Any Susan Ralston Sightings? Today Was Deposition Day

[Hissyspit]

Today was the day she was supposed to be deposed by Waxman and the oversight committee.

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Administration Oversight
Committee Requests Deposition of Former White House Aide Susan Ralston
Today the Committee sent a formal request to former White House aide Susan Ralston to appear for a deposition on April 5th. The deposition is part of the Committee’s investigation, begun last spring, into lobbying contacts between lobbyist Jack Abramoff and the White House.

Background:

Susan Ralston, a former aide to Rove, stepped down and resigned last year to avoid causing political damage to President Bush after she admitted to accepting gifts and passing information to her former employer, convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff. In 2002, Bush fired Fred Black, the U.S. attorney in Guam, because he was investigating Abramoff. A month before Black was fired, Abramoff wrote, "I don't care if they appoint Bozo the Clown: We need to get rid of Fred Black."

http://edgeing.blogspot.com:80/2007/04/waxman-sees-bush-administration.html

Congressman Henry Waxman (D-California), chairman of the House Oversight and Government Affairs Committee, intends to get to the bottom of the issue.

Citing Congress' investigation of White House contacts with disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff as an example of apparent misuse of outside email accounts, Waxman is seeking the deposition of Susan Ralston regarding communication she had via email with Abramoff. Ralston is a former assistant to White House political adviser Karl Rove. The questioned emails between Ralston and Abramoff concerned official White House business conducted through Ralston's RNC email address, according to documents released by Waxman's committee.

Ralston, who was also an assistant to Abramoff prior to her tenure at the White House, told the lobbyist to contact her through her RNC email address concerning specific favors he requested from the White House on behalf of his clients, so as to avoid leaving an automatic paper trail that is established when White House email servers are used. Ralston hasn't yet responded to Waxman's request.

[whistle]

1. I read in an earlier DU post, her deposition has been delayed indefinitely

...but I can't find any current links that support that:

<snip>
Mar 30, 2007
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(The Politico) This is the worst nightmare of the White House coming true -- Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), chairman of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee, is all over them on several fronts, including going after Karl Rove and Condoleezza Rice.

Waxman is now seeking a deposition of Susan Ralston, former assistant to Rove, the White House deputy chief of staff, as part of an investigation into White House dealings with imprisoned former lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Ralston, who worked for Abramoff before moving over as Rove's assistant, resigned from the White House in October after it was publicly disclosed that she accepted gifts, including tickets to sporting evidence, from and provided information to Abramoff. She was not charged with any wrongdoing, and there was no evidence at the time that Rove knew what she was up to, but Waxman wants to dig more deeply into the matter.

Here's a letter that Waxman sent Ralston today:

"Dear Ms. Ralston,

The Committee on Oversight and Government Reform requests your appearance at a deposition on Thursday, April 5, 2007, at 10:00 a.m., in 2157 Rayburn House Office Building. This deposition is part of an investigation the Committee commenced last spring regarding lobbying contacts between lobbyist Jack Abramoff and the White House.

In September 2006, the Committee released a bipartisan staff report that analyzed e-mail and billing records provided to the Committee by Mr. Abramoff's former lobbying firm. This report found that Mr. Abramoff and his associates had over 400 lobbying contacts with the White House, including 69 with you while you served as Executive Assistant to Karl Rove, the Senior Advisor to the President. The report described evidence that White House officials took multiple actions that benefited Mr. Abramoff and his clients; that Mr. Abramoff and his associates billed clients for over 150 meals with White House officials; and that several White House officials, including you, received tickets to sporting events and concerts from Mr. Abramoff.

The September report left a number of questions unanswered, including whether White House officials reimbursed Mr. Abramoff for tickets and meals as required by law; whether White House officials took actions that benefited Mr. Abramoff and his clients as described in the e-mails; and why White House officials used Republican National Committee and other non-governmental e-mail accounts to communicate with Mr. Abramoff and his associates about official government business. The Committee counsel will ask you about these and other related matters at the deposition."

Waxman did not threaten to subpoena Ralston in the letter, but I bet it will happen if she doesn't appear voluntarily.


Copyright 2007 POLITICO

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/03/30/politics/politico/thecrypt/main2631100.shtml

[KoKo]

2. A reliable DU'er called Waxman's office and said hearing was

postponed "indefinately." Maybe she's lawyering herself up to try to stonewall like Goodling. :shrug: