Bush E-Mail Mystery Deepens. WH Not Naming Tech Contractor

[KittyWampus]

Pushing this over into GC from LBN where Sabra posted it>

Bush E-Mail Mystery Deepens: White House Won't Name Tech Contractor

Source: ABC News Blotter

The White House will not identify a private company which appears to be involved in the disappearance of millions of White House e-mails.

The company was responsible for reviewing and archiving White House e-mails, a White House official told congressional staff in May, according to a letter yesterday from House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Henry Waxman, D-Calif. Congressional investigators asked then for the name of the company and "have repeatedly requested" the information since then, according to Waxman.

They are still waiting for an answer, the chairman wrote to White House counsel Fred Fielding. Waxman asked the White House to come up with the company's name by Sept. 10.

White House spokesman Scott Stanzel declined to tell the Blotter on ABCNews.com the company's name or explain why the White House would not provide it to Congress.

"We are reviewing Rep. Waxman's letter and will respond expeditiously," Stanzel said in an e-mailed statement.

[Tempest]

1. It's obvious why Bush won't release the information

The company was being paid by the RNC, which could be illegal.

[KittyWampus]

7. Thus Executive Privilege can't wash. It'd violate the Hatch Act

[The Backlash Cometh]

13. Can he pardon an entire company?

[Tempest]

15. He wouldn't even if he could

Not the entire company anyway.

The executives he would, the workers he wouldn't.

[frogcycle]

2. WHY IN THE HELL

do they give them "until Sept 10" to come up with the name? It's not like they have to find it. We know they know the answer. Why does he not say "answer right now" and if they refuse, then do whatever the hell he would do after Sept 10? They are playing along with this game of dragging everything out until '09.

[formercia]

11. Sept. 11 is the day after.

It won't matter then.....


Junior better call 911 for help.

[quiet.american]

12. THANK,YOU.

[pnwmom]

3. And why should a PRIVATE company have access to these confidential

emails at all? A private company was REVIEWING them? The same emails that aren't being turned over to the Congress?

Like everything else associated with this administration, this stinks to high heaven.

[rox63]

4. Do you have a link?

I want to send this around to sme non-DU folks.

[KittyWampus]

8. Here you go- copied from Sabra's LBN thread

http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2007/08/bush-e-mail-mys.html

[Marnieworld]

5. Weren't the emails already archived by a gov't agency?

Why hire an outside firm for automatically archived mail? Even what they've admitted seems fishy. No terms given as to what gets archived for how long etc.? who decides these terms? How do they filter out givt from plitical? Why delete at all?

Normally this one thing would be enough to take down a presidency. Now it's just part of the bucket of crimes. Too many to know so let's not know any. It's like the media is whistling. :grr:

[halobeam]

6. interestingly enough, this morning on Wall Street Journal

they had a couple of guys discussing some archival procedures. I wasn't lucky to catch most of it, but if you are interested, maybe an earlier post/thread may have been posted about this. The comments of some callers (from both sides) gave me the impression that the hour or so these men were on, were fascinating.

[sicksicksick_N_tired]

9. You just KNOW this cabal has some serious sh*t to hide!!!!

Way past due being caught! :grr:

[wicket]

10. Damn

:popcorn:

[L. Coyote]

14. Sidley Austin

[Joanie Baloney]

16. From Wikipedia

Some interesting alumni of Sidley Austin:


Barack Obama was a summer associate in the Chicago office, but never joined the firm as a full-time associate. He met his wife, Michelle Obama (who was an associate at Sidley Austin at the time), while he was a summer associate at the firm


Daniel M. Price has been appointed Deputy National Security Advisor for International Economic Affairs by George W. Bush. In this role, Mr. Price serves as the principal advisor to the President on international economic issues and will be responsible for coordinating U.S. Administration policy on international trade and investment, foreign assistance to developing countries, and the international aspects of energy security and climante change. He was a partner in the Washington, D.C. office.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sidley_Austin

JB

[L. Coyote]

18. Brad Berenson, partner, is Ralston's counsel, was a Bush WH counsel.

This is not good news about the Obamas!

[blogslut]

17. I wonder

Why won't Waxman supboena SMARTECHCORP?

[L. Coyote]

19. For what? Cause?

[undeterred]

20. Shouldn't be that hard to find

Tech companies know each other and lots of them are liberal. One connected to the White House would be a secret hard to keep.

[texpatriot2004]

21. This Secret WH and the * Administration should go Cheney

themselves.