update from justice

A couple of stories from the de facto Bush Administration's Department of (for Republicans Only) Justice.

Some schmuck called Jay Apperson got a job with the DC federal prosecutor's office. And Apperson didn't have to go thru the usual "rigorous vetting process that the vast majority of career federal prosecutors face." Why not? Because his buddies at Justice told the DC federal prosecutor that Apperson was OK.

This despite some examples of dubious judgement: "When he was counsel to a House subcommittee in 2005, Jay Apperson resigned after writing a letter to a federal judge in his boss's name, demanding a tougher sentence for a drug courier. As an assistant U.S. attorney in Virginia in the 1990s, he infuriated fellow prosecutors when he facetiously suggested a White History Month to complement Black History Month."

Another sign of the politicization of Justice? Maybe.

Meanwhile, the world's best known Regent University Law School graduate, Monica Goodling, now will get a limited immunity deal to discuss the Great US Attorney Massacre before the House Judiciary Committee. Committee Chairman John Conyers said he thinks this will help get the truth about the massacre and the "possible politicization in the department's prosecutorial function."

Remember, that is the crux of the issue -- not firing a few attorneys, but the reasons behind the firings. Specifically, failure to show enough zeal in prosecuting Democrats right before elections (or in Carol Lam's case, too much zeal in prosecuting Republicans), and failure to support Karl Rove's voter suppression campaign. THAT is the problem with politicizing Justice's prosecutorial function.