Another 'I'm the victim of Bush' story, even from O'Neill. Anyone know how close Bush and O'Neill were before he left? IMO, anyone who decides to tell inside info so soon after leaving has a huge grudge.
Not close at all. If my memory serves, O'Neill and Bush did not know each other before the former was tapped to be energy secretary. He was recommended by VP Cheney, who headed the transition team.
We all have to remember that, due to the Florida fiasco, the normal transition period was cut in half. The new administration was facing as much as two years before it could get all of its appointees below secretary level vetted and confirmed. Remember how the Dems were promising to be obstructionist at every turn? And remember how quickly the Jeffords betrayal began to surface shortly after the inauguration?
So, during the abbreviated transition, the incoming Bush Administration rushed to at least get its cabinet secretaries named. I suspect O'Neill was not vetted as well as he might have been during a normal transition. He always seemed to be the round peg in a square hole right from the outset.
BTW, if it is true that O'Neill (and others) gave secret documents to the co-author of this book, anyone want to bet there won't be any leak investigation? In fact, when can anyone remember a leak investigation such as the one stirred up by the Wilson-Plame affair?! The coin of the realm in Washington is leaks.