Ex-prosecutor to investigate sex claims against bishop [Mary Jo White!]

NY Newsday ^ | 2/17/04 | MICHAEL VIRTANEN

[Antoninus]

ALBANY, N.Y. -- A former federal prosecutor has been hired to investigate allegations of sexual misconduct against Albany Bishop Howard Hubbard and publicly report her findings.

Mary Jo White, U.S. attorney in Manhattan until 2002 and now a partner in a large New York law firm, said Tuesday she will do a "thorough, independent investigation" of the allegations starting immediately. She was retained by the Albany Roman Catholic Diocese Review Board.

[Antoninus]

Now this doesn't set off any alarm bells, does it?

[sinkspur]

Now this doesn't set off any alarm bells, does it?

You won't like any investigator, or result, that doesn't have Hubbard's neck in a noose.

[Antoninus]

For those of you who don't remember, Mary Jo White is the same attorney who investigated Clinton's pardon of Marc Rich. She really nailed him to the wall, didn't she?

I think Mary Jo White is just the type of attorney to thoroughly investigate a liberal big wig and amazingly find absolutely nothing amiss.

This stinks to high-heaven. Lord Jesus give us justice! In this world or the next.

[Antoninus]

You won't like any investigator, or result, that doesn't have Hubbard's neck in a noose.

Not true. They could have hired Rudy Guiliani. I would have been satisfied then. Mary Jo White is a leftwing flunky. There's NO WAY she'll find anything.

[Antoninus]

A column from Ann Coulter on Ms. White:

Mary Jo White-wash

While ostentatiously pursuing an "investigation" of the Marc Rich pardon (which will lead precisely nowhere), Mary Jo White, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, has stubbornly refused to indict top Democratic and union officials directly implicated in a money-laundering scheme uncovered by her own office some years ago.

In what is now called the Teamsters Swap Scandal, prosecutors working for Mary Jo White won three guilty pleas from top Teamsters aides back in 1997. Two years later, the Teamsters' former political director, William Hamilton, was convicted for his role in the kickback scheme. But for four years now, the Big Kahunas implicated in the money-swap operation have been largely forgotten by White's office. One big fish studiously ignored by Ms. White is the current chairman of the Democratic National Committee and Clinton pal, Terry McAuliffe.

At the center of the money-laundering scheme was Ron Carey, who had been anointed Teamsters president by "the most ethical administration in history" as part of an ingenious plan to "clean up" the Teamsters. When Teamsters legacy James Hoffa Jr. later challenged Carey for the union presidency in 1996, Carey's aides -- and perhaps Carey himself -- decided to give the Carey campaign a boost using general union funds.

As was proved by the government, both in oversight and criminal investigations, the Carey campaign repeatedly arranged for the Teamsters to make huge contributions to various liberal and Democratic groups, and then those groups would funnel the money right back -- not to the Teamsters, but to the Carey campaign. This is on the order of the IRS commissioner using tax revenues to buy himself a Porsche.

After sitting on evidence for four years that implicated Carey, the tough-talking Ms. White finally indicted him only days after George W. Bush was sworn in as president. But even a Republican in the White House hasn't prompted Clinton-appointed White to blink in her intractable refusal to pursue McAuliffe.

This is somewhat startling inasmuch as White's own office adduced testimony during the Hamilton trial naming McAuliffe as a party to the money-laundering operation. Democratic Party official Richard Sullivan testified that his former boss, Terry McAuliffe, outlined a plan to him that would allow the Democratic National Committee to participate in the Teamsters' evidently well-known kickback scheme. Sullivan said that McAuliffe told him the Democratic Party would be rewarded with up to a million dollars in campaign contributions from the Teamsters if the Democrats could find someone to donate $100,000 to the Carey campaign.

(Though completion of the scheme is not required for a criminal offense, the Teamsters came through with their quid. The donor located by the Democrats for their quo backed out at the last minute.)

Though Sullivan later told Senate investigators he did not view this arrangement as money laundering but rather as a way to "help raise money from the union," Sen. Arlen Specter informed Mr. Sullivan that he was using language that "is the equivalent of a quid pro quo."

After Sullivan's shocking trial testimony, even The New York Times was forced to admit that Sullivan's description of McAuliffe's role was "troubling." While trying to mitigate the force of Sullivan's testimony by incorrectly claiming that he had been given a "no-prosecution" deal from the prosecutor (correction issued 10 days later), the Times referred vaguely to "some judgment calls" that Mary Jo White was going to have to make with regard to McAuliffe. An indictment seemed imminent.

That was in 1999. We're still waiting. Indeed, according to McAuliffe's lawyer, Richard Ben-Veniste, McAuliffe was given "assurances" three years ago from Mary Jo White's office that he "was not a target of the investigation."

Meanwhile, three other Democratic or union officials have given sworn statements to Senate investigators also fingering McAuliffe as a player in the Teamsters' money-swap scandal.

Not only that, but the three Carey campaign aides who pleaded guilty to felonies back in 1997 still have not been sentenced. Federal judges do not normally wait more than three years to sentence felons -- unless the U.S. attorney has requested that sentencing be delayed.

Why is Mary Jo White blocking their sentencing?

Prosecutors will sometimes request that sentencing be deferred when a convict is cooperating so that the full extent of the cooperation can be known by the court prior to sentencing. But four years is enough time to have these guys describe the history of the world since the Earth cooled -- to say nothing of a simple money-laundering scheme. Either McAuliffe was involved or he wasn't. Does Ms. White need four years to ask the convicted Teamsters aides that?

It took Al Gore's defeat to get an indictment of Ron Carey. It seems it's going to take the man who defeated him to remove New York's own Janet Reno from her office to shut down the Democrat protection racquet being run out of the Southern District of New York.

[Antoninus]

Mary Jo White was also the prosecutor that cleared(!) Robert Torricelli of all the charges against him--about six months before Torch resigned.

Yeah, she's one of the best prosecutors money can buy.

[AAABEST]

[sinkspur]

They could have hired Rudy Guiliani.

Hubbard can't afford Guiliani.

He drags down $20,000 per night in speaking fees.

Plus, I doubt Guiliani wants to get bogged down in something during election season.

Too many Democrats to destroy.

[sinkspur]

Mary Jo White has credibility in New York. The only people she has to convince are the Catholics in Albany, New York. And, she'll likely do that.

NOBOBY ELSE matters.

[AAABEST]

She also investigated one of the Clinton's scandals, I can't remember which one as they were so numerous. Again found nothing.

All the liberals and everyone in the mainstream media was lauding her as some kind of stellar prosecutor who was incorruptible, which immediately caused me to conclude she was a lousy prosecutor who was very corruptible.

[AAABEST]

Besides, if she did come up with anything, wouldn't that immediately end her career as someone to go to when you want yourself investigated?

Who wants to hire someone to investigate themselves when they're going to find stuff? You want to hire someone who's not going to find stuff... like Mary Jo White. Who has a proven track record of not finding stuff, especially on liberals.

[GirlShortstop]

The only people she has to convince are the Catholics in Albany, New York. And, she'll likely do that.

I am curious:  "convince" Catholics of what, Sinkspur?  The idea of Bp Hubbard using church funds in some sort of damage control, PR campaign is pretty gross, to put it bluntly.  Don't you agree?

[Antoninus]

Mary Jo White has credibility in New York. The only people she has to convince are the Catholics in Albany, New York. And, she'll likely do that. NOBOBY ELSE matters.

Convince? Convince? Since when is it an investigator's job to "convince" anyone of anything? She's supposed to seek out the TRUTH. I think you have inadvertantly admitted what you know this to be: a whitewash attempt to convince Catholics that Old Mother Hubbard is innocent--regardless of whether he really is or not.

[american colleen]

She was retained by the Albany Roman Catholic Diocese Review Board..

I guess I just don't get this. The Albany RC Review board is taking the laity's donations and using them to investigate a non-crime? How can that be?

[AAABEST]

Mary Jo White has credibility in New York.

Well now she's just become really scary.

In addition to liberals, gay Bishops, and the mainstream media, she has credibility with New Yorkers and sinkspur.

Whom if I was trying to establish credibility, are the last people on earth I would want sticking up for me.

[GirlShortstop]

Convince? Convince?

I'm convinced that we were thinking along the same lines Antoninus.   :-)
see timestamps

[Antoninus]

She also investigated one of the Clinton's scandals, I can't remember which one as they were so numerous. Again found nothing.

She investigated "Pardon-gate" which also came to nothing. However, to be fair, the Bush administration was not keen on pursuing that one as they were just coming in and trying to set a "new tone" (oh please).

Just keep in mind that she was originally a Clinton appointee--like Janet Reno--and that should tell you what kind of prosecutor she is.

[Antoninus]

see timestamps

Wow, that's good.

[american colleen]

I wish I saw your post before I posted mine. Your thoughts are my thoughts. The whole thing is distasteful and makes me wonder how long it will take and how much money will be spent trying to convince the Catholics of Albany that their bishop is a holy man trying to lead them to Jesus Christ.

[sinkspur]

In addition to liberals, gay Bishops, and the mainstream media, she has credibility with New Yorkers and sinkspur.

I didn't say she had credibility with me. I said she had credibility with New Yorkers.

I notice you like to post pictures.

Maybe you'll learn to read, next.