Recently a friend revealed a conversation he had several years ago with Scott Falwell who is currently in prison. Falwell is being used as a witness by the prosecution (Patrick Fitzgerald) to present evidence against his former boss, George Ryan; George Ryan is a former governor of Illinois. None other than Patrick Fitzgerald has handled the indictment and now trial of George Ryan.
Scott Falwell was head of the gigantic MPEA Metropolitan Pier and Expostion Authority. He was head of McCormick Place where conventions are held and Navy Pier a multi- purpose tourist, concert and convention facility. He was described as a favorite of George Ryan.
Long before he went to prison, and while he was under investigation by Patrick Fitzgerald, my friend, said Scott Falwell told him that George Ryan had been warned by Karl Rove not to pursue clemency for death row convicts in Illinois. This occurred at a meeting, I am not sure, perhaps of governors in Washington. Later, after Ryan declared a moratorium on the death sentence, a representative from Karl Rove’s office appeared in Illinois, arriving quite unexpectedly and asked to see the Governor. Ryan was told by this representative that his moratorium for death row prisoners would not go unpunished. He said George Bush was very unhappy. George Bush presided over 152 executions in Texas as governor and is famous for his mocking of Karla Faye Tuckers pleas to be granted clemency.
Ryan was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for his decision to commute the sentences of 167 death row inmates and his placing a moratorium in 2000 on the death penalty. He did this he said, given the evidence that DNA testing had shown many on death row to be innocent. There is no political gain for a Republican governor to do this. It seems he did this based on conscience.
Now whether the indictment of Ryan is part of the punishment or coincidence I don’t know. But apparently, according to my friend, Scott Falwell thinks it is. And according to this friend Scott Falwell has said the indictment of Ryan and all the underlings that preceeded him is the direct result of Ryans’s actions on the moratorium.
The charges against Ryan could be leveled against almost any politician. They are racketeering, mail fraud, perjury, and income tax evasion. This means he received gifts, lied and did not report the gifts on his income tax. It’s not as impressive as it sounds. But that’s another matter.
George Ryan has been indicted by Patrick Fitzgerald and is currently in court. Patrick Fitzgerald has been heralded as the savior of those who want Bush administration officials indicted in the Valerie Plame Scandal.
These same people who would like to see Bush officialdom indicted point to Patrick Fitzgerald as a non-partisan attorney general, a “bulldog” acting in the interests of the law. He is in fact a Republican who was appointed by James Comey who worked for John Ashcroft at the time of his selection to investigate the Plame affair. Ken Mehlman has said that he has the highest regard and faith in Patrick Fitzgerald’s ability to come to a just conclusion to the Plame investigation.
I have never believed that attorney generals act in the interests of the law but rather for political reasons. Whenever a politician is indicted it is always a political act without regard to guilt or innocence. This is true for Tom Delay, it was true for Richard Nixon and it was true for the Whitwater investigation of Bill Clinton.
James Comey who now works for Lockheed Martin appointed Patrick Fitzgerald to be the special prosecutor in the Valerie Plame affair. James Comey is described as being best friends with Patrick Fitzgerald.
Phillip Perry is a lawyer whose former firm Latham and Watkins represents Lockheed Martin. He has just been selected (as of April) to be the general counsel of the Department of Homeland Security. Lockheed Martin has won billions in contracts with Homeland Security. His wife is Elizabeth Cheney who is the Vice President’s daughter. Perry has also represented a private prison firm and American Hospital Corporation. Elizabeth Perry (Cheney’s daughter) is the second-ranking U.S. diplomat for the Middle East and the State Department’s principal deputy assistant secretary of state.
Lynne Cheney had served on the board of Lockheed Martin for 7 years (1994-2001). Lynne Cheney is of course the wife of the Vice President.
I cannot imagine that after Comey’s having appointed Patrick Fitzgerald to investigate the Plame affair, that Lockheed Martin could have hired James Comey, as it’s new general counsel unless this appointment of Patrick Fitzgerald was not seen as a “mistake” or error on the part of Comey. In other words, the Cheney connections to Lockheed Martin in the form of his wife and son in law are very great and very substantial. Comey was hired by Lockheed Martin just a few months ago. The Plame investigation is a couple of years old. If the investigation were going badly for the Bush Administration they would certainly know that. Cheney would know that. With Cheney’s influence at Lockheed Martin, one has to wonder why Comey would be hired if he had chosen a person in the form of Fitzgerald who was about to take down a part of the Administration.
I have always been skeptical of the administration investigating itself – and Patrick Fitzgerald’s investigation into the Plame affair is just that. The Bush administration is investigating itself. The suggestion that Patrick Fitzgerald is non=partisan as seen by his indictment of George Ryan, a very liberal Republican who defied George Bush, has never held water.
Currently, Fitzgerald is going after Chicago Mayor Richard Daley’s administration and will inevitably focus on the Mayor. A mayor who shares a lot of things with the President. Both having had father’s who preceeded them in their jobs. But Daley is a Democrat and no one can remember the last time Chicago had a Republican Mayor. Fitzgerald is attempting to destroy the corrupt democratic machine. But for what purpose?
I hope that Patrick Fitzgerald indicts someone of significance. But I am very skeptical.
It is time for the indictments, The grand jury term is ending in October. It is also possible that the investigation into the Plame affair has gotten out of the control of Patrick Fitzgerald. He cannot force the grand jury. If incontrovertible evidence was presented that could not have been foreseen by Fitzgerald, Fitzgerald can only influence, not control the grand juries decision to indict. At least that’s my understanding. Judith Miller’s incarceration is often pointed to as evidence that Fitzgerald is getting to the bottom of the matter. But I have always wondered if her being put in jail for contempt has more to do with protecting herself than her sources. But I cannot say that I understand why Fitzgerald would do this as she too has connections to Cheney. Perhaps it has to do with the fact she allegedly interfered in one of Fitzgerald’s previous investigations while he was in New York.
Somehow, this just doesn’t all add up.
about all of this, well maybe not so odd, given who we are talking about, but this paragraph REALLY confused me (and I read it five times):
I cannot imagine that having appointed Patrick Fitzgerald to investigate the Plame affair, that Lockheed Martin could have hired James Comey, as it’s new general counsel unless this appointment of Patrick Fitzgerald was not seen as a “mistake” or error on the part of Comey. In other words, the Cheney connections to Lockheed Martin in the form of his wife and son in law are very great and very substantial. Why would his appointment be made unless the Cheney group did not see Comey’s selection of Patrick Fitzgerald as a threat?
Would you mind clarifying it for the addled??
😉
and thanks for something ELSE to ponder in horror!
Right. It sounds like Lockheed Martin Hired Fitzggerald. I will fix it.
What I am saying is Lockheed Martin is connected to Cheney and vice a versa. So ….Comey was appointed General Counsel or head lawyer for all of Lockheed Martin just a few months ago. The Plame investigation is quite mature, it’s been going on for a long time.
Why would the politically connected Lockeheed hire Comey….if …and it would be known by Cheney and Bush by now….the Plame investigation is turning into a disaster for the president and VP.
Lockeheed Martin is utlra conservative weapons manufacturer. They hired Comey to fix cases with his connections to the government. If Comey hired Fitzgerald and Fitgerald went off a decided to be a “bulldog” for truth and justice and found that Rove, Cheney and who knows who else violated the law…they certainly wouldn’t want Comey around.
I’m not one to praise Republicans as a rule, but George Ryan is a complicated guy. He actually did some very good things in office, like investing in Illinois infrastructure that had been long neglected, as well as his work on the death penalty. Unfortunately, it is quite likely he is very corrupt. Many, if not most, Illinois politicians of both parties are.
Regarding Fitzgerald, I heard him speak at a panel about the Patriot Act. My impression is that he considers himself emotionless and brilliant, and he probably is the latter. One had to listen very carefuly to what he was not saying as well as what he was. It seemed to me he was hiding things by talking selectively about parts of things.
He is going after a lot of pols from the Democratic Party as well as the GOP. It will be interesting to see how this all unfolds.
It is impossible in most big cities to not be affected by corruption at least tangentially. And that;s enough to get you put in prison.
Now. WHAT OTHER REPUBLICANS HAS FITZGERALD GONE AFTER OTHER THAN THOSE CONNECTED TO RYAN?
I don’t know of any. Ryan was like Zell Miller. He was a democrat not a republican as we now know them.
Well, I’ve heard tell the reason Edgar is hedging on announcing his run for Governor is because he may be worried about an investigation.
Of course, you may be right about all of this. Believe me I don’t trust Fitzgerald. But I got the sense from him that he sees himself as a great AGENT OF JUSTICE. I think he is on some ego trip. I really don’t expect him to come up with an indictment in the Plame situation, but I wouldn’t place it beyond the realm of possibity.
Doesn’t Fitzgerald have to be reappointed to his position this fall? Or has that already happened?
WHAT OTHER REPUBLICANS HAS FITZGERALD GONE AFTER OTHER THAN THOSE CONNECTED TO RYAN?
Are there any Illinois Republicans NOT connected to Ryan? He has been a major, central player in the party going waaaay back. He deserves the dubious credit of doing more than any single other inidvidual to defeat the Equal Rights Amendment in Illinois. Like I said, way back.
The Republican party, and specifically the Secy of State’s office under Ryan, was involved in a huge scandal over the sale of trucker’s licenses in exchange for campaign contributions. Ryan has finally been caught in the widening eddy from that scandal, which of course led to others, that took more than his whole term as guv to work its way up to him. Yes, it may be surprising that it didn’t stop short of him, but these are not trumped up charges.
Look… you guys…I didn’t say they were trumped up. They are just standard fare. A politician recieves a gift through the mail. He doesn’t report it on his income tax. He can be charged for mail fraud and income tax evasion. There isn’t a major politician in the US who couldn’t be under suspticion of this.
You missed the point entirely.
Has Fitzgerald ever indicted a Republican other than Ryan not connected to this scandal.
Drivers liscense have always been for sale. Ryan didn’t start that idea. Tha’ts absolutely nothing. They are for sale I would bet everywhere in the country. I don’t think Ryan was involved in that directly. Tha’ts for small timers.
Good questions and information Stu, as usual.
One can only be skeptical until we see if the proof is in the pudding.
The only thing that I can add is
No, you see people who are politicians who have a conscience usually get eaten alive. That’s what probably happened to Ryan. What possible benefit is there for a politician to commute death sentecnes of people on death Row. Was he trying to get the Death Row Vote? He gets no votes for that…especially from Republicans. Nobody cares about people on death row except students in law school and their professors.
C.mon….
I don’t think Fitagerald has a “soft side” Attorney Generals are noted for being cold blooded and ambitious. That’s a requirement. Prosecutors are not nice people. They are mean.
The real reasons she won’t give up her sources may be unimaginable right now. With everything you have written here it doesn’t make sense. I have this nightmare this whole investigation is just theater. She’ll walk out of jail and tell us nothing.
Fitagerald may have to indict Libby. But Libby is nothing.
Fitzgerald is a prosecutor involved in an investigation that may involve half the WH staff and VP. I think he’ll release his report, and/or indict when he’s ready. He’s got about one month.