Hatch places staffer on administrative leave

[Dagaz]

Just saw Hatch make the statement via press conference which was picked up on Fox. Says it was for accessing classified Senate computers. Looks like this is about memogate.

[Noordam]

1. Sounds like ths Sgt at Arms Investigate got the first RAT

:evilgrin:

[Jim Sagle]

18. And it wasn't a "DemoncRAT"? Guess the Pugs lied again.

[proud patriot]

2. LOL

To bad Media Whores is on vacation .

This is a priceless moment

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

3. We have our...

Fall guy! Of course, NONE of this was authorized! :eyes:

[MoonAndSun]

4. Hatch needs to resign or put himself on leave, does he think

we are that stupid as to think his staffer did this on his/her own? Hatch most likely knew about this. He should step down now!!

[maddezmom]

5. not a Hatch staffer...hehe

hope it hits mainstream media soon.

[Media_Lies_Daily]

7. Interesting!! I'll be watching this story, for sure.

[maddezmom]

13. hope everyone is looking

holier than thou repubs will have to eat pie.

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

6. This is too rich! Any links yet?

[maxrandb]

65. Here's one

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20031126/ap_on_go_co/senate_computers_1

This is HUGE! Wonder if Rush and Hannity will be all over this. Funny though, I would have thought that they would wait until this Saturday or Sunday to release this to ensure he stayed off the Sunday shows.

Should be fun.

"All Republicans are crooks"-me

[flamingyouth]

8. Right before a holiday

So it can be swept under the rug. How conveeeeeenient!

[MaineDem]

10. My first thought was "thank goodness it isn't Friday"

Then I remembered Thanksgiving. Duhhhh.

I'm afraid you're right about the rug.

[0007]

32. This will be bury before you know it!

But if it was a dem you'd never hear the last of it -

[snippy]

9. Criminal behavior for political gain. How very republican.

Turd Blossom Rove will give this guy a bonus.

[goforit]

11. Now that would make a great bumper sticker.

LOL!!!

[creativelcro]

66. essentialy is cyber watergate

[MasonJar]

12. I wish his state would put Hatch on leave for good. n/t

[VolcanoJen]

14. Link:

"Senate Republican staffer put on leave for accessing Democratic files"

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2003/11/25/national1948EST0744.DTL

[TexasPatriot]

16. 'mortified and shocked'

what an ass
mortified, shocked and thankful is what he should have said

i hate these people more and more every day

[0007]

33. Great site!

[Philostopher]

62. Of course he's 'mortified and shocked'

He (well, by extension -- one of his staffers) got caught. They're always mortified when they get busted. If they'd never been found out, he'd just have been smug and satisfied. Like always.

[Sparky McGruff]

64. Administrative leave with pay

It's terrible. He's mortified and shocked.

So, he's given the staffer three weeks "administrative leave with pay", two plane tickets to Bermuda, and a reservation for a deluxe suite. And, to show how mad he is, he'll return to a promotion and a bonus.

Why can't I ever get put on "administrative leave with pay"?

[BadGimp]

15. the tell will be ...

in what stories break tomorrow 530pm est or better yet on Friday

[Purveyor]

17. Clip from AP story running the wires...

Senate Republican Staffer Put on Leave
JIM ABRAMS
Associated Press

WASHINGTON - Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch said Tuesday he had put one of his staffers on administrative leave for improperly obtaining data from the secure computer networks of two Democratic senators.

Hatch, R-Utah, said preliminary interviews suggested that a former Republican member of the committee staff may have also been involved in penetrating the Democratic computers.

"I was shocked to learn that this may have occurred," Hatch said in a statement. "I am mortified that this improper, unethical and simply unacceptable breach of confidential files may have occurred on my watch."

Hatch launched an investigation after Sens. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., protested what they said was the theft of memos from their servers. The memos, concerning political strategy on blocking confirmation of several of President Bush's judicial nominations, were obtained and reported on by The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Times.

[Rose Siding]

38. Here's the link

Senate Republican staffer put on leave for accessing Democratic files

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2003/11/25/national1948EST0744.DTL

[NashVegas]

39. Give 'Em Credit for One Thing:

At least they're fessing up within two weeks; the White House has yet to turn in whomever leaked out Joe Wilson's wife.

[Gman]

41. We would probably all explode if we knew what was on the GOP

servers. Heads spinning out of control.

[htuttle]

19. Just another 'Third rate burglary'

Wake up the Judge.

[VolcanoJen]

20. Kick!

:dem:

[jenk]

21. will Hannity even mention this tomorrow?

[Snellius]

22. Will Hannity be questioned by the FBI?

This staffer claims he didn't leak the memo to the press. So who did?

[jenk]

24. FROGMARCH HIM OFF TO PRISON!!!!!

didn't Insanity say they were not from a REPUG???

ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF LIES AND THE LYING LIARS WHO TELL THEM!!!!!

FRANKEN VINDICATED!

[UTUSN]

23. HATCH Is -----Shocked! SHOCKED!!! n/t

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

26. I'm not

:D

[stevedeshazer]

28. Is this regarding the Hannity memo?

Are they the same? Hannity humped the leg of this memo for two weeks.

[janx]

45. Hannity humped the Senate Intelligence Committee staffer

draft of a memo. No one had even read the darned thing. A couple of days later, memos from the Judiciary Committee emerged via "leaks."

It's hard for me to imagine that the same mole wasn't involved in both.

[NoKingGeorge]

59. Heynutty claimed he is a journalist and would not give up the

source. Everyone knows this guy is an 'entertainer' not a journalist.
This moran thinks he can play with the big boys ,but I know Orrin and the other politicos will love to having the focus on heynutty for receiving stolen property,interstate transportation etc.

[kstewart33]

25. The Reuters story

can be found at:

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/politics/politics-congress-memos.html

[maddezmom]

27. Dick Durbin is the MAN!

he pulled all the right strings....which did not include the DOJ.

[grasswire]

29. look what Lindsey Graham said yesterday

"Lindsay Graham of South Carolina promised to be the Democrats' "worst nightmare when it comes to what these memos said. I will make sure the substance of the memos is pointed out over and over and over."

[0007]

35. Linday Graham sure went after Clinton and his lie hot & heavy.....

but nary a word about junior and his lies which has cost many many lives.

Now let's see if Mr. Graham will be Orrin Hatch's worse nightmare.

[annagull]

37. Lindsey is such a Drama Queen!

I wish she'd just come out of her closet already!

[GalleryGod]

73. A CLOSET Queen who should Be "Outed" by Barney Frank!

:silly:

[Nlighten1]

30. Doesn't this violate the Patriot Act?

I do believe it does.

[Cocoa]

31. Patriot Act only applies to strip clubs n/t

[Nlighten1]

51. Doh

and dark skinned people.

[drfemoe]

34. national security and all? n/t

[Snellius]

36. TPM has Hatch's press conference. Priceless weaseling

QUESTION: The person put on administrative leave and the former staff who may also have had knowledge of the incident, are they Republicans or Democrats?

HATCH: I honestly don't know, but they're working for majority staff, or they did -- the one is on administrative leave, the other was a former staffer on our side.

QUESTION: What are their names?

HATCH: That, we're not going to -- that's not my prerogative to give.

QUESTION: Generally speaking, can you explain how it was possible that they were able to gain access to those files? Did they have to do something that -- did they have to hack into the system or...

HATCH: I honestly don't know. And that's one of the questions that the sergeant at arms and the independent forensic experts will have to answer. I have some comments on that, made by the one person. But I think the best thing I can say is I honestly don't know the answer.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/

Note how many times he uses "honestly"

[Catherine Vincent]

40. This is good news!

Hannity will be pissed!

[janx]

42. I'm a bit confused here:

"WASHINGTON(AP) -- Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch said Tuesday he had put one of his staffers on administrative leave for improperly obtaining data from the secure computer networks of two Democratic senators.

Hatch, R-Utah, said preliminary interviews suggested that a former Republican member of the committee staff may have also been involved in penetrating the Democratic computers."

So this involves a staffer AND "a former Republican member of the committee staff"...?

I wish journalists would be clearer about things like this. What is a former Republican member of the committee staff?

[janx]

43. One more question:

These pertain to the espionage re the Judiciary Committee. What about the draft of the memo from the Intelligence Committee? Are the same rodents infiltrating Senate offices for all of this?

[Catherine Vincent]

44. Basically, republicans ARE NO DAMN GOOD!

eom

[janx]

46. I know, but the two "memo" stories must surely be linked.

They're both important.

What is the difference between this and Watergate?

[Oilwellian]

47. Typical GOP doublespeak

QUESTION: The person put on administrative leave and the former staff who may also have had knowledge of the incident, are they Republicans or Democrats?

HATCH: I honestly don't know, but they're working for majority staff, or they did -- the one is on administrative leave, the other was a former staffer on our side.

How the hell can he NOT know if they work for majority staff??? This man is such a pathological liar, he doesn't even know when it's blatantly obvious.

[Timefortruth]

54. How many Democrats work for the majority staff?

Isn't the majority staff all Republican?

[qanda]

48. Wow! This is rich...

No wonder they were trying to get out so much good news the last couple of days. They are ALL crooks I tell ya-- CROOKS!!!!

[radfringe]

49. staffer scapegoat down the Hatch?

questions that should be asked but won't

- was this an independent hacking job?

- article says 2 senator's computers hacked, were there more? How many more and who else was hacked?

- did this staffer act on his own initiative, or was he told to go dig for dirt by someone else?

- what did the staffer do with the information? was this staffer the one that did the leaking on his own inititiative, who else did he give the info to and did that person know it was a result of illegal activity?

--------------

meanwhile will this staffer start spilling the beans when he realizes he has been set up as the scapegoat?

[Nihil]

52. Unlikely

> - was this an independent hacking job?

Why should a truly independent (as opposed to "hired") hacker have a
go at those specific targets?

> - article says 2 senator's computers hacked, were there more?
> How many more and who else was hacked?

Like banks, politicians will not own up to that sort of thing until
their nuts are in a vice. It's much easier to pretend they're safe.

> - did this staffer act on his own initiative, or was he told to go
> dig for dirt by someone else?

Hmmm. Initiative? Republican staffer? Operating without orders?

> - what did the staffer do with the information? was this staffer
> the one that did the leaking on his own inititiative, who else did
> he give the info to and did that person know it was a result of
> illegal activity?

I suspect there will be a totally plausible explanation that doesn't
involve any of the other members of staff. See below.

> meanwhile will this staffer start spilling the beans when he
> realizes he has been set up as the scapegoat?

Doubt it. Unless I've misunderstood the issue here it is a real storm
in a teacup - it's inconvenient, embarrassing and provides political
capital & distraction but has just about no intrinsic value and has
endangered precisely zero people. What's the worst that can happen
to this guy/gal? A fine? Community service? A month or so in a low
security prison?

This is his/her first offence, didn't involve any monetary loss and
didn't injure/kill anyone at all. Cynical comments aside, there isn't
much of a crime here so the worst that will happen if he/she keeps
their mouth shut is that they lose their job. There will almost
certainly be an (unpublished) amount of money making its way to their
bank account in a mixture of legal and "black" channels.
I'm also sure that the rising suicide rate and fatal accident risks
would be pointed out to anyone even considering too much conversation.

Nihil

[snippy]

50. Turd Blossom Rove is in charge of this.

I can smell the stench.

[bushisanidiot]

53. And WHO Gave The Order To Hack The Dem. Computers???

how many other dem computers were hacked before they found the "memos"?? What ELSE was stolen/manipulated/etc.?? Are the repukes sitting on other information that they plan on revealing before the election??

There should be a FULL investigation by an independent counsel!!!!

[snippy]

55. Rove.

[Cadfael]

56. Go rate the story at Yahoo News

rate it a five to try and bump it up into the general consciousness

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20031126/ap_on_go_co/senate_computers

[maddezmom]

57. done

can you vote more than once?

[alfredo]

68. Clear your browser cache, then vote again. But that would be

unethical.

[Beetwasher]

58. This Will Go Completely Unnoticed GODDAMMIT I'M PISSED!

Can you imagine if a Dem did this?

And GODDAMN the fucking press! What's with the bland headline??? This is a criminal act, just as bad if not WORSE than the Watergate break in, it's a HUGE scandal and their headline is 'Senate Republican Staffer Put on Leave ' It doesn't get more bland, benign and unnoticeable as that...

Damn those overzealous staffers! The Repubs seem to have a LOT of overzealous staffers. :mad:

[maggiemay]

70. So, I was lurking at FR

and no one had mentioned this story, so I posted it. They don't seem to have problem with it. They started talking about Chappaquidick (sp?) and how the staffer should get a promotion and raise...

They exist in a very think fog of denial.

[Rose Siding]

60. A "former" GOP Committee staffer is also implicated- link

Fox has posted the AP story and this is from the Wa Times (meaning it's in the wing nut press. Unfortunately, they'll want to cannonize the finks)-

WASHINGTON, Nov. 26 (UPI) -- Sen. Orrin G. Hatch, R-Utah, says a preliminary inquiry into a Senate Judiciary Committee leak indicates it may have come from a GOP staffer.

"I am mortified that this improper, unethical and simply unacceptable breach of confidential files may have occurred on my watch," Hatch told reporters in Washington. "Each senator has an expectation of receiving confidential, candid advice from his or her staff members."

Hatch, the chairman of the committee said at least one GOP committee staffer may have "improperly accessed at least some of the documents" and a former Republican committee staffer "may also have been involved," the Washington Post reported.

The Republican staffer has denied the charge and has been put on administrative leave with pay as the investigation continues.

http://washingtontimes.com/upi-breaking/20031126-072111-1302r.htm

[jayfish]

61. The 2004 Staffer Accountability Act.

With all of the unauthorized staffer activity that has taken place, as of late, I think it's time that congress pass a law that holds public officials accountable for their staffers actions. It's getting to the point where any whiff of impropriety is immediately blamed on staffers.

Jay

[bushisanidiot]

67. Exactly! The More "Staffers" They Have, The More Fall Guys They Have

when they get caught with their pants down.

Sounds to me like Mr. Hatch may be the perp here, since he is the one screaming the loudest.

[demdave]

63. Did Craig Livinstone switch parties????

At least he found another job, if only for a short period of time. It appears he retrained in computer skills. At least he is trying to improve himself. :evilgrin:

[alfredo]

69. Push for the use of the Patriot Act in this case. It is espionage.

It is illegal.

Contact the Democratic leaders and activists.

[WarNoMore]

71. some reading for the night owls

google orrin hatch & monzor hourani

[buycitgo]

72. thanks for that! yielded biggest laff in recent memory!

I've known Hatch long enough to be confident he is honest and would not consciously sell a political favor in return for extra CD sales. But I also know he is sometimes too trusting, especially of anyone he perceives to be an underdog (like BCCI, or President Clinton during impeachment). Sometimes people have problems because they deserve it. Sometimes people do try to buy favors, too.

I DARE anyone in this galactic sector to top that one

plus, could this guy be any more cheaply bought?

http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,510049809,00.html

[buycitgo]

74. jesus mother

what happened to this story?

[cthrumatrix]

75. where is the press coverage of this....?