While Tom Davis was head of the House Oversight committee, Lurita Doan of GSA was making sure that Republicans, including Davis, were scheduled to appear in government public ceremonies and events that would give them "ink" and time in the media in a favorable light.
Today Scott Higham and Robert O'Harrow of WaPo report that the conclusion of the new Special Counsel's Report is that the "GSA Chief Violated the Hatch Act."
Karl Rove deputy J. Scott Jennings directed Lurita Doan, the chief of the GSA, and as many as 40 agency officials to help in the re-election of embattled Republicans in the 2006 election. The presentation was made by the White House aide given at the General Services Administration and discussed targeting 20 Democratic congressional candidates in the next election.
Jennings' 28-page presentation included 2006 election results and listed the names of Democratic candidates considered beatable and Republican lawmakers thought to need their help in 2008. The 2008 list includes the following local pols: Thelma Drake (VA-02), Roscoe Bartlett (MD-06) and Tom Davis (VA-11) . The last two slides of the 28 identify Virginia as battleground states in the 2008 Senate race where GSA help will be needed.
Higham and O'Harrow also have another story today of waste and fraud that escaped Davis's oversight at the expense of our national security.
WaPo covers politics and the GSA here.
"The significance of the allegations against Doan, however, is disputed in 38-page report on the investigation by the committee's ranking Republican member, Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va.
Davis notes that after Doan referred to "helping our candidates" during the teleconference, concerns "that this was inappropriate were addressed immediately and the discussion was terminated."
so was she the only one who didn't know this was wrong? Or did she know it was wrong and do it anyway? Also, it wasn't terminated, exactly. She kept going...
"And after specific candidates, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Sen. Mel Martinez, D-Fla., were mentioned, Jennings said, "this is not a conversation we need to be having at this time," according to one participant, and the call ended.
"Davis' report says the committee's investigation has wasted time and 'failed to establish that Doan engaged in any wrongdoing.'"
How can wrongdoing be established when Davis refused to investigate it then, and is trying to stop it now?