The Daily Background

On the US Attorney firing scandal

“I can’t even tell you how upset I am at the Justice Department.”

– Senator John Ensign (R-NV) on his feelings regarding the current US Attorney firing scandal.

On FBI NSL PATRIOT Act abuses

“If the Justice Department is going to enforce the law, it must follow it as well.”

– Representative Pete Hoekstra (R-MI), ranking member on the House Intelligence Committee, on his feelings regarding the recent disclosure that the FBI has violated PATRIOT Act statutes thousands of times and been illegally spying on Americans. Hoekstra also said a new report on the subject demonstrates “a major failure by Justice to uphold the law.”

“There will be oversight hearings, and we may have to go farther than
that and change the law to revise the Patriot Act to impose statutory
requirements and perhaps take away some of the authority which we’ve already
given to the FBI, since they appear not to be able to know how to use it.”

– Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) on the same subject.

On Walter Reed

“It’s not a five-star hotel, make no mistake about it, but it’s not a flophouse. It’s not a dump. It’s not a dive… And when I read the Washington Post report I was glad to know that those cockroaches were belly up. It suggested to me that at least someone was spraying for them, Mr. Chairman.”

– Representative Phil Gingrey (R-GA), looking on the bright side of the Walter Reed scandal.

“If you leave food around in a motel room or a dorm room at a college, you’re going to get some mice show up at some point in time.”

– Representative Phil Gingrey (R-GA), apparently blaming wounded veterans for the conditions at Walter Reed.

“I’ve heard some of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle suggest that specific heads should roll. I don’t know that, ah — I was a little bit shocked, quite honestly, that the Secretary of the Army was relieved of his command and the commander at Walter Reed, General Weightmann was relieved of his command and a change has been made there.”

– Representative Phil Gingrey (R-GA), expressing his shock that there is going to be accountability at Walter Reed.

On the Bush Administration’s stifling of scientific climate change evidence

*Crickets chirp*

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