"... thy micturations are to me..."

ouch.

I think my small intestine was reaching for my brain.

_{/Keep looking, Waxman. You'll find something someday.}

Let's see how much I can remember...

Oh fruddled gruntbuggly,
Thy micturations are to thee
Like turgid gobbleblotchits on a...something.
Froop! I implore thee
Thy froonting turtle blums
and I will hit thee with a something something
See if I don't!

I think I will be visited by the ghost of Douglas Adams tonight.

You have not experienced Shakespeare until you have read him in the original Vogon.

The White House has now admitted that it does not have an effective system for storing and preserving emails. This is no mere technicality; it is this failure that led to the likely destruction of over 10 million email. What the White House has not explained is why it abandoned the electronic record-keeping system used by the prior administration -- a system that properly preserved White House email -- but did not replace it with another effective and appropriate system.

The White House has also admitted that the only safeguard it has to its patently inadequate method for preserving email (dumping them in files that are put on EOP servers) is back-up tape media. These back-up copies, however, are only a "snapshot" of what was on the server at the time of the back-up. In other words they are not comprehensive, as the White House concedes.

Even more troubling, the White House has now admitted that until October 2003, the White House recycled its back-up tapes, which contained the only copies of emails deleted prior to that date. What the White House has not explained is why it changed its policy of preserving all back-up tapes -- instituted in March of 2000 when the Clinton administration discovered that its system did not fully preserve all email from the Office of the Vice President -- at the same time it decided to dismantle the existing electronic record-keeping system, with no replacement at hand.

The deletion of millions of email beginning in March 2003 coupled with the White House's destruction of back-up copies of those deleted email mean that there are no back-up copies of emails deleted during the period March 2003 through October 2003. The significance of this time-period cannot be overstated: the U.S. went to war with Iraq, top White House officials leaked the covert identity of Valerie Plame Wilson and the Justice Department opened a criminal investigation into their actions.

The White House now claims there is a lack of documentation supporting both the fact that email are missing and the volume of missing email. Yet in January 2006, Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald, in a letter to Scooter Libby's lawyers, stated unequivocally: "We have learned that not all email of the Office of Vice President and the Executive Office of President for certain time periods in 2003 was preserved through the normal archiving process on the White House computer system." Moreover, when the problem was uncovered the White House Office of Administration created abundant documentation that included multiple estimates of the volume of missing email, not a single chart that the White House now suggests is the only documentation. Could it be that having now destroyed the evidence documenting the missing email problem, the White House feels free to retreat from its acknowledgment to Mr. Fitzgerald that White House emails are missing?

Also missing from the White House's latest explanation of the missing email is why, more than two years after it discovered the problem, the White House still cannot say what happened, why it happened and how many email were affected. And the White House has yet to offer an explanation for why it never acted to recover any of the missing emails, even when presented with a recovery plan by its own Office of Administration.

It is perfectly clear why the White House has used every strategic maneuver it can think of to avoid answering any questions about the missing email: its answers are likely to raise more questions than they answer. That, years after the problem was discovered, the White House is still questioning whether or not there is even a problem is deeply disturbing.

Anne Weismann, chief counsel to CREW, said today, "With this new filing, the White House has admitted that although it has long known about the missing emails, it did nothing to recover them, or discover how and why they went missing in the first place. The missing emails are important historical records that belong not to the Bush administration, but to the American people. As a result, the public deserves a full accounting and hopefully, now that the matter is before a federal court, we will get one."

What a mess we've made of a perfectly great country.

If anyone wants evidence of why Ford's pardon of Nixon was so destructive, this is it. Hearings used to be able to shame politicians into resigning, rather than the possibility of being removed from office. But if you have no shame and no fear of being removed, you'll continue to fark over the constitution and country when you have a congress with no teeth.

Take the Sargent at arms with congressional order in hand and get the evidence or arrest them.

Let's go to the Magic Date board...

368!

Only 368 more days, folks!

Isn't there a bypass supposed to be coming through here soon?

/leave the Vogons alone.
//they might be here to pick me up.

LonMead: Keep looking, Waxman. You'll find something someday.

Uh, this is something. This is a violation of the law. IE ILLEGAL. They aren't even denying that they did an illegal act.

WHAT THE fark DO YOU NEED.

Whatever the maximum penalty is for destruction of evidence, everyone involved needs to face it, up to and including the president. Only a pure simpleton would believe this was accidental. Since when do government bureaucrats save money by "recycling" anything?

On a similar note, I would love to see the next president order the confiscation of funds that were gained from no bid contracts. We cannot allow these people to go free, we need to send a message to every aspiring scumbag that if you steal from the U.S. people, you will have everything taken from you.

Yes, this MUST be the most criminal and corrupt administration ever, PRECISELY because we have no evidence whatsoever.

You see, not only do they commit heinous crimes every minute of every day, they perform COVERUPS every OTHER minute of every day. So they are doubly as criminal as anyone has ever even imagined them!

And do not forget that they are MASTERS of the political coverup, because of, well, uh, ROVE IS FAT!!!! Look at him!!! His phlegm is EVIL, and he must have lots of it, because he is a large man.

A large, criminal, man!

And Bush is SMALLER than him, and his head is small, and smirky, so we know he is dumb. But he does know how to COVERUP better than anyone else, ever, otherwise Saint Waxman and the Sargent (sic) of Arms would have put him away by now. So, you see, Bush's brain does not exist, which makes him stupid, except for a very highly developed CRIMINAL node, probably on his left side, because I have always suspected that most Republicans are left-brained, which is why they have no compassion and should be put down like untermensch... excuse me, Enemies of the People.

/dream on, libs, dream on

Running a-puck: LonMead: Keep looking, Waxman. You'll find something someday.

Uh, this is something. This is a violation of the law. IE ILLEGAL. They aren't even denying that they did an illegal act.

WHAT THE fark DO YOU NEED.

No, THEY are not denying it. Denial would imply that there was some deliberate act of wrongdoing. This is going to come down to a simple case of people who don't understand how to properly use the technology in the first place that got bit in the butt by their failure to understand.

Waxman, incidentally, has been looking for a reason to impeach for the past three years (if not longer). When he took over leadership of that commitee he put TWO FULL MONTHS of NOTHING but Bush investigations on his agenda. Now, he can look all he wants, but there ARE other things that that body needs to be doing, and Waxman is letting his new hobby get in the way.

So, what do I need? Considerably more than you do, apparently.

What the White House has not explained is why it changed its policy of preserving all back-up tapes -- instituted in March of 2000 when the Clinton administration discovered that its system did not fully preserve all email from the Office of the Vice President -- at the same time it decided to dismantle the existing electronic record-keeping system, with no replacement at hand.

Clinton administration: discover a problem, propose a better solution
Bush administration: discover a problem, toss out the existing solution, forget about it until disaster strikes

Dead_Mandela:

I only rated it a 5 at first, but you hooked on so quick that I think you deserve bonus points.

Final score 7/10. Has a good beat, I can dance to it.

LonMead: Running a-puck: LonMead: Keep looking, Waxman. You'll find something someday.

Uh, this is something. This is a violation of the law. IE ILLEGAL. They aren't even denying that they did an illegal act.

WHAT THE fark DO YOU NEED.

No, THEY are not denying it. Denial would imply that there was some deliberate act of wrongdoing. This is going to come down to a simple case of people who don't understand how to properly use the technology in the first place that got bit in the butt by their failure to understand.

The old "Aw shucks, we're stupid!" defense. It's getting kind of tired.

Running a-puck: LonMead: Keep looking, Waxman. You'll find something someday.

Uh, this is something. This is a violation of the law. IE ILLEGAL. They aren't even denying that they did an illegal act.

WHAT THE fark DO YOU NEED.

Him? Live video of the President tongue-kissing Osama while the VP Celebrated a Black Mass on the white house lawn culimnating in the slaughter of a dozen virgins would be dismissed as a "non-story"

but ladies and gentle do not let this story path without taking a moment to admire the incredible "just-do-not-give-a-fark" Chutzpah contained in this statement:

""We have no reason to believe that there is any data missing at all" from White House computer servers, said Fratto. "And we've certainly found no evidence of any data missing."

and of Course they have NO EVIDENCE because THEY were ones who DESTROYED any possible source of that evidence. Farking bastiches.

LonMead: No, THEY are not denying it. Denial would imply that there was some deliberate act of wrongdoing. This is going to come down to a simple case of people who don't understand how to properly use the technology in the first place that got bit in the butt by their failure to understand.

This is acceptable to you? Really? "We broke the law because 'puters are hard."

Do you think that would fly if it were you? They were reusing the tapes for Pete's sake. How much technical knowledge do you need for the concept of 'If I record over something, the original thing won't be there anymore'.

Foolish Republicans, now you have entered...THE HOUSE OF WAX!!

But seriously, this is so incriminating. There is no reason in the world for them to 'recycle' tapes like this. I say we get one of those data retrieval experts and start going through the tapes to see just how much we can find and hold every single member of this administration in jail until we're done. That might cause a few of those Jesus freaks to snap and start naming names. I'm sure it's unethical, but right now I wouldn't mind Congress making an example out of this administration right up to Heart Attack Dick and Georgie the Idiot Boy Wonder.

LonMead:

This is going to come down to a simple case of people who don't understand how to properly use the technology in the first place that got bit in the butt by their failure to understand.



Your credulity is greater than mine.

LonMead: Running a-puck: LonMead: Keep looking, Waxman. You'll find something someday.

Uh, this is something. This is a violation of the law. IE ILLEGAL. They aren't even denying that they did an illegal act.

WHAT THE fark DO YOU NEED.

No, THEY are not denying it. Denial would imply that there was some deliberate act of wrongdoing. This is going to come down to a simple case of people who don't understand how to properly use the technology in the first place that got bit in the butt by their failure to understand.

Waxman, incidentally, has been looking for a reason to impeach for the past three years (if not longer). When he took over leadership of that commitee he put TWO FULL MONTHS of NOTHING but Bush investigations on his agenda. Now, he can look all he wants, but there ARE other things that that body needs to be doing, and Waxman is letting his new hobby get in the way.

So, what do I need? Considerably more than you do, apparently.

Huh? Have you actually WATCHED any of those hearings? Not ONE of them has ben a dry hole, but instead every sigle one has uncovered evidence of serious government incompetence, wrongdoing or malfeasance. As the House Government Oversight and Reform Committee Chairman, that's exactly what his job is.

Let's look at some of those hearings:

-The hearing about the State Department IG led directly to his resignation after it was revealed that the IG had been accused of blocking investgations into the conduct of Blackwater in Iraq while his brother served on Blackwater's board. A fact this so-called Inspector General claimed he didn't know until told so by committee members AT the hearing

-Several Hearings 0n Iraqi reconstruction contracting that has revealed:

+ BILLIONS of Dollars IN CASH that the Adminsitration air- lifted into Iraq and promptly lost and can find no trace of (at least $9 billion maybe more

+ Outright Fraud and embezzlement by several Contractors

+ Massive construction flaws by US Contractors being paid billions of dollars in the building of hospitals, police barracks, and the US Embassay that rendered the buildings unsafe/unfit for human habitation

_uncovering the Cover-up at AbuGharib and the subsequent "retirement" of Gen. Taguba.


and that's just off the top of my head. Tell you what Go to the list of open OGR investigations (new window) and tell me which have proved to be frivolous fishing expeditions against the Republicans or the White House

I don't recall you folks being pissed about he two separate congressional hearings on Vince Foster's suicide that can AFTER the park Service and TWO Special Counsels who investigated the matter and found no foul play.

All right then. Everyone is as technology savvy as you guys seem to be, and nothing should ever screw up if it's involved with the high end of government.

Let's get off what else I need. How much more does Waxman (and Kucinich, Conyers, and so on) need? They've been searching for years for a chargeable offense and haven't come close to preferring anything against anybody. What are THEY waiting for. If something was there, it would have been found by now.

/oh, I forgot. The evidence of wrongdoing was on the stuff that got erased. that's right. but there's all that corroborating evidence they have... they do have other evidence, right?

Waxman sounds like the name for a minor-league superhero.

"With his wax-like super powers..."

I don't recall you folks being pissed about he two separate congressional hearings on Vince Foster's suicide that can AFTER the park Service and TWO Special Counsels who investigated the matter and found no foul play.

In my case, yeah I was pissed off about them. You also left off the DC police report that also showed suicide. He had a history of depression, had tried it once before, and was known to keep a gun in his office.

LonMead: /oh, I forgot. The evidence of wrongdoing was on the is that stuff that got erased in the first place. that's right.

Nestea Plunge:
Now why would anybody who did nothing wrong erase all those particular emails?

Once again, assuming deliberate intent. How 'bout the another perspective:

We did stuff that we don't want other people to know about, so let's do the unbelieveably clumsy thing (evil geniuses that we are) and just erase all the stuff. And come up with an explanation that everyone with a tech background will disbelieve on the face of it.

So which is it? Are they too smart or too dumb?

LonMead: All right then. Everyone is as technology savvy as you guys seem to be, and nothing should ever screw up if it's involved with the high end of government.

Let's get off what else I need. How much more does Waxman (and Kucinich, Conyers, and so on) need? They've been searching for years for a chargeable offense and haven't come close to preferring anything against anybody. What are THEY waiting for. If something was there, it would have been found by now.

/oh, I forgot. The evidence of wrongdoing was on the stuff that got erased. that's right. but there's all that corroborating evidence they have... they do have other evidence, right?

Screwing up in this manner is against the law.

How about using RNC email servers for official Whitehouse business? Screwing up in this manner is against the law.

How about violations of the Hatch act and the former AG lying to congress? Screwing up in this manner is against the law.

How about leaking the name of an agent that the CIA says was covert at the time? Screwing up in this manner is against the law.

How about the Whitehouse saying that it is OK to torture people? Screwing up in this manner is against the law.

How about the decision to start a war on a second front when they weren't finished the first one? Screwing up in this manner isn't against the law, but is feckin stupid.

Nothing to see here. Overzealous under-trained Morlocks.

Nestea Plunge:
So which is it? Are they too smart or too dumb?

Judging from the character of the Admin. in the last 7 years, their arrogance of thinking they are smarter than everyone else is catching up with them.

Okay. Your mark will go into the Too Dumb column.

Running a-puck:
Screwing up in this manner is against the law.

How about using RNC email servers for official Whitehouse business? Screwing up in this manner is against the law.

How about violations of the Hatch act and the former AG lying to congress? Screwing up in this manner is against the law.

How about leaking the name of an agent that the CIA says was covert at the time? Screwing up in this manner is against the law.

How about the Whitehouse saying that it is OK to torture people? Screwing up in this manner is against the law.

How about the decision to start a war on a second front when they weren't finished the first one? Screwing up in this manner isn't against the law, but is feckin stupid.

Okay, with all that evidence in hand I look for the impeachment hearings to start later today.

/one more vote for the They're Too Dumb column

I don't think Waxman has that much credibility. I don't think he's really made of wax at all.

LonMead: Okay, with all that evidence in hand I look for the impeachment hearings to start later today.

Impeachment proceedings are never going to happen. If they did the Dems would be crucified in the court of public opinion and everyone would be saying that it's tit for tat for Clinton's impeachment. Frankly I wish the Dems cared more about doing right than they do about getting elected, but that's as likely as me riding a unicorn.

There's more evidence of wrongdoing in this administration than there is in either Johnson's or Clinton's, but Bush is getting a free pass. Not to mention that I don't think wither party would impeach one of their own short of... of... I can't actually think of anything in this political climate.

Running a-puck: LonMead: Okay, with all that evidence in hand I look for the impeachment hearings to start later today.

Impeachment proceedings are never going to happen. If they did the Dems would be crucified in the court of public opinion and everyone would be saying that it's tit for tat for Clinton's impeachment. Frankly I wish the Dems cared more about doing right than they do about getting elected, but that's as likely as me riding a unicorn.

There's more evidence of wrongdoing in this administration than there is in either Johnson's or Clinton's, but Bush is getting a free pass. Not to mention that I don't think wither party would impeach one of their own short of... of... I can't actually think of anything in this political climate.

I see. So there's ample evidence of wrongdoing and the people who are supposed to act won't.

To quote an intelligent poster I saw just recently:

"Screwing up in this manner is against the law."

I'd be more inclined to believe Waxman if he'd shave that damn thing off his upper lip.

LonMead: I see. So there's ample evidence of wrongdoing and the people who are supposed to act won't.

To quote an intelligent poster I saw just recently:

"Screwing up in this manner is against the law."

Sadly it's not against the law, it just should be. The constitution lays out how impeachment proceedings should lay out, it lays out when they can be leveled, it never address when it MUST be.

But yes, there is ample evidence of wrongdoing and the people who are supposed to do something about it aren't. Both houses of congress, and both of the parties represented there have been failing in their duties to the People. And they do this because they know that most of the voters don't care about anything other than there being a little d or r next to their name on the ballot.

Freeper Madness: photo

No wonder he's so sensitive to second-hand smoke.

Let's get off what else I need. How much more does Waxman (and Kucinich, Conyers, and so on) need? They've been searching for years for a chargeable offense and haven't come close to preferring anything against anybody. What are THEY waiting for. If something was there, it would have been found by now.


Baloney. You are ignoring the very blatant fact that while all this stonewalling from the White House is going on, at the same time it is being abetted by delaying and obstructionist tactics by the republicans on their various committees. Watch a few minutes of this sickening video with Jack Kingston as he deliberately hijacks a hearing on corruption by attempting to claim that the man uncovering the hearing is corrupt. Link This is an everyday occurrence in Congress, although not all are so blatantly anti-American as this.

Not to mention Alberto (spit) Gonzales's performance at his congressional hearings.

The only people who could argue that any of this is just coincidence are people in deep denial, because of previously held beliefs. Make them obey the law. They are supposed to be elected, they are not above the law. Americans kneel to no king.

varmitydog: Baloney. You are ignoring the very blatant fact that while all this stonewalling from the White House is going on, at the same time it is being abetted by delaying and obstructionist tactics by the republicans on their various committees. Watch a few minutes of this sickening video with Jack Kingston as he deliberately hijacks a hearing on corruption by attempting to claim that the man uncovering the hearing is corrupt. Link This is an everyday occurrence in Congress, although not all are so blatantly anti-American as this.

Not to mention Alberto (spit) Gonzales's performance at his congressional hearings.

The only people who could argue that any of this is just coincidence are people in deep denial, because of previously held beliefs. Make them obey the law. They are supposed to be elected, they are not above the law. Americans kneel to no king.

Ah. and one for the They're Too Smart column. My day is complete.

LonMead: Running a-puck:
Screwing up in this manner is against the law.

How about using RNC email servers for official Whitehouse business? Screwing up in this manner is against the law.

How about violations of the Hatch act and the former AG lying to congress? Screwing up in this manner is against the law.

How about leaking the name of an agent that the CIA says was covert at the time? Screwing up in this manner is against the law.

How about the Whitehouse saying that it is OK to torture people? Screwing up in this manner is against the law.

How about the decision to start a war on a second front when they weren't finished the first one? Screwing up in this manner isn't against the law, but is feckin stupid.

Okay, with all that evidence in hand I look for the impeachment hearings to start later today.

/one more vote for the They're Too Dumb column

When did "Well they haven't been convicted of a crime" become the standard we hold our elected officials to?

Isn't it enough that it is Wrong or Immoral? Have we become such a nation of lawyers that if you can't tie the wrongdoing to a specific federal statute AND get a conviction on it, then it's okay?

The reality is a president or vice president cannot be charge in the ordianry criminal system- the case law is clear theat they are immune while in office. Therefore to remove them they can only be impeached. And you can force removal in an impeachment proceeding if 2/3rds of the Senate vote to do so.

Now currently the Senate is split 48-47-2. Congressional Republicans have repeatedly demonstrated that they will put protection of the president over the good of the nation or even the long-term survival of their own party. Therefore any impeachment proceeding would be gauranteed to fail, and that failure would be spun as an exoneration of the president and triumph for his presidency (it was last time) so impeachment will not happen.


So why not charge the underlings? Well Congress can't do that they have to ask the DO prosecutor for DC to do so. Unfortunately in an utterly astonishing power grab last November, the White House told Congress that there would be no criminal contempt charges brought against it for ignoring subpoenas in the US Attorney matter because those charges had to be brought by an employee of the DOJ. So, the WH said, since the DOJ was part of the executive branch, and the pres is the chief executive the president could simply order them not to bring criminal charges, against anyone they felt like.

LonMead: Ah. and one for the They're Too Smart column. My day is complete.

Every criminal is too smart until they get caught. If the rule of law ever returns to our plutocratic overlords, smart mouth jackasses in denial (that would be you) will find that out.

varmitydog

Save the skin on your typing fingers. There's only one thing on the agendum: spin fanciful and excusing scenarios. It's political fanfic.

SherKhan: Words of wisdom, to be sure. One shouldn't lose their temper over things they cannot contol. I consider Henry Waxman to be a hero on a par with Billy Mitchell, or Archibald Cox. It annoys me greatly to see folks attack them.

I wonder if it will ever go back to the rule of law, or if these changes will stay when the inevitable change of political parties comes?

LonMead: Ah. and one for the They're Too Smart column. My day is complete.

How about, "We put a stupid fox in charge of the hen house?"

"They are too smart" or "They are too stupid" is a retarded argument.

Sometimes i wonder how this country got to the point where we are at. Then i remember there are people like you who root for their team no matter what and i realize it's your fault.

Magorn: Running a-puck: LonMead: Keep looking, Waxman. You'll find something someday.

Uh, this is something. This is a violation of the law. IE ILLEGAL. They aren't even denying that they did an illegal act.

WHAT THE fark DO YOU NEED.

Him? Live video of the President tongue-kissing Osama while the VP Celebrated a Black Mass on the white house lawn culimnating in the slaughter of a dozen virgins would be dismissed as a "non-story"

but ladies and gentle do not let this story path without taking a moment to admire the incredible "just-do-not-give-a-fark" Chutzpah contained in this statement:

""We have no reason to believe that there is any data missing at all" from White House computer servers, said Fratto. "And we've certainly found no evidence of any data missing."

and of Course they have NO EVIDENCE because THEY were ones who DESTROYED any possible source of that evidence. Farking bastiches.

I do know that if I had been responsible for data and it had been erased, my head would be on the chopping block. One of the former insurance companies I worked for had a tech that didn't check backup tapes and lost some info. It wasn't even a criminal offense and he was handed his walking papers the hour they found out. Whom got fired here? Whom is going to pay the piper for violating the law? If I honestly break the speed limit because my speedometer is broken, I still get a ticket. I can only imagine it's a much worse penalty here.

This will be FUN when it comes time for the big guns to investigate this pack of jackals. Unlike the Whitewater or Foster investigations that turned up nothing, there will be so much of plenty, the American public will be amused for YEARS by a never ending procession of indictments and jail time provided by our higher ups right now. I wonder how long the rube contingent such as Mr. Scorecard (I'm looking to you, Lonmead) will continue to get suckered in like a bunch of rubes at a jam auction, thinking that they are supporting actual patriots.

A famous detective once mentioned that to solve a crime, just one thread is needed to unravel the whole mess.

There are plenty of threads that are unraveling pronto.

Give it a couple of years. I am predicting the first time you will see POTUS in jail due to treason.

Just my IMHO.

Nightmaretony: Give it a couple of years. I am predicting the first time you will see POTUS in jail due to treason.

Many said the same thing about 20 or so years ago when this little thing called Iran/Contra was breaking. So how's that justice thing working out for you?

That wasn't ANYTHING compared to now.

Not working well enough, sadly.

subby, you had me at Vogon

/+1