Did Rove, Harriet, Sampson, Justice act WITHOUT Bush's OK?

[rodeodance]

Did Rove, Harriet, Sampson, Justice act WITHOUT Bush's OK?

Was Bush 'out of the Loop" (commonality with Reagan)?

ummmmmm... If, so, What did he do about it once he learned of this?

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Forum Name Latest Breaking News
Topic subject "Is the president not entitled to confidential advice on personnel matters?"
Topic URL http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x2777166#2777174
2777174, "Is the president not entitled to confidential advice on personnel matters?"
Posted by EarlG on Thu Mar-22-07 01:13 PM

That's the heart of the executive privilege argument.

So I guess they'll have to adequately explain this:

In response to a barrage of questions from reporters yesterday, White House spokesman Tony Snow said only that Bush had "no recollection of (the firings) ever being raised with him."

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x3176205

Snow said only that Bush had "no recollection of (the firings) ever being raised with him."

Forum Name General Discussion: Politics
Topic subject White House Fight Might Turn on Bush's Role
Topic URL http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x3176205#3176205
3176205, White House Fight Might Turn on Bush's Role
Posted by babylonsister on Thu Mar-22-07 01:06 PM

http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/002843.php

White House Fight Might Turn on Bush's Role
By Paul Kiel - March 22, 2007, 1:59 PM

The Hill had an interesting take on the looming legal battle between the White House and Congress this morning:

In an e-mail dated Nov. 15, 2006, Kyle Sampson, former chief of staff to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, asked then-White House Counsel Harriet Miers and her deputy, William Kelley, whether he had the green light to go forward with the firing plan.

Miers responded that she was “not sure whether this will be determined to require the boss’s attention.” Her e-mail ended with the words: “We will see. Thanks.”

Sampson, who resigned last week, responded with a critical question: “Who will determine whether whether this requires the President’s attention?”...

The e-mail exchange is particularly relevant to Bush’s case because the Supreme Court has provided only limited protection for executive privilege. It acknowledges the need to protect communications between high-ranking government officials and those who advise and assist them, but it has also ruled that the public interest can outweigh that need in “non-military” and “non-diplomatic” discussions. Critics of the U.S. attorney firings argue that Bush’s case for executive privilege would be significantly weaker if his aides never discussed the plan for the firings with him.

In response to a barrage of questions from reporters yesterday, White House spokesman Tony Snow said only that Bush had “no recollection of ever being raised with him.”

more...
And The Hill's article is here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=3176208&mesg_id=3176208

[WI_DEM]

1. I'm tired of hearing that all of these messes happen without the creep knowing it

I think he's involved up to his neck with it all. Plame, the Attorney's, the doctored documents pretaining to Iraq--you name it.

[July]

11. He never seems to know what's going on in an administration he supposedly heads.

I hope people who voted for him like the heavy lifting he's doing.

[TwilightGardener]

2. The buck stops with Chimpy, no matter how Chimpy would love it not to be so.

[fooj]

3. Little Lord Pissypants is up to his eyeballs in this shit.

Take that to the bank!

[smaug]

7. Dubya was the 'Enforcer' during his father's 1992 campaign

Don't forget, Dubya was the 'Enforcer' during his father's 1992 campaign. He reveled in dirty tricks, firing people, and riding 'herd' on the media following the campaign. I find, with his history of nastiness and cruelty, the idea that he had no role in this affair incredulous. I suspect we'll find out eventually that Cheney and Rove may be competing to be the 'grey eminences,' but Dubya probably needs very little assistance in being a dirty person. I enjoy throwing into reTHUG faces that Dubya is about as Xtian as Osama Been Forgotten . . .

[fooj]

9. Welcome to DU!

:hi:

[renate]

4. If the attorneys "serve at the pleasure of the President"

... wouldn't they have to be fired at his pleasure, too? I find it hard to believe that Gonzalez could, all on his own, fire people whom Bush had hired. :shrug:

[in_cog_ni_to]

5. THE BUCK STOPS AT HIS FEET!

Impeach his ass. If he's not incompetent (HE IS!), he's a CRIMINAL (HE IS!). Either way, he shouldn't be in the WH.

I just love their use of the phrase..."I have no recollection." What a crock.

[Virginia Dare]

6. There may be evidence to the contrary?

and it may already be in the hands of the Democrats? That would explain Snow's cryptic words.

[Blackhatjack]

8. The out of the loop defense loses all integrity once the President knows about it and does nothing

The only way Bush could argue he was left out of these important decisions is to allege those around him were all conspiring together to keep him in the dark. And at that point, the President should have known -- as Chuck Schumer says, if he did not know he needs to be fired.

[LizW]

10. But, they supposedly serve

"at the pleasure of the President". So how could they possibly be fired without him knowing? (Rhetorical)

Bush has said already twenty times that these USAs serve at his pleasure. That is an admission that he directed their firing. He can't have it both ways and now turn around and say that he didn't know.

He's got to pick a story and stick with it. If he directed the firings, then the WH needs to show proof of the reasons. Or, if this happened and "no one ever raised the issue with him", then we need to find out who approved this and they need to be prosecuted. Heads need to roll.

If he handed off the authority for this kind of thing to KKKarl, then we need to know what other supposedly presidential duties unelected people are performing.

[left is right]

12. knew; didn't know--doesn't matter

* was selected to do the job; he is ultimately responsible.