Bad Deeds for 3-13-07

White House Said to Prompt Prosecutor Firings – In a public reversal, the White House has conceded that top administration officials, including President Bush, were directly involved from the outset in the decision late last year to dismiss several U.S. attorneys. Previously, the White House had maintained that Bush aides simply approved a list already compiled by the Justice Department. And the heads are beginning to roll: with the revelations came news that Attorney General Alberto Gonzales’ chief of staff, Kyle Sampson, is leaving his post.

Gonzales Lied Under Oath, Said All Bush-Appointed Attorneys Would Be ‘Senate-Confirmed’ – A little-noticed provision slipped into the Patriot Act in 2005 allows the President to appoint “interim” U.S. attorneys for an indefinite period of time, without Senate confirmation. On Jan. 18, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales assured the Senate Judiciary Committee that the administration never intended to take advantage of it.

Citizens Who Lack Papers Lose Medicaid – A new federal rule intended to keep illegal immigrants from receiving Medicaid has instead shut out tens of thousands of United States citizens who have had difficulty complying with requirements to show birth certificates and other documents proving their citizenship, state officials say. Some say the Bush administration went beyond the law in some instances, for example, by requiring people to submit original documents or copies certified by the issuing agency.

Army Corps of Engineers installed defective flood-control pumps in New Orleans – The Army Corps of Engineers, rushing to meet President Bush’s promise to protect New Orleans by the start of the 2006 hurricane season, installed defective flood-control pumps last year despite warnings from its own expert that the equipment would fail during a storm

FOX NEWS, Crazy Right Wing Propaganda? – Does Fox News use the text at the bottom of the screen to send subliminal messages? Here’s just one example of so many.