Posted on 10/27/2005 2:20:13 PM PDT by Carl/NewsMax
For better or worse, Leakgate Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald has brought a new legal standard to Washington, D.C. - where he is said to be readying indictments against top White House officials based on false statements they made to investigators about a crime that may have never happened.
Though such a prosecution by Fitzgerald could certainly be legally justified, allegations similar to those currently under consideration for indictment - as well as other potential crimes that are far more serious - were seldom if ever prosecuted during the 1990s.
Here's a short list of potential criminal violations for which prosecutors decided not to file indictments during the Clinton administration.
Lying under oath to a federal judge - a crime U.S. District Court Judge Susan Webber Wright determined that President Clinton committed in the Paula Jones sexual harasssment case. Legal resolution: No criminal indictment.
Lying under oath to a federal grand jury - as Independent Counsel Ken Starr found President Clinton had done in the Monica Lewinsky investigation. Legal resolution: No criminal indictment.
Lying under oath both to Congress and to federal investigators - as Independent Counsel Robert Ray concluded that Mrs. Clinton had done in the Travel Office probe. Legal resolution: No indictment
Hiding evidence from Starr's Whitewater investigation - as the Senate Banking Committee concluded Mrs. Clinton did in the case of her missing Rose Law firm billing records. Legal resolution: No criminal referral, no indictments.
Trading presidential pardons for finanical contributions - which President Clinton allegedly did in the Pardongate case. Legal resolution: No indictments.
Trading presidential clemency for votes in a federal election - as President Clinton allegedly did with village elders in New Square, NY - which backed Mrs. Clinton's 2000 Senate candidacy 1400 to 12. Legal resolution: No indictments.
Nuclear missile guidance technology allegedly traded by the Clinton adminsitration to China in exchange for campaign contributions. Legal resolution: No indictments.
The Illegal gathering of confidential FBI files on political opponents - as the Clinton White House did in the Filegate case. Legal resolution: No indictments.
Misusing the IRS to audit political opponents - as the White House allegedly did with numerous conservative organizations, as well as with witnesses against the Clintons. Legal resolution: No indictments.
Hiring private detectives to intimidate and/or smear potential witnesses in the Starr investigation. Legal resolution: No indictments.
Illegally leaking Linda Tripp's confidential personnel file to the press. Legal resolution: No indictments.
Too bad Patrick Fitzgerald was otherwise engaged when all of the above transpired.
"Unfortunately, the info about bin Laden's satellite phone came through prosecutor Duncan Fitzgerald (any relation?) in open court: "
Yeah and the other ignorant geologist who wanted 15 mins of fame who correctly ID'd the area in Afgh. from the rock formations in the background of one of the first BL videos - nuts!
All that is way beyond dubious, and I believe it is far more believable that they have been planning this as a way to discredit the Bush administration, especially since a well known liberal hack like wilson would be the LAST person the Bush administraton would ask to go to Niger.
In addition to the fact that wilson said he proved the forgery of Nigerian government documents while he was there. Yet the "documents" he supposedly proved were forgeries, were dated several months AFTER he was there, and didn't exist when he was there.
All this is MUCH MORE believable than the idea that Rove and Libby, who the liberals say are evil conservative masterminds, made the bonehead mistake of "outing" someone to discredit Wilson, when you could more than discredit wilson without even mentioning he was married. The whole thing stinks of manipulation and liberal spin.
Yes, there's one set of laws that apply to peons and Republican office holders; an exemption from any and all laws for Democrat office holders. No reason for that to change since Republicans seem satisfied with the rules as they are and Democrats are certainly not complaining.
"In addition to the fact that wilson said he proved the forgery of Nigerian government documents while he was there. Yet the "documents" he supposedly proved were forgeries, were dated several months AFTER he was there, and didn't exist when he was there."
He was there when the original forgeries surfaced 18 months before this trip - I read somewhere - and may have seen them then - his (former) wife at the time - not Val - was a French agent working at the French Embassy in Niger.
Outed as a CIA agent as early as Aldrich Ames. Withdrawn from foreign service some time prior to the end of 1997. Married a U.S. ambassador, effectively ending chances for truly covert foreign service even without the previous incident.
And for his future employment. The MSM would do a job on him that would make them all look like they have been kind to Bush & co. if he doesn't return indictments and he knows it.
Then why were the documents he supposedly showed as forgeries dated months after his return? That has been well established. He isn't even qualified to do that, or investigate a uranium purchase.
re: not resigning because they know that haven't done a flipping thing wrong
Under this reasoning Clinton should have resigned when he was impeached. Impeachment is to a President what indictment is to the rest of us.
I would think the President and his staff would make a huge deal of everyone involved refusing to resign simply because they had been accused of a crime. If indictment were guilt then there would be no reason for a trial, in court or in the Senate.
Thank you. 1997, even further back than I recalled. There is no way Fitzgerald can indict Rove or Libby and be taken seriously. Some lame ambiguous perjury or obstruction chage won't hold water either. Any more than the bogus charges against DeLay. Breaking a laundering law two years before it was a law, and conspiring to defeat democrats, not only not a crime, but earle doesn't even have the evidence he said he had to get the indictment. DeLay and plame-Gate are NOTHING more than the attempted criminalization of Conservatives, because liberals suck and can't win based on their liberal ideology because for TEN YEARS America has said NO to liberalism. That's the reality of all this.
If Rove and Libby are indicted and they TRULY KNOW they did NOTHING wrong. They should't step down. I wouldn't if I were them. SCREW liberals! You don't step down and let people win when you KNOW you are not guilty. Just like innocent people accused of a crime do not take deals or plead guilty. It's a crock.
Well that is the left for you. Situational ethics. Do as I say not as I do, what's illegal for you is okay for me. That's the modern day liberal.
THAT is what I could go for. I was hopeful for that before Miers, then it was Miers, and I was just trying to hold off until the hearings, but that very first day even, I said I wish it had been Luddig or Jones or Owens or Pryor. If conservatives can put MAJOR pressure on the RINOs, a REAL conservative that will do to the libs what you said, can be confirmed, but only if the RINOs are reminded in explicit terms what will happen to them if they don't vote to confirm.
When I first bought my weekend cabin in the country, I'd had a quiet few drinks to celebrate and went out to irrigate the flower bed from the front deck at about 2 am. Well I'm standing there, attending to nature's call, when this bashee starts yowling and hissing and howling at me from the top of the table I'd just that day put on the deck. I'd also left the remains of the first-night's BBQ on it, and it was the biggest, angriest coon I'd ever seen.
Scared me so much I had to go and have another drink!
I just learned that Fitzgerald is a Regis High School graduate, like me! I'm sure he is a fair man.
"Someday Republicans might learn to fight back".
I think at this point in time we do need a third party. The Conservative Party. The Republican Party is simply not doing the job by not fighting back.
Right you are. Bring it on.
Maybe we're in better shape than we think. Hannity did a good job of putting it in perspective yesterday. He pointed out we have the congress going back to the drawing board to find ways to eliminate spending, they're beginning to take illegal immigration seriously, and Miers has withdrawn her nomination.
We need to put even more pressure on them.
The Illegal gathering of confidential FBI files on political opponents - as the Clinton White House did in the Filegate case. Legal resolution: No indictments.
Why the hell not?
re: Bring it on.
The longer we delay taking on these people the harder it's going to be to win. They have spent years quietly chipping away at our way of life.
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