President-elect Barrack Obama has nominated former Clinton deputy attorney general, Eric H. Holder Jr. But getting Holder confirmed may not be so easy because he's going to face some tough questioning over his role in pardoning Marc Rich who fled the country owing $48 million in back taxes.
The Republican party says Holder has a "long history of controversial pardons." Critics say that Holder okayed the Rich pardon hoping that former White House counsel, Jack Quinn, would help him get a job as Attorney General in a future Al Gore presidency. Gore was vice-president at the time.
Clinton's Library and Foundation are also causing worries for Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton who is said to be a candidate for the next Attorney General position. The former president has agreed to disclose all of the donors to his foundation, and to vet his future speeches and overseas activities.
It's interesting watching the past haunt both of these men. What does Holder's involvement with Rich tell us? For one thing, he's not above making backdoor deals to further his career. Three months ago I wrote a column in the Times-Standard about presidential libraries and foundations. I talked about Clinton's setup that's earning him mega millions, and has the stench of corruption attached to it.
If you ask me, neither Hillary Clinton or Eric Holder deserve to get the positions they're up for. If Obama want's to get away from "business as usual" in Washington then he'd be wise to reconsider both of these people. I admit that I was surprised when the word came out he was considering Holder and Hillary for posts in his new administration.
People have high hopes for Obama. They expect change. Their tired of the same "good ol boys" running the government. Their tired of political scandals and secrets. Ties and lies from the past don't fade away, this just come back to roost and to reestablish themselves if allowed too.
As It Stands, we'll have to hope that these picks fail to bear fruit, and that Obama gets rid of whoever suggested Holden and Hillary.
No comments:
Post a Comment