1115.org

Bush Warns Dems to Take Offer in Firings AP (3/20/07):

A defiant President Bush warned Democrats Tuesday to accept his offer to have top aides speak about the firings of federal prosecutors only privately and not under oath, or risk a constitutional showdown from which he would not back down.

Bush, Cheney meet with 9/11 panel CNN (4/30/04):

Bush and Cheney did not testify before the panel — they were not under oath and there was to be no recording made of the session nor a stenographer in the room.

Why are oaths so abhorrent to this President?

Bush: “We will not go along with a partisan fishing expedition aimed at honorable public servants,” he said

Look, I know that certain people are fond of reminding me that there is more than one side to every issue. It’s not that I disagree, but too often over the last X number of years, I’ve found myself locked in disagreements where my opponent insisted upon arguing the political equivalent of “the sky is green.” Obviously, anyone is free to say whatever they desire, but at some point, common sense and decency should prevail. There is no credible argument to be made in defense of Karl Rove’s honor. He simply has none. And that’s fine for him, all in the game. He’s charged with winning elections and advancing an agenda. But his record, spanning from statewide Texas races to getting Bush elected twice is rife with dirty, disgusting, borderline illegal tactics. Bush has every right to employ Rove, but the facts don’t support his statement yesterday.

But that was just a throwaway line, uttered by a desperate man, in defense of desperate men. But Bush’s use of fishing expedition really grates:

Legal grasping at straws; the use of pre-trial investigation (discovery) or witness questioning in an unfocused attempt to uncover damaging evidence you can use against your adversary.

Democrats didn’t make up the US Attorney firings. Democrats didn’t manufacture the emails released by the Justice Department and the White House containing conflicting stories, outright lies, and the smearing of capable officials. Democrats didn’t cause the administration/DOJ to change their stories multiple times. This isn’t a fishing expedition, it’s responsible oversight, exactly why Democrats won majorities last year.