Obama hires back one of the U.S. attorneys fired by Bush and Rove
By John Amato Sunday Aug 02, 2009 6:00pm
This has been long overdue. From Murray Waas:
In an appointment that senior Justice Department officials say demonstrates the Obama administration’s commitment to reversing the Bush administration’s politicization of the Department, a U.S. attorney fired by President Bush was reappointed to his old job on Friday.
Daniel Bogden, who was fired in the fall of 2006 by the Bush administration as the U.S. attorney in Nevada, was offered his old job back by President Obama, and was formally nominated on Friday.
Bogden’s confirmation by the Senate is all but assured: He has spent his entire adult life in government service, and as a former U.S. attorney was confirmed by the Senate previously. He was also thoroughly vetted for his new position by the White House Counsel’s office prior to his most recent nomination, even though he was vetted during his first appointment as U.S. attorney by the Bush administration. Moreover, he has the backing of both his home-state senators: Harry Reid, a Democrat, and John Ensign, a Republican. That Reid is a Senate Majority Leader, and that Reid personally suggested to the President that Bogden get his old job back probably, won’t hurt matters.
Ironically, Bogden’s formal reappointment as U.S. attorney comes exactly one day after former Bush political adviser Karl Rove gave sworn testimony before the House Judiciary Committee regarding the firings of Bogden and eight other U.S. attorneys fired by the Bush administration. A federal grand jury is currently investigating whether Bush administration officials and members of Congress obstructed justice in pressing for one or more of the firings, and also, whether they misled Congress as to why the prosecutors were fired.
Bogden’s firing in the fall of 2006 is referred to by many in the Justice Department as the firing that came about as a result of some sort of Immaculate Conception: For two years, the Justice Department’s two watchdog agencies, its Inspector General and Office of Responsibility, spent 18 months investigating the firings of the nine U.S. attorneys. When it came to Bogden, however, the investigators were not only unable to determine why he was fired, but even who ordered his firing. Every single Justice Department official and Bush administration official interviewed by investigators disclaimed responsibility for his firing. Isn't that typical Bush/Cheney dealings?
Bogden’s appointment to his old job by Obama appears to a historical first: He will be the first U.S. attorney to be appointed and fired by the same President, only to be appointed U.S. attorney again by another President. How strange it all is and I believe as time goes by we'll see a lot more of these "irregularities" pop up, don't you think?
(co-written by David Neiwert)








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not to hire Bogden back in 5...4...3...2...1.......
Ensign was going to take the lead on this until he faced the likelihood of being indicted for campaign fraud.
SEND ALL OF THE PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATION STRAIGHT TO FUCKING PRISON
sorry...i drank way too much coffee today and i need to vent
Is that why Starbucks calls their largest size a "vent"i?
Sorry Uncle Joe, I think that job should go to David Iglesias.I concur with the straight to prison part though, if that's any consolation.
...in retrograde right now. This is the kind of behind-the-scenes stuff that is being quietly done while the rest of the media is focussed on Birthers, Deathers, and (gasp!) the Anti-christ!
And it won't be the last such move, I'd wager.
Rove....while Bush and Rove remain free.
But he was also hired by Bush in the first place because he was a good, conservative, Republican.
Why is Obama hiring another Republican?
More of that "bipartisan" spirit? Thinking maybe I will FedEx Obama some real beer. That American stuff seems to have fried his brain cells.
hard to believe...but they do exist
Isn't Patrick Fitzgerald a Republican? I felt like he tried his best to expose what was going on with the outing of Valerie Plame--to the extent that he could within the law, given that Darth Vader was obstructing him.
IF* I had any faith in Obama I would say that it would be to sic him on other Republicans for crimes committed (and in all likelihood ongoing) during the Bush administration. Doing things that way insulates against counter-charges of Democratic partisanship - which charges are part of the Republican strategy to create a wholly partisan DoJ.
They should actually hire a whole cadre of lawyers to look into the actions of all the Monica Goodling hires, and another to look into the Republicanw who were in legitimate political positions, but jumped into the civil service at the last moment to become 'headless nails.' One whiff of bias and you're out. Those two groups constitute a fifth column in the legal system. IMnsHO, of course.
* - that's a big IF.
cool!
Now if we could just set him straight on the torture and health care agendas.....
he's rehiring a Republican that Bush originally hired?!?
He must have been doing something RIGHT!!!
Right??
Right??!
hire him?
But George H. W. Bush also nominated Sotomayor to the District court in New York and she turned out to be a-okay for us as well....
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonia_Sotomayor
David Souter.
He turned out to be pretty damned good.
Sotomayor because of a political deal with the Gov of NY, he got to pick one of the judges to be appointed.
make the MIC stand down , the USA does not have the moral fortitude to tell any country what to do , the only logical explation then is money and power = greed and empire building , wait idol is on gotta go .
...a lawyer scorned. :)
...if Mr. Bogden will be called upon to investigate Sen. Ensign's sexual/financial scandals. Maybe that's more of a senate ethics and campaign finance issue.
And a first in government ethics. Well, maybe not a first...but it's likely been a very long time.
Party affiliation didn't stop their prosecutions.
...what about getting rid of the 87 that didn't get fired ??
have any of them joined the ranks of the recently unemployed ??
Isn't it Obama's right to appoint new US Attorneys? Why is this most political hacks of the George W. Bush era---someone who prosecuted someone for writing fiction, someone who unsuccessfully prosecuted a respected community leader for what amounted to unauthorized use of the office fax machine, someone who forced Tommy Chong to spend two years in prison for lending his name to a bong distributor, someone who was up to her ears in the US Attorney firing scandal according to the testimony of Monica Goodling and Kyle Sampson---why is this person still on?
none say appointed by obama
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_At...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leura_Garrett_Ca...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_H._Martin
http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/als/usattorney/inde...
http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/arc...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diane_Humetewa
http://www.arktimes.com/blogs/arkansasblog/20...
maybe better luck with the 'b' states... (even if there were any, they wouldn't have a atty appointed by obama)
on to california
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._Attorney_fo...
" Thomas P. O'Brien has held the role of U.S. Attorney since 2007...."
It is traditional for a new President to replace most (90+) of the 93 U.S. Attorneys that he inherits from his predecessor. However, it is usually not a top priority. Cabinet positions, assistant and deputy secretaries and DoJ DC positions generally come first.
Obama has announced nominees for at least 7 U.S. Attorney offices so far which puts him a couple months ahead of G.W. Bush's pace and G.W. had replaced 91 or 92 of Clinton's appointees by late 2002.
Btw, the first 6 of those nominees were announced back in early June, but as far as I know, none of them have even had a hearing in the Senate so far. It all takes time.
..was the one who hired Monica Goodling, IIRC - with knowledge aforethought that she would only hire partisan Christianist Republicans to run DoJ as a Dominionist shop. Up to her ears is putting it mildly.
Yes, tofubo - in most cases this would not be a priority, but we've been hearing the same question asked for over two years now - "If the Prosecutors' Purge attorneys were fired for NOT misusing their offices, what does that say about those who were not fired?"
You know, if I was fired, then later read in the papers that no one would admit to having fired me, I think I'd show up at "work" again on Monday.
In my fantasy world, my boss would sound just like Colonel Klink.
... though they predominantly believe our and or their laws come from god initially. They're just hedging their bets/beliefs, by permeating our justice system and its form of governance.
It just goes to prove their insecurity in faith albeit conveniently supported by their belief(s). The fallback excuse, like a band-aide holding a severed limb to its body, they'll do anything to hold their storybook together irregardless of its merit to the whole vs the merits to the one.
As directed, they must continually be on the lookout for and do their best to stymie or eliminate any and all prevalent evil, as they perceive to be. What better way, then to pervade our secular Constitution and its form of governance?
You wonder why they dislike/hate big government, besides the synergistic shortcomings... simply note their overwhelming admiration for sovereignty, state's rights etc. How do ya think "ROE v. WADE" would have gone over in say KY or KS if left to their courts accordingly?
Its funny, that one of the reasons America was founded, was because some people wished not to be under the rule of a single church... go figure :-/
As anyone can clearly see, they want a Sharia Law environment, only difference is... the storybook.
Religious Schools Train Lawyers for Culture Wars
by Barbara Bradley Hagerty:
[ http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?... ]
How a 'fourth tier' religious law school infiltrated the US Government: - James D Zirin
[ http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/busines... ]
[ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7e9YUXE8Gzk ](1:30)
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