Cover up-itis strikes again! The Washington Post's Charles Krauthammer writes that Attorney General Roberto Gonzales should resign because he botched the legal firing of eight U.S. attorneys.
Dr. K points out that, unless it can be shown the firings were done to obstruct particular prosecutions, the firings were entirely legal . However, the firings were done badly and later described inaccurately to Congress. Gonzales' subordinates apparently attempted to cover up activity that didn't need covering up.
In Washington, recent and not-so-recent history shows cover ups lead to felony convictions. Scooter Libby was recently convicted for trying to cover up behavior that, in itself, wasn't illegal. Those of us old enough to remember Watergate know most of those who resigned and/or went to jail did so for lying about who knew what when - for attempted cover up.
George Santayana taught us that those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it. It would appear each Washington generation has to learn this lesson the hard way.
