About a year ago, we learned in jaw-dropping detail about the questions asked of those seeking employment at Bush’s Justice Department. Thanks to Alberto Gonzales and Monica Goodling — remember them? — job applicants for civil service jobs were quizzed with all kind of personal questions that the DoJ couldn’t legally ask.
But what about all of those Justice Department employees who were already on staff when Goodling & Co. got there? It was too late to ask them personal questions during their interviews. How, then, could they ensure that DoJ employees were pure by conservative Republican standards?
Apparently, they found ways. (via Paul Kiel)
The Justice Department’s inspector general is investigating whether a career attorney in the department was dismissed from her job because of rumors that she is a lesbian. The case grew out of a larger inquiry into the firings of U.S. attorneys and politicization at Justice under former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.
Several people interviewed by the inspector general’s staff described the case to NPR and said they came away with the impression that the Attorney General’s office decided not to renew Leslie Hagen’s contract because of the talk about her sexual orientation. Hagen received the highest possible ratings for her work as liaison between the Justice Department and the U.S. attorneys’ committee on Native American issues. Her final job evaluation lists five categories for supervisors to rank her performance. For each category, a neat X fills the box marked, “Outstanding.” And at the bottom of the page, under “overall rating level,” she also got the top mark: Outstanding.
The form is dated February 1, 2007. Several months before that evaluation, Hagen was told her contract would not be renewed.
After Hagen won awards for her work as a federal prosecutor, former U.S. Attorney Tom Heffelfinger recruited her to DC for her job, because, as he put it, she was “the best qualified person in the nation.” Everyone Hagen worked with raved about her amazing work and her supervisors were anxious to renew her contract.
But as we know all too well, in the Bush administration, qualifications and outstanding on-the-job performance hardly matter.
Justice Department e-mails obtained by NPR show that Gonzales’s senior counsel Monica Goodling had a particular interest in Hagen’s duties. A few months before Hagen was let go, according to one e-mail, Goodling removed part of Hagen’s job portfolio — the part dealing with child exploitation and abuse. […]
[B]y all accounts, Hagen was a GOP loyalist. So, what was Goodling’s problem with Hagen?
The Justice Department’s inspector general is looking into whether Hagen was dismissed after a rumor reached Goodling that Hagen is a lesbian. As one Republican source put it, “To some people, that’s even worse than being a Democrat.”
Several people interviewed by the inspector general’s staff said investigators asked whether people drew a connection between the rumors and Hagen’s dismissal. The witnesses, who spoke to NPR on the condition of anonymity, said they felt that the rumors led to the decision not to renew Hagen’s contract.
Someone who worked in Hagen’s office says that in a 2006 meeting, senior officials were told that Hagen’s contract would not be renewed because someone on the attorney general’s staff had a problem with Hagen. The problem, it was suggested during the conversation, was sexual orientation — or what was rumored to be Hagen’s sexual orientation.
One person at the meeting asked, “Is that really an issue?” But the decision had been made.
I realize it’s foolish of me to be surprised by anything the Bush administration does, but Hagen’s case is rather extraordinary. Respected lawyer, impeccable credentials Republican loyalist, outstanding performance evaluations — everything the Bush gang could hope for. But then the graduate of Pat Robertson’s college heard Hagen might be gay, and despite the requests of Hagen’s supervisors, Hagen was gone.
I know a few too many Dems are at each other’s throats right now over just awful (fill in the blank with Clinton or Obama) is when compared to (fill in the blank with Clinton or Obama), but stories like this one are a reminder of why we need a Democratic president in 2009. There’s just too much work that needs to be done, too many agencies that need to be repaired, and too many messes that need to be cleaned up. What happened to Hagen happened at the Justice Department, for crying out loud.
No Trackbacks To “At DoJ, being gay is ‘even worse than being a Democrat’“
FOIST!
The problem is not being gay; for the GOP, the problem is admitting you are gay. Just ask Jeff Gannon.
Geez…Being gay is worse than being a dem? Pretty odd considering how many repubs have been exposed as being gay lately…
Buncha flamin hypocrites.
You are doing a “Heck of a job” Hagen. But since you are a lesbian, and according to us that only qualifies you as a good auto mechanic, we are firing you and giving the job to an unqualified Regent University graduate.
Noooooooooooeeeeeeeeeessssssss!!!
Well ain’t that sweet……and its all coming to bear just when the Democrats can do nothing about it! The Woo letters, the collapse of the surge, the indisputable evidence that 5 years of training Iraqi’s hasn’t achieved a thing..and now this. But we got a war on..Obama vs Clinton so let McCain just spin all the stuff away while we fight our sacred war!!!.
And that’s just the kind of damage they have done to one single agency. Keep in mind this kind of illegal senanigans have been going on in the other government agencies also.
Dang, the stench of Gonzales still lingers. But John Yoo can write a memo legalizing torture and wind up with a law professors position at U. C. Berkeley.
SOP in this Administration: loyalty - REWARDED. Competency = Foot up your Ass and being shown the DOOR.
How is it that this party has not been utterly crucified yet? How much more material is needed?
You know what’s even worse than being a democrat of being gay? Being an adult who talks to an imaginary friend named Jesus.
If I remember correctly, Goodling testified in 2007 under immunity issued by Congress that she repeatedly broke the law. She didn’t mention this, and it is also against the law. Does this void her previous immunity agreement?
I’m really bothered by these fuckers.
Kakistocracy [kak-uh-stok-ruh-see] –noun. government by the worst persons; a form of government in which the worst persons are in power.
The day will come when we realize that the world is overpopulated, we can’t live with the model of “expansion forever”, and we move towards stable and sustainable.
(I can dream, can’t I?)
If this happened, not only would “gay” be o.k., it would be desirable.
That look Gonzales is giving Bush in that pic is a tad lovey-dovey…
Old Billy Hussein @ 11:
Wow! New word! I didn’t even know there WAS a word for what we have running the country.
What is the statute of limitation for war crimes? He better enjoy his time at Berkeley because it’s highly likely that there will be a very heavy backlash against torturers and those who greased the skids for it. After all, somebody else has to be held accountable for what Bush and Cheney have done.
Enjoy.
The alleged lesbian was fired because she wouldn’t let the male personnel watch.
Are we sure she was fired for being gay?
I’m more inclined to think that she was fired for being competent.
Like this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DG_I429BC9M
Not a day goes by that doesn’t fail to illustrate (with impunity) the remarkable psychological disconnect(s) embraced by the seriously sycophantazmagorical GOP and their Busheep flock.
What character these people have. Shameful miscreants!
It happened at Social Security in the Disbaility area too. Cronies got buddies to decide cases against Unum disability policies, voiding the policies and rewarding the insurance companies. Insurance people obviously are big Republican supporters and contributors and they bought my disability case, I am absolutely sure of it. Because in order to buy it, they had to get a Judge to VOID A COURT ORDER> and he did. Just with a stroke of a pen…. and to boot, he forgot to do away with the Tax credits that businesses get for hiring and working disabled people….. those continue long past disability court awards……label it fascism and illegal as all get out.
Left me totally without, without medical care, insurance, medicines, a home, and everything I worked for voluntarily as a working disabled America.
Gonzo’s Justice Department APPROVED. no surprise right.
Anyone doing a job properly as envisioned by the worst administration in history would have been investigating herself, and tampering with the evidence.
I’d give odds that gonzo has done a few airport stall tap dances himself.
Weaseldog @ 17:
Good one!
Let’s try to understand this. A married incumbent mediocre Republic Senator is busted in a public restroom for soliciting anonymous sex from an undercover cop, pleads guilty, resigns, recants his resignation and is still in office.
An award winning attorney in the Justice Department has done nothing wrong, let alone illegal, is the victim of rumors and is illegally fired without cause.
Yup, the government is in good hands with the Republic party in charge.
Bush and Rove are out of control.
Sheila Jackson Lee and others have some solutions…
http://web.mac.com/kbstreetlev...../Home.html
Dear Colleague: I am pleased to invite you to participate in Whistleblower Week in Washington, D.C. by coming to the opening ceremonies of the No FEAR symposium on Monday, May 12th and the No FEAR Tribunal on Wednesday, May 14th. Whistleblowers from around the country will testify at the Tribunal about their experiences of retaliation and harassment inside the federal government.
I am honored to invite Members and their staff to participate in the tribunal which will feature testimony from Federal employees, their families, physicians and attorneys who will discuss the financial, social, and psychological impacts of retaliation and discrimination in the Federal workplace. No FEAR will also be hosting an Awards Reception that will honor Members of Congress and individuals who have supported Federal whistleblowers and advocated for strong enforcement of civil rights laws.
Dang….guess Lindsey Graham, Mark Foley, & Larry Craig will never get hired there…
The very fact that she did an outstanding job disqualifies her from Bu$hland right off the top. He don’t like people who know how to do what they’re hired to do… makes the rest of ‘em look bad…
pissed off patricia @ 23:
Exactly!!
Old Billy Hussein @ 11:
Cool, a new word. And a useful one this past seven years. Thanks. Is the Republic form of this word ‘Crookocracy’? Just asking.
Loonie @ 8:
A Bush crony making out with a Democrat.
Between the sex scandals, mis-managment of government, poor planning for war, lack of oversight and a Justice Department bought and sold by the highest bidder, that seems to be the only scandal that can tip the whole thing over.
Take note, they only talk about “rumors”. No one seems to know anything for sure. So not only would they fire you for being gay, they would fire you if there were rumors of your being gay.
t-bone @ 2:
Just so people know, Jeff Gannon is the fake news reporter, for an even faker virtual newspaper; Talon News.
In his younger days, he used to post ads for himself as a gay prostitute, and may have been a former child sex slave (rumored, but believable).
He used to (and may still? Anyone have further news on this?) spend a lot of time in ‘private sessions’ with big Dick Cheney, and Little Chimpy Bush.
Talon News was shut down, by the way. It was revived as a spoof site.
What a sad pathetic little shit that Alberto Gonzales is.
What is it about the Bushs that causes people to compromise their integrity.
Everyone that seems to work for these people is a Judas to the country…selling out for a few sheckles.
I think you’ve got it all wrong. While it may be true that rumors of her sexual orientation caused some angst, these are Republicans we’re talking about here. Half of them are self-hating homosexuals any way. This is the Bush Administration. She was let go because she was far too competent.
She sure did not have that reputation when she worked as a county prosecuter.
ThunderMonkey @ 30:
Alas, even if that were to happen, it would be spun (by both the Administration and the media) as “immoral Democrat lures government official into tryst” or some such.
woodguy @ 29:
I always thought “CrockOshitocracy” was fitting as well.
And they kick the Arabic translators out of the army for being gay. Talk about shooting yourself in the foot. These morons are destroying this country.
ThunderMonkey @ 30:
Schwarzenegger spelunking Hillary?
t-bone @ 2:
Sure look at Condi Rice. As long as she pretends not to be gay she’s one of them. She just has to live with the hypocrisy of denying her own nature and validating their swinish behavior. No big deal.
Liberal AND Proud @ 33:
Do we have proof that these people had any integrity to begin with?
Was this carpet-muncher a Republican? If so, why was she a Republican in the first place?
pissed off patricia @ 31:
God, does this stink. Monica Goodling? Should be Moronica.
Will these people ever be called to account for sliming/corrupting/politicizing the Dept. of “We Used To Count On It For” Justice?
pissed off patricia @ 31:
Either way, it’s illegal.
I want my country back.
liberalHUSSEINmoderation @ 37:
Works for me.
One cannot imagine in this day and age that things like this are still happening. The outrage at this administration, and those who enabled it along, will be felt for years to come. Just when you entertain the thought that they have reached the bottom of the barrel more sludge rises. Less than 300 days to go and counting.
Welcome to America . . . home of the bigots and land of the knuckle-draggers.
The Political Junkie @ 7:
Am I the only one who finds it ironic that Yoo works at U.C. Berkeley that bastion of “librulism”?!
woodguy @ 46: