http://thenexthurrah.typepad.com/the_next_hurrah/2007/04/white_house_tri.htmlWhite House Tries to Pre-Empt Evidence-Gatheringby emptywheel
Folks, let's make one thing clear. The primary reason behind White House attempts to push up the Gonzales testimony before the Senate has little to do with their desire to just put the USA Purge behind them. It likely has little to do with anything Kyle Sampson said on Thursday--Sampson's testimony still left Abu Gonzales in the "he said she said" territory he was already in after McNulty testified. I'd suggest the sudden rush has more to do with a question Schumer asked Sampson late in the hearing--when he asked Sampson if Monica Goodling had asked Assistant USA candidates about their voting habits and party loyalty. The Democratic strategy on this has become more clear--and Republicans have no doubt realized that Democrats are proceeding in such a way as to collect enough information to not just embarrass Abu Gonzales, but to charge him or key underlings. They've already gotten evidence of clear law-breaking. And by the time Abu Gonzales testifies before Congress, they may well have a fairly well-developed case against him.
So let's talk strategy. Schumer has made many allusions to having spoken to DOJ employees who have told the Committee more details on the USA Purge and related DOJ politicization. That detail about Goodling, which I noted in my hearing round-up...
Chuck Schumer seems to have certain suspicions about what Monica Goodling did. In particular, it seems that he may have well-grounded suspicions that she was administering loyalty oaths to Assistant USAs, a career position. I wonder if that's one of the reasons she has gotten so quiet of late.
...seems to be validated by the details of this profile on Goodling:
Charles Miller, whom Gonzales appointed as interim U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of West Virginia, interviewed with the panel in the fall of 2005. "They asked me what I'd done to support the president," Miller says. It wasn't a question Miller expected. He told them he'd voted for Bush.
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