Sell your soul

I cry no tears for Monica Goodling - I sincerely hope she is prosecuted for everything the law allows.

(via the NYT)

According to [DoJ's IG] report, officials at the White House first developed a method of searching the Internet to glean the political leanings of a candidate and introduced it at a White House seminar called The Thorough Process of Investigation. Justice Department officials then began using the technique to search for key phrases or words in an applicant’s background, like “abortion,” “homosexual,” “Florida recount,” or “guns.”

Because it isn't about Monica:

The problem appears to have predated Ms. Goodling’s rise at the Justice Department. In one episode cited in 2004, when John Ashcroft was attorney general, Ms. Goodling’s predecessor as White House liaison, Susan Richmond, blocked the deputy attorney general’s office from extending the stint of one lawyer because she felt that the job should be filled by a political appointee loyal to Mr. Bush, the report said.

The problem is that the political class has learned that if you need to do something questionable, staff it out to some rising star.

People like Monica Goodling, Kyle Sampson, John Yoo - people who want to be somebody. People who want to be rewarded.

You will notice the IG report does not recommend any action against Gonzalez and Ashcroft. After all, they did nothing. They knew nothing.

I'm sure some prosecutorial snob will want to sidestep Goodling and go after the big fish. Get both if you can - but bury the ones you have for sure, even if the big one gets away.

Maybe if you make an example out of these toadies, the next crop might tell the boss to do their own dirty work.

Too idealistic for you?

Well, Cox, Richardson and Ruckelshaus set the bar that high - I'm just saying Justice should remind the next crop of wanna-be's where it is.