Via the LAT: Low-key office launches high-profile inquiry
The new investigation, which will examine the firing of at least one U.S. attorney, missing White House e-mails, and White House efforts to keep presidential appointees attuned to Republican political priorities, could create a substantial new problem for the Bush White House.First, the inquiry comes from inside the administration, not from Democrats in Congress. Second, unlike the splintered inquiries being pressed on Capitol Hill, it is expected to be a unified investigation covering many facets of the political operation in which Rove played a leading part.
“We will take the evidence where it leads us,” Scott J. Bloch, head of the Office of Special Counsel and a presidential appointee, said in an interview Monday. “We will not leave any stone unturned.”
Bloch declined to comment on who his investigators would interview, but he said the probe would be independent and uncoordinated with any other agency or government entity.
The decision by Bloch’s office is the latest evidence that Rove’s once-vaunted operations inside the government, which helped the GOP hold the White House and Congress for six years, now threaten to mire the administration in investigations.
I must confess a lack of knowledge concerning this office. When I first scanned the headline and article excerpt I thought that we were talking about a “Special Counsel”/”Special Prosecutor” which didn’t seem appropriate given the lack of any supportable accusations of illegality (yes, there have been accusations in the public discourse, but nothing in terms of concrete evidence of illegality–and before the attacks are launched, please note that I have been highly critical of the administration on this issue).
From their web site one can find an introduction to the office and specifically here is their mission:
OSC’s primary mission is to safeguard the merit system by protecting federal employees and applicants from prohibited personnel practices, especially reprisal for whistleblowing. For a description of prohibited personnel practices (PPPs), click on the prohibited personnel practices link.
Given the nature of the USA situation, this sounds like an appropriate organization to engage in investigation. Specifically it appears that the Office of Special Counsel is going to look into the David Iglesias firing, which is the one that has appeared to have the most evidence of interference for inappropriate political reasons. Along with Iglesias the Office has been looking into possible Hatch Act violations by an aid to Rove:
Bloch said the new investigation grew from two narrower inquiries his staff had begun in recent weeks.One involved the fired U.S. attorney from New Mexico, David C. Iglesias.
The other centered on a PowerPoint presentation that a Rove aide, J. Scott Jennings, made at the General Services Administration this year.
That presentation listed recent polls and the outlook for battleground House and Senate races in 2008. After the presentation, GSA Administrator Lorita Doan encouraged agency managers to “support our candidates,” according to half a dozen witnesses. Doan said she could not recall making such comments.
The Los Angeles Times has learned that similar presentations were made by other White House staff members, including Rove, to other Cabinet agencies. During such presentations, employees said they got a not-so-subtle message about helping endangered Republicans.
The whole is quite the mess.
I wonder how the diehards will now spin this investigation into a partisan witch hunt motivated only by the crassest of politics?
Technorati Tags: USAs, Fired attorneys, Fired US Attorneys, David Iglesias, Karl Rove, Office of Special Counsel, Hatch Act, J. Scott Jennings
Sphere: Related Content
April 24th, 2007 at 1:34 pm
Smoke and Mirrors. Rove runs the OSC…..
April 24th, 2007 at 2:31 pm
Too bad Bloch, who is head of an agency charged with protecting employees’ rights…
Link
…has been accused of violating employees’ rights.
April 24th, 2007 at 8:11 pm
Former U.S. Attorney Iglesias Spurs Investigation
Presidential Appointee Promises To Leave “No Stone Unturned”
This investigation was, at least in some part, spurred on by a complaint filed with the OSC by former U.S. Attorney David Iglesias. Iglesias filed a complaint with the OSC on April 3 alle…