Congress Must Hold Bush Administration Accountable

Critics of the Democratically controlled Congress are suggesting that Dems are making a mountain out of a molehill by demanding that White House officials explain how they came to the conclusion to fire eight U.S. attorneys.

It is correct that the Bush administration had the full authority to make whatever changes it wanted. Federal prosecutors serve at the pleasure of the president, and yes, even the Clinton administration led a house cleaning that included the dismissal of 93 attorneys.

But the real problem here is the inability of the Bush administration to tell the truth. Congress and the American people have been given multiple reasons for why the prosecutors were fired. First, we were told that it was based on performance. When that was rejected, another rationale was given — namely that it was done at the suggestion of then-White House Counsel Harriet Miers. Then we learned that really wasn't the case, and that the president's closest adviser, Karl Rove, was involved. Later we learned that Republican members of Congress wanted several prosecutors out, suggesting that political pressure played a large role.

The back and forth between the U.S. Justice Department and the White House was infuriating to Congress because administration officials were more like Keystone Kops than professionals.

Realizing that they were in trouble, the White House chose to play hardball, but that backfired. So President Bush offered to have his top aides speak to members of Congress without being sworn to testimony and with no transcripts made of the discussions. All of this in an effort for Bush to extend executive privilege, which he says is needed to protect the advice a president receives from his aides.

But Democrats said that wasn't good enough, thus, the House and Senate judiciary panels authorized subpoenas to force White House officials to testify before Congress on the matter.

This is the new world order for the Bush administration, and frankly, it's needed.

Yes, no laws were broken, but for six years, the Bushites have done whatever they wanted because a Republican-controlled Congress was unwilling to press the administration on anything.

We heard terrible stories about no-bid contracts for the war in Iraq, billions of dollars being wasted by Halliburton, allegations of torture by the CIA and the military, pressure being applied to intelligence analysts to shade their reports to justify the war, and the Republicans virtually said nothing.

Yet everything has changed, and Bush has to answer the critical questions, whether he likes it or not.

We don't need an executive branch that believes it can operate unfettered. Our democracy is a strong one when the legislative branch holds the executive branch accountable.

And it's a joke for Republicans to cry wolf. For most of Bill Clinton's eight years, the Dan Burtons of Congress hauled his aides before Congressional committees, and investigated them every time something happened. Nothing seemed to be too small for the Republicans to look into. Now the shoe is on the other foot, and they realize how painful it is.

The greatest issue this administration faces is being truthful to the American people. No other White House has operated in such a cloak of secrecy, so it's no wonder the Democrats want to force consistent and truthful answers.

If Bush and his minions aren't happy about what the Democrats are trying to do, simple: Tell the truth. My momma and daddy always told me that when you do that the first time, there is no need to explain yourself over and over.

Sounds like Reginald and Emelda Martin should put in a call to President Bush, Rove and Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.

Roland S. Martin is a CNN contributor and a talk-show host for WVON-AM in Chicago. Please visit his Web site at www.rolandsmartin.com. To find out more about Roland Martin and read his past columns, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

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