Kerik Withdraws his name for top DHS Job

AP on Yahoo ^ | 12/10/04 | AP

[CaptIsaacDavis]

EXCELLENT FIND! There is a strange thesis advanced by some on this site that the "Left" was after Kerik. NYT, etc., yes. However, a number of Liberal elites LOVED HIM -- and for good reason if one takes the blinders off to look closely at his policies and comments (and local reporting on him) over the years. Count me among the conservatives in NYC who knew him (and Giuliani) all too well -- and all of the scandals behind Kerik, who wondered whether the WH had done its homework.

[CaptIsaacDavis]

Not even close. ANY NYC local would know that the local press (in particular some of the obscure rags only locals tend to follow) has been filled with stories for years about not one but several diverse ugly rumors not yet surfaced nationally. I could list them all for you, but wouldn't. IF (that's a big IF) just one proved true, it would have meant a big headache for the Admin. Shame on the White House for not doing their homework. A simple Lexis-Nexis search -- or talking to someone from NY not blowing hot air -- instead of cruising on the web or talking to Giuliani (who stood to profit HUGE from the move) might have helped...

[ET(end tyranny)]

Is it about taxes or illegal status?

[foolscap]

What a shame. He would have been good for the job.

[BlackbirdSST]

How IRONIC that an imminently qualified man is KO'd for the Head of HOMELAND SECURITY, by the MOST obvious flaw in the Homeland Security of the United States...... "Illegal Immigration"... and the fact that it is looked upon as something necessary and encouraged rather than something ILLEGAL and punishable.

BUMP! Blackbird.

[Regulator]

Read Posts 32 and 38. That about sums it up.

[the invisib1e hand]

Nannygate seems like a really lame excuse.

"I have a hangnail" would have been more compelling.

[Jeff Head]

In response to the other poster, who had lived through the situation, where here husband was out of country and she unknowlingly hired the illiegal, that was my comment. Same could have happened to Kirik. I'm not saying it did, or that it was justified. In his position, it should have been his business to make sure he was above that type of reproach...but given human frailities, and given the other poster's story...I can see how it could happen.

Merry Christmas to you to AuntB, may the true Spirit of the Season, His Spirit be with you and yours.

[DarkWaters]

Would you trust anyone they did like?

Nope. But honestly, what kind of question is that?

[cgbg]

As long as Mineta continues his "no terrorist left behind" approach to transportation security the DHS job will be an extremely difficult one.

[FITZ]

He is a very honest man.

Apparently he's not.

[California Patriot]

About Kerik's Syrian wife ...

Good point. The thought crossed my mind when he was appointed, then I forgot about it. I shouldn't have.
It's a completely valid concern.