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Thanks, David!
Will political reporter Rick Klein of the Boston Globe break this story open, as Woodward and Bernstein did Watergate? |
Klein’s article in the National section of April 13’s Globe broke some interesting ground, including RNC lawyer Robert Kelner’s claim that the Democrats’ lawsuit is proceeding now only because 2006 is an election year.
The Democrats filed their lawsuit in 2004. Since then, they have repeatedly tried to push forward with it, only to be stalled and stymied by the US Department of Justice, which claimed that letting the Democrats’ suit go forward would harm their own prosecution of wrongdoers.*
Moving at the pace of a snail with bunions, the US DOJ did not indict co-conspirator James Tobin until December of 2004, and did not bring his case to trial until December of 2005. If the Democrats’ lawsuit is only now unfolding in 2006, this is not due to any skullduggery by the Democrats.
* To quote from the Union Leader of October 15, 2004:
“Somebody made a decision to try to assist the Republican Party in stonewalling us,” said Democratic Party Chairman Kathleen N. Sullivan.
She said it was “shocking” that the justice department would “interfere in this small New Hampshire case” when federal prosecutors haven’t stopped discovery in civil cases against Enron, Tyco and WorldCom while parallel criminal cases are under way.
“We find this late intervention by the Department of Justice to be a sorry and sad reflection upon that department,” said Steven M. Gordon, attorney for the Democratic Party.