'On the defensive’: Bush faces opposition Congress with subpoena power

[cal04]

White House crises show new accountability
Bush faces opposition Congress with subpoena power

As President Bush toured ancient Mayan ruins and exchanged toasts with the new Mexican president Tuesday, his aides furiously worked the telephones back to Washington. Another administration official was out, and the attorney general was deflecting calls for his own ouster as well.

The cascade of controversies that followed Bush to Latin America has left a president familiar with weathering crises in uncharted territory. For the first time since taking office, Bush confronts political furors on multiple fronts and an opposition Congress armed with the subpoena power to investigate them.

The response to the dispute over dismissed federal prosecutors underscores the inexperience of a White House accustomed to having its own party in control on Capitol Hill. After first brushing aside suggestions from a Congress that had been reluctant to exercise oversight for the last six years that the firings may have been improper, officials then sought to minimize White House involvement in the mass ouster. Tuesday's release of e-mails documenting the role of key administration figures in the decision to dismiss the prosecutors provoked outrage on both sides of the aisle.

In the past, questions about its actions might have died down without the internal administration e-mails being made public. Now the White House is in the position of explaining why it has repeatedly changed its story.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17601682/

[John Q. Citizen]

1. Changed it's story? Do they mean lied? Let it rain, subpoenas. Let the flowers of truth and justic...

bloom in the fertile soil of the American spring time.

[babylonsister]

2. Not only Dems, but the rethugs are angry. I hope this is the

'straw that broke the camel's back'. And that's not the first time I've written this on DU!
Something has to be...

[John Q. Citizen]

4. This has legs. It was on my local news tonight in little ol' Missoula MT.

Not only that, but even Hillary called for Gonzales to resign.

That means there's still more to come, in the way of revelations. The fact that Hillary has actually done that tells me it's a slam dunk.

[babylonsister]

5. I hope so, but 'once burned, twice shy.' So many screw-ups they get

away with, most notably the war, I will settle for anything.

[John Q. Citizen]

8. I think this is different because

for one thing, there are a number of Dems who, while in favor of the occupation, are not in favor of accepting the blame for the occupation.

This USA purge is something that almost all the Dems can get behind (in terms of condemning it.) And everyone seems to want to take credit for doing something about it.

[Bitwit1234]

3. One of the best things about the attorney firing is this-----

The fired attornies were REPUBLICANS. They weren't democrats they were all republicans..so how can this be partisan...How can they say that democrats are trying to protect democrats. This makes is so much more joyful that democrats are trying to protect republican attornies who where only doing their job.

[gratuitous]

6. Gee, MSNBC noticed?!

"In the past, questions about its actions might have died down . . ." Now, why in the world would that be, NBC? Surely you bulldogs of the media didn't just let important stories slide, did you? I know that it couldn't be because you guys just lost interest, could it? Does it require that Congress have subpoena power? You sure didn't have a shortage of people mentioning this and other scandals to you, over and over. And why does this finally, finally qualify as something you'll pay attention to? Halliburton ripping off the taxpayers wasn't what, sexy enough? Republican corruption just didn't turn your collective crank? All that death and destruction in Iraq too far away to bother with?

Yes, the administration has much to answer for, MSNBC. And so do you.

[babylonsister]

7. That's similar to a Nance rant! I hope you write letters, gratuitous,

or sumthin', because you are so eloquent.

Disclaimer: If you're black, I didn't mean to insult you. :eyes:

[Toots]

9. Well we certainly know it is not known for changing it's story

WMDs, no... Al Qaeda ties, no... Saddam is Hitler, no... bringing Democracy to Iraqis, no... we can't just abandon them now, no.. ?????? ...What story do we get next?