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March 27, 2007 Op-Ed Contributor Prosecution Complex By NEAL KATYAL WashingtonIN 1999, when the Independent Counsel Act (the law that gave Kenneth Starr and Lawrence Walsh their mandates) was expiring, I was given the job of writing the new Justice Department rules for the appointment of a special prosecutor since the department would once again be responsible for overseeing such investigations. There was one hypothetical to worry about once the Independent Counsel Act lapsed: a case in which the attorney general herself and her deputy were suspected of possible misconduct. The rules were therefore written to vest the decision...

WASHINGTON -- The End. The post-Watergate era of independent counsels, the investigators whose criminal probes affected the fortunes of Republican and Democratic administrations alike, is officially coming to a close. A two-paragraph order signed by a federal appeals court clerk on March 31 marks the demise of the last of the court-appointed prosecutors. Independent counsel David Barrett, who spent a decade and $20 million investigating former Housing Secretary Henry Cisneros, must complete his duties "on or before May 3," the order states. Cisneros pleaded guilty in 1999 to a misdemeanor of lying to the FBI about payments to a former...

Full Report on Clinton Years Is Sought by GOP Senators BY BRIAN McGUIRE - Staff Reporter of the Sun January 20, 2006 URL: http://www.nysun.com/article/26218 WASHINGTON - Republican senators are puzzling over how to ensure full release of a long-awaited independent counsel's report that alleges obstruction at the highest levels of the Clinton administration but which omits by court order a large narrative chunk that some conservatives think could be damaging to the former first lady, Senator Clinton. The New York Sun reported exclusively on Monday that a 10-year probe by independent counsel David Barrett into allegations of tax fraud by...

Excerpts - WASHINGTON _ A special prosecutor's long-delayed report charges that a coverup at senior levels of the Clinton administration killed a tax fraud case against former Cabinet member Henry Cisneros, the New York Daily News has learned. David Barrett's 11-year, $23 million probe, which will be released Thursday, states in stinging terms that the Clinton coverup succeeded. [snip] Before Cisneros' 1999 guilty plea, Barrett's office began a second phase based in part on allegations in a 1997 memo to IRS headquarters by whistleblower John Filan, an IRS criminal investigations chief in Texas. In a memo obtained by the Daily...

In Monday's edition of the NEW YORK SUN, reporter Brian McGuire and contributor R. Emmett Tyrrell, Jr., break the first look at the long-anticipated report from Independent Counsel David Barrett, whose investigation lasted 10 year and cost taxpayers $23 million. The SUN outlines the report's details surrounding the alleged illicit activity and cover up that involving former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Henry Cisneros before and during his time in the Clinton Administration. The Sun reveals that the Barrett report connects the dots that allege that senior officials of the Clinton Administration hindered investigations by the IRS in both...

WASHINGTON — Potentially explosive allegations from a 10-year independent counsel investigation may never see the light of day due to an appropriations bill negotiation that has some conservatives crying foul. The final report of David M. Barrett, independent counsel appointed in 1995 to investigate potential felonies committed by one-time Clinton administration Housing and Urban Development Secretary Henry Cisneros, is tentatively scheduled for release on Jan. 19, Barrett told FOXNews.com. However, Barrett and others say, thanks to an amendment to the November judiciary appropriations bill, key elements in the final report, which was completed in August 2004 and has been sitting...

Report Could Torpedo Hillary Clinton's Prez Plans Two Washington pundits are warning that Hillary Clinton's 2008 presidential plans may depend on whether congressional Democrats can continue to keep Independent Counsel David Barrett's final report on IRS abuses during the 1990s under wraps. "Prominent Democrats in Congress have spent much of the last decade in a campaign to suppress Barrett's report," columnist Robert Novak reported yesterday. "Its disclosures could dig deeply into concealed Clinton administration scandals." Notes Fox News Radio's Tony Snow: "By all accounts, the 400-page Barrett report is a bombshell, capable possibly of wiping out Hillary Rodham Clinton's presidential...

There is major news in the fight over the report of independent counsel David Barrett's investigation into the Henry Cisneros matter. Late today, the three-judge panel overseeing Barrett ordered that parts of his report be released to the public -- and that all of the report be given to Congress. "The Court orders that the independent counsel, with all deliberate speed, prepare for release and make release of the now pending Final Report, except for that portion designated as Section V," the order says. It is not clear what is contained in Section V, but it is known that several...

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Senate decided Thursday that it was time to close to a decade-old, $20 million investigation of former Housing Secretary Henry Cisneros - years after Cisneros received a presidential pardon. The amendment to a spending bill, approved by voice vote, would require that the report of Independent Counsel David Barrett be made public within 60 days, and that the independent counsel close his office within 90 days after the report is published. ``The American taxpayers have spent a lot of money on this report and they deserve the right to see it,'' said Senate Finance Committee...

WASHINGTON - The independent counsel investigation that led to the conviction of a former Clinton administration housing chief could come back to haunt Sen. Hillary Clinton. The Daily News has learned that lawyers are fighting to suppress a potentially embarrassing final report from the probe that found Housing Secretary Henry Cisneros lied to the FBI about paying $250,000 in hush money to his ex-mistress. Cisneros paid a $10,000 fine after he was found guilty in 1999 and was later pardoned by Bill Clinton. And though neither Hillary Clinton nor her husband was targeted by independent counsel David Barrett, his 420-page...

AS THE SEEMINGLY ENDLESS SPIDERWEB OF LIES SPUN BY former Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson IV unravels, the media has gone out of its way to question the credibility of…Karl Rove. Despite Rove’s demonstrable non-leak of Valerie Plame’s non-secret identity, the dogs continue to gather, hungry for a second term scandal, while the Wilsons’ blatant self-promotion erodes whatever basis they had for a story in the first place. Perhaps Joe Wilson’s two biggest whoppers were his claim to have spoken out because of his deep, non-partisan commitment to “truth,” and his inconsolable remorse that his wife’s closely guarded anonymity had become...

AS THE SEEMINGLY ENDLESS SPIDERWEB OF LIES SPUN BY former Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson IV unravels, the media has gone out of its way to question the credibility of…Karl Rove. Despite Rove’s demonstrable non-leak of Valerie Plame’s non-secret identity, the dogs continue to gather, hungry for a second term scandal, while the Wilsons’ blatant self-promotion erodes whatever basis they had for a story in the first place. Perhaps Joe Wilson’s two biggest whoppers were his claim to have spoken out because of his deep, non-partisan commitment to “truth,” and his inconsolable remorse that his wife’s closely guarded anonymity had become...

WASHINGTON - Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., revealed Friday that two years ago he discussed the blown cover of CIA operative Valerie Plame with then CIA director George Tenet and that Tenet "was furious." Tenet promptly called the Justice Department to demand an investigation into who in the Bush administration leaked Plame's identity to columnist Robert Novak, Schumer said at a hearing held by House and Senate Democrats. Novak revealed Plame's identity in July 2003 in a column in which he said she played a key role in having her husband, former Ambassador Joseph Wilson, sent to Niger to investigate...

I am thinking about writing a letter to my local fish wrap because editor was crying about the Rove nonsense and the fact that Judith Miller was a hero to all for standing up for the press and their "First Amendment Rights" and protection of confidential sources. The jest of my letter is going to focus on why we shouldn't feel sorry for Ms. Miller and the rest of the press because they (the liberal press) are the first ones to applaud when the First Amendment protections to free speech during federal elections was attacked (McCain/Feingold) and when a court...

In journalism, the definition of “leak” suggests that it is applied to government officials who purposely give reporters secret or confidential information in order to publicize something they do not like so that it can be defeated before being voted upon. “Outing” a CIA agent is only a crime if the agent is under cover overseas or has been during the past five years. This law was created to prevent the assassinations of CIA agents on foreign shores as had been caused by Philip Agee in 1978 who listed CIA agents undercover in foreign cities, causing the murder of some....

The buzz is that all of the fun-loving Dims are having "Rovegate" parties to trash Karl Rove and GWB over the CIA outing controversy. We need to show we can have fun too......by having a Wilson-Plame Look-Alike Contest. Post here your choices for the look-alikes.

Was it really a secret that Joe Wilson’s wife worked for the CIA? It's the top story in the Washington Post this morning as well as in many other media outlets. Who leaked the fact that the wife of Joseph C. Wilson IV worked for the CIA? What also might be worth asking: "Who didn't know?" I believe I was the first to publicly question the credibility of Mr. Wilson, a retired diplomat sent to Niger to look into reports that Saddam Hussein had attempted to purchase yellowcake uranium for his nuclear-weapons program. On July 6, Mr. Wilson wrote an...

Now I read that Matt Cooper’s (the journalist who received Rove’s so-called ‘leak’) wife is Mandy Grunwald; media consultant and campaign advisor to both Bill and Hillary Clinton......

David Corn responding to Clifford May's column in National Review. Blah, blah, blah. Unconvincing. Those of you following this closely will want to read it for clues, but I'm only going to post what (to me) was the big news: Here's another fact that may interest anyone who thinks May might have a point:Number of times I've been contacted by Patrick Fitzgerald, interviewed or contacted by his investigators, and called before the grand jury: 0. What the h*ll is this? David Corn published an article only two days after Novak's column that exposed Plame in far greater detail than Novak...

An interesting post by Cliff May: "This morning, I have a piece up elsewhere on NRO showing that The Nation’s David Corn--not syndicated columnist Bob Novak--was the first to reveal that Valerie Plame was an undercover operative. It further suggests that David did so based on information provided to him by none other than Joseph C. Wilson IV. While working on that piece, I had an exchange with David and, with his permission, I thought I’d share that with you. Dear David: I have a question--one you may not be willing to answer but I’m curious so let me try:...

Could minor Ambassador Joe Wilson himself have been the source in blowing his own Wife's "cover" (even if she had not been a covert CIA agent at the time of the alleged "leaks")? It is distinctly possible, (though it may be unlikely that Joe Wilson himself directly was NY Times Judith Miller's source), since Joe Wilson himself evidently routinely bragged openly to strangers about her CIA employment, prior to such "cover" being "blown" in the press. Here's an example of Joe's apparently routine and open bragging about Valerie being a "CIA agent," which became known directly to me over a...

Senators Byron Dorgan, John Kerry and Richard Durbin pulled a fast one last week on their congressional colleagues. They tried to bury forever documents alleging that senior government officials tried to transform portions of the IRS and the Justice Department into a goon squad for attacking political enemies and aiding political friends. Naturally, they didn’t declare their intentions openly. Instead, Sen. Dorgan attached an innocent looking amendment to the Emergency Supplemental Appropriations bill that will fund government operations after September 30. The last-minute amendment read: “At the end of the bill, add the following: “SEC. __ . (a) None of...

WASHINGTON - Senate Democrats are quietly trying to kill a 10-year legal probe that implicates several senior Clinton administration appointees for obstruction of justice, the Daily News has learned. The Democrats, saying that the $21 million investigation by Independent Counsel David Barrett should have ended long ago, succeeded in attaching an amendment to a spending bill Tuesday to cut off his funding by June 1. But two sources close to the investigation said that if the legislation becomes law, it will thwart Barrett from making public a final report that names senior officials in the Clinton Justice Department and Internal...

Borrowing a page from President Bush, New York Sen. Hillary Clinton told a Boston audience this week that prayer has always played a meaningful role in her life - though accounts from her days as a student radical suggest that's probably not true. "I've always been a praying person," Clinton told a crowd of more than 500, including many religious leaders, at Boston's Fairmont Copley Plaza. According to the Boston Globe, the newly religious former first lady "invoked God more than half a dozen times" as she urged society to accommodate religious people who "live out their faith in the...

You don't have to take it from us about Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton 's desire to run for president. Her brothers, Hugh and Tony Rodham, say it's true. Friends tell us that the two are cheering Sis on and say she's making all the moves to get ready for the race--presuming she is re-elected by New Yorkers in 2006.

On the eve of President Bush's second inauguration, New York Sen. Hillary Clinton is blasting him as the "fear factor" president who tries to sell his irresponsible agenda by scaring the voters. "The fear factor has become the overriding strategic approach that this administration uses," Clinton complained to the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. The likely 2008 presidential candidate told the paper that Bush has used scare tactics to rally public support on issues ranging from U.S. policy in Iraq to privatization of Social Security. On Iraq Clinton griped that Bush had even botched the election process, saying that regional balloting...

Hillary Clinton on Environment Supports oil reserve release & fund conservation Q: Do you support conserving energy?A: I’ve spoken about an energy policy that would include conservation tax credits that the Republicans have blocked. The administration has put forth an energy policy that we couldn’t get through that Republican leadership that my opponent is part of. We need a new Congress. I was pleased when the president did release some oil from the reserve. So we have work to do and it needs to be led by Democrats who understand that we shouldn’t be beholden to big oil. Source:...

WASHINGTON - Tomorrow night, with the nation's capital awash in inaugural events, Sen. Hillary Clinton will be delivering a high-profile speech in Boston about politics and youth. She is the keynote speaker at a fundraiser for a group headed by outspoken Boston minister, Rev. Eugene Rivers. Aides to Clinton, a possible Democratic presidential contender in 2008, said she agreed to give the speech a long time ago and said nothing should be read into the timing.

New York Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) has long been rumored as desperately seeking the democratic nomination for president in 2008. And while many political observers fully expect the power hungry former First Lady to hit the campaign trail within only a few months of being re-elected as a US Senator in 2006, US News & World report claims to have a confirmation of sorts. From USNews.Com's Washington Whispers: Hillary's in… You don't have to take it from us about Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton 's desire to run for president. Her brothers, Hugh and Tony Rodham, say it's true. Friends...

NEW YORK, January 12, 2005 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Abortion crusader and New York Senator Hillary Clinton condemned US President George W. Bush Tuesday, claiming his withdrawal of funding from organizations that commit or promote abortions is harming women. Speaking at an International Women's Health Coalition-sponsored dinner, Clinton claimed that "reproductive health care and family planning service is a basic right," and said this was based on decisions reached at the 1994 U.N. Population Conference in Cairo, as well as the 1995 U.N. women's conference in Beijing, where Clinton gave a keynote address. She argued that the Bush administration has failed to...

The Rev. Jesse Jackson praised New York Sen. Hillary Clinton yesterday as "Sister Hillary," after Clinton cited his efforts to overturn the presidential election by challenging the Electoral College vote in Ohio. Speaking at his annual Wall Street Project fundraiser, Jackson said "Sister Hillary" had been an important ally in his fight for those "traumatized by what happened to us as a people and a nation in Ohio." He called Clinton "a light in dark places," who has "stood on the right side of history," according to quotes picked up by the New York Sun. The praise for Clinton came...

Amid speculation that she might forgo a run for re-election to the Senate in 2006 in favor of a presidential run in 2008, New York Democratic Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton has sent an early fundraising appeal that, while directed toward reelection, reads like a trial run for a White House bid. "As the Republicans' number one target in 2006, I have to begin now building resources for the tough fight I face in my re-election campaign," Clinton writes in a letter to supporters. She says her task is made more difficult by "the Republican attack machine out to distract me...

George W. Bush Is Most Admired Man in 2004 Hillary Clinton tops list of most admired women; Oprah Winfrey a close second by Joseph Carroll GALLUP NEWS SERVICE PRINCETON, NJ -- President George W. Bush tops Gallup's annual survey of the "most admired man" for the fourth year in a row. Hillary Clinton leads the most admired woman list, with Oprah Winfrey close behind. Republicans and Democrats differ significantly in their views of this year's most admirable men and women. Republicans overwhelmingly say the president is the most admired man, and also name first lady Laura Bush and national security...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Assistant Attorney General Christopher A. Wray announced today the unsealing of a four-count indictment charging David Rosen, the former National Finance Director for a candidate for United States Senate in the 2000 campaign, with causing false campaign finance reports to be filed with the Federal Election Commission, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1001 and 2. The indictment was returned by a federal grand jury in the Central District of California and unsealed today. The indictment alleges that Rosen, an experienced professional political fundraiser, was responsible for all fundrasing, planning and costs for an...

[snip]The affidavit said the true cost of the event "was deliberately understated in order to increase the amount of funds available to New York Senate 2000 for federal campaign activities." Mrs. Clinton was first lady at the time of the gala.     The indictment comes at a time when Mrs. Clinton is considered a potential Democratic presidential candidate in 2008, and faces potential challenges in 2006 for her Senate seat from former New York City Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani or New York Gov. George E. Pataki. [snip]Two of the event's organizers were Hollywood producer Peter F. Paul and charity fund-raiser Aaron...

WASHINGTON -- Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's former finance director has been indicted on charges of causing false campaign finance reports to be filed with the Federal Election Commission, the Justice Department said Friday. The indictment of David Rosen, unsealed in Los Angeles, focuses on his fund-raising for an Aug. 12, 2000, gala for Clinton in Los Angeles. The New York Democrat was still first lady at the time. While the event allegedly cost more than $1.2 million, the indictment said, Rosen reported contributions of about $400,000, knowing the figure to be false. The indictment charged that Rosen provided some documents...

NewsMax.com http://www.newsmax.com/showinsidecover.shtml?a=2002/6/24/221543 Monday, June 24, 2002 11:15 p.m. EDT FBI Raids Hillary's Warehouse in Whitewater Déjà Vu Ten years ago, L. Jean Lewis, an investigator with the government's Resolution Trust Corporation, was able to piece together a complicated Arkansas bank fraud conspiracy from a treasure trove of documents she unearthed in an out-of-the-way Kansas City warehouse. The result was the Whitewater scandal, which, after six years' worth of twists and turns, ended in the first impeachment of an elected president in U.S. history. New York Sen. Hillary Clinton surely hopes that history isn't repeating itself with the raid conducted by...

WASHINGTON, Jan. 7 (AP) - Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton's former finance director has been indicted on charges of filing fictitious reports that misstated contributions for a Hollywood fund-raising gala for the senator, the Justice Department said Friday. The indictment, rare for a political campaign, was unsealed in Los Angeles and charged David Rosen with four counts of filing false reports with the Federal Election Commission. The charges focus on a dinner and concert on Aug. 12, 2000, supported by more than $1.1 million in so-called in-kind contributions - goods and services provided free or below cost. The F.B.I. previously said...

Though Hillary Clinton's former finance chairman David Rosen was actually indicted in 2003, the Bush administration kept it secret till the indictment was unsealed late Friday, a move that spared the former first couple and the Democratic Party significant embarrassment during the height of the 2004 presidential campaign. "The indictment was handed down more than a year ago," the Los Angeles Times reported Saturday. Citing "sources familiar with the probe," the Times said the Bush Justice Department decided that any criminal charges would not be made public until after last fall's presidential election for fear they would be seen as...

WASHINGTON - A top aide in Sen. Hillary Clinton's 2000 Senate race was indicted yesterday on federal charges of filing false documents that allegedly lowballed costs and hid generous assistance in putting on a star-studded Hollywood gala. The Justice Department alleges that David Rosen, Clinton's former campaign finance director, misstated the cost of the fund-raiser to free up more cash for the Democrat's 2000 election. Campaign staffers have denied the books were cooked. Rosen was indicted on four counts of filing false Federal Election Commission reports stemming from an Aug. 12, 2000, fund-raising dinner and concert for Clinton's Senate campaign....

WASHINGTON – The indictment of Sen. Hillary Clinton’s former Senate campaign finance chairman, David Rosen, on campaign finance charges was made possible by the cooperation of Judicial Watch client Peter Paul, the public interest watchdog group said today. Paul, a former Hollywood Internet entrepreneur and partner of "Spiderman" creator Stan Lee, spent nearly $2 million to produce the August 2000 Hollywood tribute to honor President Clinton and to help raise funds for Hillary Clinton’s 2000 U.S. Senate campaign – the event at the center of the indictment. He was repeatedly assured that his expenses would be reported to the Federal...

"Is anyone really surprised that another Clinton confidante has been indicted?" said Stephen Minarik, referring to the indictment of David Rosen, who served as Hillary Clinton's finance director in her 2000 Senate race. The New York State Republican Party chairman added: "Hillary Clinton's public life reads like an instruction manual for breaking the rules. New Yorkers deserve better. The remarks by Minarik are but the opening salvo in a ramping up campaign to frustrate her reelection to the Senate and even nix a potential presidential bid by Clinton in 2008, says a report in the NY Daily News. Pundits are...

I anxiously awaited information about the indictment of my neighbor Hillary Clinton's Campaign finance director David Rosen. To my surprise, there was no mention of it in the local or national pages. I suggest to folks like me who want to hear the story, that they call or fax the Journal news here in Westchester County & ask them why they missed this huge story! Contact them at: Reader Services Editor The Journal News One Gannett Drive White Plains, NY 10604 Phone: (914) 694-3514 Fax: (914) 694-5018

The head of New York GOP blasted Hillary Clinton's ethics yesterday in the wake of the indictment of the junior senator's former finance director. "Is anyone really surprised that another Clinton confidant has been indicted?" said Stephen Minarik. "Hillary Clinton's public life reads like an instruction manual for breaking the rules. New Yorkers deserve better."

A few articles from a New York City Newspaper on the Clinton Fundraiser scandal. It's nice to see somebody besides the A.P. actually writing a story that doesn't fawn over this slimeball.

THE indictment of Hillary Clinton's 2000 campaign-finance director, David Rosen, may pose a threat to the senator's presidential bid. For now, the federal indictment is focused only on Rosen, but it is not hard to see the process creeping up the campaign food chain to the senator herself. [snip] While there is no indication that the Senate candidate knew of the understating of the cost of the event, is it credible that she would not be aware of a decision that gave her campaign more than a quarter of a million dollars as it entered the final three months...

New York Sen. Hillary Clinton personally negotiated some of the fees for a star-studded Aug. 12, 2000 Hollywood fundraiser, the event's producer, Peter Paul, said in an interview aired on Sunday - as the event comes under increasing scrutiny by a Los Angeles grand jury and the Justice Department. And in another sign of potential legal trouble for the top Democrat, a spokesman for the lawfirm championing Paul's case said his client informed Mrs. Clinton that her finance director, David Rosen, had failed to accurately report costs for the event to the Federal Election Commission. "Hillary Clinton personally called the...

The man who organized a star-studded Hollywood gala to benefit then-first lady Hillary Clinton's Senate campaign has authored a riveting account of his life among the rich and famous, shining the light on members of the would-be presidential candidate's staff and the Democratic standard bearer herself. Aaron Tonken, who quickly became a friend to top celebrities after once living in an L.A. homeless shelter, penned the last portion of his tell-all book, "King of Cons: Exposing the Dirty, Rotten Secrets of the Washington Elite and Hollywood Celebrities," from behind bars. Part of his story includes what he considers a betrayal...

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Recent polls show the public's image of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., gradually morphing from sharply controversial First Lady to centrist, constituent-minded senator. Although still a polarizing figure, the first-term legislator could use the makeover to position herself for a White House run in 2008. Political strategists say Clinton has impressed Senate colleagues and constituents by working on New York issues while taking moderate or conservative stances on controversies such as the war in Iraq. "A majority feel positive toward her," said Lee Miringoff, director of the Marist Institute for Public Opinion in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. "She's being...

Commencement Speech, Wellesley College by Hillary Rodham Wellesley College - May 31, 1969 "I am very glad that Miss Adams made it clear that what I am speaking for today is all of us -- the 400 of us -- and I find myself in a familiar position, that of reacting, something that our generation has been doing for quite a while now. We're not in the positions yet of leadership and power, but we do have that indispensable task of criticizing and constructive protest and I find myself reacting just briefly to some of the things that Senator Brooke...