluctant to exercise oversight for the last six years that the firings may have been improper, officials then sought to minimize White House involvement in the mass ouster. Tuesday's release of e-mails documenting the role of key administration figures in the decision to dismiss the prosecutors provoked outrage on both sides of the aisle.

In the past, questions about its actions might have died down without the internal administration e-mails being made public. Now the White House is in the position of explaining why it has repeatedly changed its story. ... Rep. Thomas M. Davis III (Va.), the ranking Republican on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said Democrats will not let Bush brush aside controversies. "This is going to be a rockier year for the White House because every time there is a perceived mistake, they can fire up an investigation," he said. "It puts the White House on the defensive."

{snip}

Bush has faced tough political moments before, including the uproar over abuse at Abu Ghraib, the original CIA leak scandal and the revelation of secret warrantless eavesdropping. The difference now is that Democrats are in charge on Capitol Hill and the Bush team is not used to the jousting with another branch, which was commonplace for Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton. ... That has been evident in the disparate responses to recent issues by different players in the administration. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, a veteran of President George H.W. Bush's administration, responded to Walter Reed disclosures in a traditional and predictable Washington manner by firing the Army secretary and two generals, and vowing to fix the problem. By contrast, Gonzales, who had no Washington experience before coming from Texas with Bush, through his office provided shifting accounts of what happened with the U.S. attorneys before finally resorting to the more familiar "mistakes were made" news conference Tuesday and accepting the resignation of his top aide the day before.

The arrival of the new Congress was the reason that Bush eased out his old friend and lawyer, Harriet E. Miers, as White House counsel and brought in Fred F. Fielding, a seasoned Washington hand who helped Reagan deal with a Democratic Congress in the 1980s. Now that she is out, Miers has found herself on the spot for her actions regarding the prosecutors. ... "I think that the White House Counsel's Office, and the leadership at Justice and the leadership at the FBI all deserve part of the blame for the unacceptable way these issues have been handled," Sen. John Sununu (R-N.H.) said about the prosecutors and FBI abuses. "The president is ultimately responsible for making these appointments. One of the real disappointments in each of these examples is there were real failings at many different levels."

"What you have got is a White House that has become an accountability-free zone that is now facing the reality of checks and balances from Congress," said Rep. Chris Van Hollen (Md.), a member of the House Democratic leadership. "You had a White House that was used to a rubber-stamp Congress for so long that they could get away with anything. This is the kind of stuff that in the past Congress would have put their head in the sand about."

Source article is here:

White House crises show new accountability
Bush faces opposition Congress with subpoena power
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17601682/


This is important stuff, people. Call your Congressperson, send email to your Senator, demand that they follow up on all of this ASAP. The BushCo administration's house of cards is finally crumbling, and it is incumbent on each and every one of us to hasten that collapse so that the Constitution and the laws of this democratic republic actually matter to the White House again.

Investigate. Indict. Impeach. Imprison.

Any questions?

[karynnj]

1. Looks like a lot of chickens are home to roost

At minimum we need the investigations to start. We also need to push some of the more wobbly Democrats to recognize that this is not politics as usual. This is fighting for what type of country we are becoming.

[porphyrian]

2. Keep 'em coming. They made the hydra that's biting them. - n/t

[ProSense]

3. Excellent! This is what

John Dean discussed on yesterday's Countdown: Congress' return to oversight with subpoena power.

Let the hearings/investigations begin.