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CIA Tape Investigation: Another Whitewash
in the Making
George
Washington's Blog
Thursday January 3, 2007
After the co-chairs of the 9/11 Commission said
that the CIA (and the White House) "obstructed our investigation", attorney
general Mukasey appointed
a prosecutor to conduct a criminal probe.
Sounds good, right?
Well, the prosecutor:
- "will not serve as a special prosecutor such as Patrick Fitzgerald,
who operated autonomously" (AP)
- There's nothing really "outside" about [prosecutor] John Dunham. He's
a career DOJ prosecutor, the number two official in the U.S. Attorney's
Office in Connecticut. . . ." (former
DOJ official Marty Lederman, )
- The prosecutor
"will report to the deputy attorney general", acting Deputy attorney
general Craig Morford (Washington
Post)
- The prosecutor will lack independence, contrary to the Justice Department's
own regulations:
"While I certainly agree that these matters warrant an immediate
criminal investigation, it is disappointing that the Attorney General
has stepped outside the Justice Department's own regulations and declined
to appoint a more independent special counsel in this matter. . . .
The Justice Department's record over the past seven years of sweeping
the administration's misconduct under the rug has left the American
public with little confidence in the administration's ability to investigate
itself. Nothing less than a special counsel with a full investigative
mandate will meet the tests of independence, transparency and completeness.
Appointment of a special counsel will allow our nation to begin to restore
our credibility and moral standing on these issues." (House Judiciary
Committee Chairman John
Conyers)
Bottom line: Just another whitewash.
Note: Hat tip to Salon
for its many useful updates.
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