On the evening of March 10, 2004, a few days after Ashcroft was rushed to George Washington University Hospital in the wake of an acute attack of pancreatitis. They removed his gallbladder and he was bedded in intensive care. Mr. Ashcroft's wife banned all visitors and phone calls because of the seriousness of the illness.
At the time of Ashcroft's illness there was a tooth and nail battle between the Justice Department and the White House concerning the program of warrantless domestic electronic surveillance which GW Bush had authorized after the September 11, 2001, disaster. The Justice Department had reviewed the program and was doubt, to say the least, concerning the programs legality.
As Ashcroft was crushed by pancreatitis, he transferred the powers of his office to Comey, his deputy. Comey said that both Ashcroft and then he had refused to recertify the legality of Bush's warrantless wiretapping program (the reasons for that are classified of the program until changes were made. On the eve the current authorization was set to expire, as Comey was being driven home he got a phone call from Ashcroft's chief of staff, who had been called by Ashcroft's wife to inform her that Gonzales, who was then White House counsel, and White House chief of staff Andrew Card were speeding to the hospital, to attempt to convince get the acutely ill Ashcroft to overrule Comey and recertify by signing the reauthorization.
Backing up a bit for a moment, at a White House meeting on March 9, 2004, Comey had told Vice President Cheney that he, was not about to certify the program.
In light of this untoward action by Card and Gonzales, Comey ordered his driver to swing about and rush back to the hospital. (Obviously, this is a dedicated man of action) and arrived at the hospital not knowing if he had beaten Card and Gonzales to Ashcroft's room, and rather than risk waiting for the elevator, he raced up the stairs. When he arrived, heart pounding from the stair leaping to the correct floor, once at the room, as he testified, he encountered, the following scenario, "...And Mrs. Ashcroft was standing by the hospital bed. " Mr. Ashcroft was lying down in the bed, the room was darkened. I immediately began speaking to him, trying to orient him as to time and place, and try to see if he could focus on what was happening, and it wasn't clear to me that he could. He seemed pretty bad off."
I meant it and finally said it right. So, while we are often congratulating ourselves for being courageous in complementing those who always agree with us, let us again take a moment to honor some who did not always agree with us on every issue but put their lives, jobs and honor on the line against Darth Vader the Death Star and oodles of money and "security" and approval by the Boss, let us honor and welcome to the ranks of heroes, Deputy Attorney General James B. Comey and Attorney General John David Ashcroft, real men, in an era of mobsters, cowards, hypocrites and scum.
There are on both side's men of honor who simply sometimes happen to disagree on a few things.
Professor Bagnolo is a Renaissance man: Cultural Anthropologist, Architectural designer, painter, writer, novelist, theologian. As a child prodigy, abed with polio for almost two years, with an off the charts IQ, reading at the graduate level by 5th grade, offered an opportunity to skip three grades at age 8. Later He was a recipient of an Art Institute scholarship at age 11, a Ford Foundation Fellowship in Anthropology and in Painting and a merit scholarship in art, and was appointed a Graduate Research Assistant position in college. He holds a triple bachelor's degree in Painting and Drawing, Anthropology, Architectural Design Advertising. MA's in Cultural Anthro, Painting and more. After being tenured he taught; architecture, anthropology, Theology, advertising, painting and drawing, entrepreneuring and Creative Profit Making. He produced a star-studded Music festival, had a radio talk show in Chicago, and cable TV show. Now, retired from Teaching, he paints, writes, and pursues other ventures.
The above bio harvested from the comments of Deans, colleagues, students, clients and collector's.
It's like a movie plot right out of Hellywood......
Man rushes to bosses rescue before the jackboot thugs poison him!!!
I do recall this incident and it made me sick then as it does now. The cowardice preceeds itself in this situation.
To attack a man when he's down, physically or in this case with rhetoric, in any 'civilized world' is absolute cowardice to say the least. The fact that Comey turned the car around to rush back is chivalrous indeed!!!
If more men would 'turn the car around' on their views and rush back to aid the Constitution before it was set on fire we wouldn't be in the predicament we're in right now!!
by
Joe Rathbun (8 articles, 4 quicklinks, 12 diaries, 142 comments)
on Wednesday, September 26, 2007 at 8:57:23 AM
The initial story can be seen at my archives. It is a cary when life truly did immitate film art. a skidding car chase through Washington streets, on a phone call from Ashcroft's wife, arriving in the nick of time and thwarting the slimy attempt, and the seriously ill man everyone thought was one of the Fundamenatlist Villainsm rising to the occasion through the smokey spider web of the anethetics and other mandatory drugs, to tell them to go to Hell, in essense. Rob singled out the story: RE: "It's interesting to follow Doctor Pete Bagnolo's exploration of how John Ashcroft, who I was no fan of, was so morally superior to Gonzales. Getting back to my opening paragraph, there are different varieties of feces."
I once got criticized by my coach when I scored a TD, and the extended a hand to the guy who made a futile dive to tackle me and just laid there, so I helped him to his feet and we talked for a moment or two. He had played a great game and I admired that, so i said to the coach, "He played great and it behooves an athlete or anyone else to call attention to excellence regardless of who displayed it."From that day whenever he looked my way he had an odd expression on his face, like he was in church or something. I think he must have felt very guilty that a 16 year old showed more common sense than his coach.
I love heroics no matter who the hero is! Heroics are straight from God.
Pete
by
Professor Emeritus Peter Bagnolo (144 articles, 1 quicklinks, 95 diaries, 1311 comments)
on Wednesday, September 26, 2007 at 9:41:52 AM
all of my life I have always respected an athlete of caliber!!!
Sides don't matter in one on one more so than a team effort.
You find more exhilerating games in Chess where it's one on one and you always shake hands at the end and congratulate for a well played "battle".
Now-a-days to often in team sports you have the added factor of peer presure, which might contribute to the notion of not building up someone for their accomplishments regardless of the "side" they're on.
I thank you as always for enlightening the world with your thoughts for you are a true man of God!!!!
by
Joe Rathbun (8 articles, 4 quicklinks, 12 diaries, 142 comments)
on Wednesday, September 26, 2007 at 1:17:12 PM
Actually Joe-no, I am a bit of a hypocrite, because of Viet Nam, I became a Republican Until Bush Senior ran-I did homework on him and found out about his father, Prescott's connections to the Nazi's, and then became an independent.
by
Professor Emeritus Peter Bagnolo (144 articles, 1 quicklinks, 95 diaries, 1311 comments)
on Wednesday, September 26, 2007 at 6:04:52 PM
You mean how he and the elite were funding both sides to keep it going longer so their blood-lined pockets could get even fatter! Or how they wanted all the German technology for themselves so they brought them over here and gave Nazi Scientists ( or not an ardent/Nazi ) jobs at NASA.......Nazi's And Seven Astronauts.......;o)
by
Joe Rathbun (8 articles, 4 quicklinks, 12 diaries, 142 comments)
on Wednesday, September 26, 2007 at 7:00:18 PM
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