Lamentations and Retributions

An article in the Washington Post states that a Department of Justice investigation has determined that promotions in the Civil Rights division were affected by ideological considerations. As the article puts it:

"...a politically appointed official sought to hire "real Americans" and Republicans for career posts and prominent case assignments ...'

The article says that they will seek to follow up on these actions where they were done in contravention of the law. I wish them luck. In the light of Alberto Gonzales tenure there, which destroyed much of the professional caste, as well as Obama's apparent feeling that there would be very little upside to prosecutions for any but the most egregious of Bush Administration actions, I'll be a little surprised if anything comes of it. I'd much rather see tarring and feathering of, say, Cheney... but I guess that won't happen, either. But hey, all is not lost. The current Attorney General has undone some of that, and, as a Justice Department spokesman said -

"As a result of these reforms, and the procedures already in place for evaluating the work and conduct of lawyers throughout the Department, we are confident that the institutional problems identified in today's report no longer exist and will not recur"

Certainly, we can hope. Quis custodiet, etc....