You may, possibly, have heard about some small flap, involving US attorneys, possible Congressional subpoenas, calls for the resignation of the US Attorney General, and more spreading around of the term "executive priviledge" than I've seen in years.
It's all very entertaining, of course. Here's a timeline, for people who like lots of links.
And, because I am nothing if not fair and impartial, we have here, by Andy McCarthy, an article on executive priviledge and, uh -- "placing someone under oath connotes subservience", and such. I'm sure, of course, that all involved gave hours of painful consideration to possible connotations of subservience, and the repercussions thereof, when calling former Clinton aides before the House, as anything less would be petty and small-minded.
It's all quite funny, really. After all, I grew up during the Clinton administration, when the overwhelming conservative consensus seemed to be "Suspicion, all the time, of anything that seems the least bit sketchy in the administration, is a good thing." Having forgotten to leave that behind when the executive branch changed parties, I'm afraid I'm still stuck in that mindset. And watching the latest round of "Oh, no! Executive power/priviledge/jurisdiction is being questioned! Quick, to the breach!" is all very amusing.
Posted by Ardith at March 22, 2007 09:24 PM | TrackBack