Cheney at Risk

The latest disclosures about a program that was "kept from the Congress" could be the mistake that the Democrats have been looking for. On the surface, the few facts that have come out seem very suspect and it could be Cheney's "waterloo." Leon Panetta, the CIA Director has been pretty careful not to allow the agency to be discredited unfairly, but this incident has been exposed by him, so it needs careful review. This is coupled with news yesterday that the Bush administration had much deeper and extensive counterintelligence surveillance than was previously understood.It is worrisome that maybe the Bush administration may have gone a "step too far" in threatening privacy and individual liberty as they attempted to prevent another 9/11. I certainly hope that is not the case, but the facts are beginning to add up to a condition that requires further investigation. 

Also, yesterday there was a report that the Attorney General, Eric Holder, is actually still considering prosecution of participants in the "interrogation practices" of the Bush administration. Although the Obama administration seems to be playing a "good cop-bad cop" game with this issue, it is very worrisome that Holder is still thinking about this. That said, if we look at the developing Cheney story and couple that with this "torture" story, we can see a pattern of the Obama administration attempting to hold the previous administration accountable for their decisions. This would be an unprecedented event, and one that would put public service in a totally different light, especially for lawyers who seem to be the target of the Holder inquiry. 

It is clear that lawyers are not just analysts of the law, they are also advocates who must be expected to construct arguments that are logical and based on the core legal principles involved in any inquiry. If they are unable to make those arguments without fear of reprisal later, there is going to be a massive reluctance to serve as counsel in the White House or Justice Department.