Greenwald on Hastert

Glenn Greenwald weighs in on Denny Hastert's call for a Justice Department investigation of anyone except him:

The letter sent by Denny Hastert yesterday to Bush Attorney General Alberto Gonalzes was sent with the intent of stemming the tide of this Foley cover-up scandal by enabling Hastert and friends to hide behind the fact that there is now a pending DOJ criminal investigation which they requested. But Hastert's letter should have the precise opposite effect. The letter itself is actually one of the most incriminating and scandalous actions to be revealed in this story yet, and demonstrates just how deeply corrupt and amoral the trappings of one-party rule have made the Republicans in Washington.

... While excluding himself from the investigation, Hastert wants it known that anyone who had knowledge of Foley's IM's -- in the media, watchdog groups, or even other pages and their families -- will be subject to this DOJ investigation if they failed to come forward earlier. With the issuance of Hastert's letter, everyone with additional information about Foley's activities will think twice, at least, about coming forward now, which is a central reason why Hastert wrote and then released this letter.

As this reader email sent to TPM (and to me) astutely pointed out, Hastert's letter is plainly designed to advance the original cover-up -- not to get to the bottom of what happened here -- by: (a) excluding the conduct of Hastert and his allies from the DOJ investigation; (b) enabling him to block a real investigation by the Ethics Committee or an outside investigator by claiming that the DOJ is now investigating; (c) triggering a "lock-down" of information on the Hill by enabling or forcing members and staffers not to speak further about a "pending DOJ investigation"; (d) intimidating those who exposed Hastert and his allies by triggering a criminal prosecution against them; (e) transforming the issue from Hastert and company's reckless and reprehensible cover-up to whether federal criminal laws were violated; and (f) deterring and intimidating those who might come forth with more information about Foley by creating the fear that they, too, will now be investigated by the DOJ.

Political leaders -- especially ones whose party controls all facets of the government -- have the ability to engage in wrongdoing and then use the power of their office to conceal that wrongdoing. That is why -- especially when we live under one-party rule -- we critically depend upon watchdogs, whistle-blowers and the media to expose that wrongdoing. That is the only line of defense the public has to prevent political leaders from concealing their misconduct. Our system of government depends on exposure of that sort. We simply cannot tolerate political officials who get caught engaging in wrongdoing thereafter using the power of their offices to intimidate, threaten and prosecute those who expose their misconduct or disclose politically embarrassing information about them.

But that is exactly what Hastert is trying to accomplish with his letter. It is truly scandalous in itself that having been caught ignoring a predator in his party for purely political reasons, Hastert's first reaction is to try to induce Alberto Gonazles's Justice Department to use its vast law enforcement powers to pursue those who exposed him, thereby intimidating others who might come forward with more information. That is thuggish behavior of the worst kind, but it what the administration and their allies have done time and again against anyone in the media or elsewhere who acts to expose their misconduct.

The media should not be deceived into thinking that Hastert's letter is some sort of effort to have the Justice Department find out what happened here. The intent is the opposite. Hastert's letter should be understood and reported as what it is -- an effort to advance his cover-up and prevent his actions from undergoing real scrutiny. That is what corrupt political leaders instinctively do: they block examination of their conduct and intimidate those who would expose their wrongdoing. That is what the Bush administration and their allies have been doing for the last five years over and over and over and it is plainly what Hastert is trying to do here.