"I am not the US Attorney for Washingon. I am the US Attorney for western Missouri." - Todd Graves
Wow. I'm watching a Kansas City news report from the ABC Affiliate, KMBC, on the DOJ/USAGate situation with Todd Graves. The report is by Micheal Mahoney, the local political/investigative reporter. He's an "old school" reporter and truth be told....he's not bad.
Anyhoo, he's just done a pretty fine report trying to summarize the Todd Graves situation in the local broadcast. Considering that these broadcasts have become so predictable (Open/breaking news, commercial, weather, commmercial, sports, commercial, local feel good story), Micheal Mahoney's report actually caught my attention. It's usually just background noise while I'm procrastinating online instead of getting dinner ready.
More below.
The report isn't online yet, so I took a few minutes to transcribe. I'm sure it will be up later and I'll double back with a link to the actual video when I'm able.
To the best of my rusty transcribing skills, here you go......
Todd Graves declined an on-camera interview with Mahoney, but he provided him with a "draft of memo that he says can prove how difficult Washington was to deal with.
Graves told Mahoney that things got particularly bad after a cross-burning case. (We need to look into this one)From the Graves interview and draft provided to Mahoney:
"Graves wrote this memo after an angry phone call with the "acting head of the civil rights division, Alex Acosta." Graves said he hung up on Acosta and 2 days later wrote him this memo:
I am unwilling to negotiate (within Dept. of Justice) to eviscerate and weaken this agreement". Graves said that friends in the department warned him at the time that kind of action could hurt his career. Graves said he also had trouble over Robert Courtney, a local pharmacist who was convicted diluting Cancer drugs. Graves said the government wanted to sieze Courtney's $10 million dollars and he wanted to give it to the victims. And when Washington balked, he said "I got angry." Telling them, "I am not the US Attorney for Washington, I am the US Attorney for western Missouri."
The other major clash was over a voting lawsuit. Graves replacement, Brad Schlozman was still in Washington at the time and Schlozman was pressing to sue Missouri's Democratic Sec of State, claiming the voting rolls were inaccurate. Graves did not sign that lawsuit. He thought the local official should be sued, not the state. And that lawsuit was thrown out just a few weeks ago.
Graves doesn't think he's part of the controversy surrounding Attorney General, Alberto Gonzales, and the firing of US Attorneys. Others aren't sure. The website Minnesota Campaign Report has emails from former assistant Kyle Sampson. He drew up the list of attorneys to be fired and was sent to Dabney Friedrich in the White House, saying the only others on the list have already left office. The two US Attorneys who quit in that time were one in Minnesota and Todd Graves, here in Kansas City.
Graves says he has not been asked to testify before Congress, he expects that he will be. Adding "I'd be happy to volunteer, but I don't know much."
Emphasis mine.
Well, how about that......Not only was Graves pushed out of office and asked to resign, but his disagreements with Washington were over:
- a "cross-burning case"
- whether Robert Courtney's many victims should receive compensation or whether Washington should pilfer it. (On a side, my aunt's partner was a patient receiving Cancer drugs from Robert Courtney. She did not survive the Cancer)
- and finally because Graves refused to sue the Secretary of State for Missouri for what was proven to be a bogus case.
As I said at the beginning, "wow." How do these people sleep at night? And if Republicans like Todd Graves have had enough of Republican partisan antics and corruption, what about those that have done the WH bidding, either through intimidation or corruption? How many cases have been eroneously filed? How many victims are suffering because of their greed? It hurts just trying to fathom the damage done to families all across this country by "Washington" in the last 7 years.
And to think that these type of appointments, people like Schlozman, have been happening at every level of our government and it's agencies for the last 7 years. This will take years and years to correct.
I'd just like to end this diary by noting how firmly I am for impeachment. Of Gonzales, Rove, Cheney and Bush. I agree with the front page diary of this afternoon, this is the most important time in history for us to use this tool. Our founders are probably spinning in their graves that we haven't used the option yet. As long as Bush, et al, flaunt the will of the people and the laws of this country, we have no other choice.
Thank you. Felt good to get off my chest.
Have a lovely evening.
UPDATE: Here is a link to the story at KMBC. Still no video link that I can find.