Open Thread: Gonzo Heads to the House
Rep. Conyers is getting things started, and it looks like it's going to be a long day for the AG. Check out TPMMuckraker for updates throughout the day.
Predictions? Impressions?
Update: Check out TPMtv today. If TPM were somehow elected to Congress and given a seat on the House Judiciary, these are the questions we'd ask with our five minutes.
Advertisement
Christie over at FDL is live blogging the hearings, and you can stream them at CSPAN 3.
May 10, 2007 6:58 AM | Reply | Permalink
Unless the Committee starts focusing more on White House involvement, the hearings today will be nothing more than an opportunity for Gonzales to unremember the truth.
By the way, "unremember" is trademarked, just like truthiness.
May 10, 2007 7:23 AM | Reply | Permalink
The best thing Gonzales might have going for him is that he is such a slimy, sleazy little liar that it's hard to stomach watching him. I tried. I can't. Makes me nauseous. It's almost worse than listening to Bush.
May 10, 2007 7:32 AM | Reply | Permalink
I'm more of a bookmaker than a predictor, so I'll offer a spread on Gonzo amnesia:
13-15 "I don't recalls" (or variants thereof) per hour of testimony.
May 10, 2007 7:32 AM | Reply | Permalink
WOW, thanks for the reminder; "I have no recollection" that he was appearing today.
May 10, 2007 10:38 AM | Reply | Permalink
ric,
well said.
May 10, 2007 1:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
I didn't think it was possible but it happened -- he was even worse today than he was last time.
I roared out loud when he was asked if the WH had anything to do with deciding who should be fired -- and he said no, because the administration had said publically they had nothing to do with it.
May 10, 2007 4:46 PM | Reply | Permalink
I'm with you. Can anyone here remember a single person in the Clinton administration who came even within a mile of this level of incompetence? It is apalling that this administration even found this many people who simply have no comprehension of what their jobs require.
Jan
May 10, 2007 5:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
this administration even found this many people who simply have no comprehension of what their jobs require.
Indeed, found this many Loyal Bushie bootlicking, cynical, incompetent, lying scoundrels who hate America, the truth, the US Constitution, national law or international law, and have literally gotten away with murder.
May 10, 2007 5:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
Jan,
I think "irresponsible" might be a better word.
The Bush gang ignores the Constitution, the law, and tradition; they do what they want, and when called on it, they either stonewall or lie.
Gonzalez's appeaance before the Committees is a perfect example of how they operate.
The sad thing is, they have yet to pay, in any meaningful way, for their irresponsibility.
As in other things, whether its Bush appointees or Republicans in Congress, Bush's allies end up paying for the Bush gang's irresponsibility.
May 11, 2007 6:24 AM | Reply | Permalink
Top Five Things You Probably Don’t Know About Alberto Gonzales
May 11, 2007 3:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
Can anyone help me out with a link here? My brother ( ar right-wing idealogue) insists that Congress has no legal authority to compel any testimony period. Subpoenas are just window-dressing and have no force in law. He also states that lying to Congress (under oath, or not) is not a crime because congresspeople do it all the time.
I have looked all over and not found anything specific about these issues. If he is right, we are screwed. No one ever has to testify; contgempt of Congress means nothing, and our government is toothless. I have found a few sites, but none actually addresses the power of Congress to punish those who either refuse to testify, or lie when they do.
Can anyone help me here? Thanks.
The links I have so far are:
http://www.dcbar.org/for_lawyers/ethics/legal_ethics/opinions/opinion288.cfm
http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/002981.php
http://www.senate.gov/reference/resources/pdf/RL31836.pdf
http://branemrys.blogspot.com/2005/03/congressional-subpoenas.html
They are all enlightening, but they don't say anything about enforcement of subpoenas or consequences for improper or refusal to testify. Thanks in advance for any help!
Jan
May 12, 2007 6:51 PM | Reply | Permalink