Senate to subpoena White House over Enron

Someone alert Mickey Kaus, Enron's back on the front page and about to get nasty.

The White House said it has been gathering and reviewing documents, e-mails and entry records of visitors and interviewing people with relevant information, and it plans to send material to the committee Wednesday.

Presidential spokesman Ari Fleischer, traveling with Bush to Germany on Air Force One, said the subpoenas were unnecessary in light of those plans.

[...]

"The White House has cooperated with Senator [Joe] Lieberman, [chairman of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee, which issued the subpoenas]" Fleischer told reporters. He said the White House's own review showed "no instance in which Enron approached anyone in the executive office of the president for financial help before they filed for bankruptcy."

And we all know how open and forthcoming Team Bush has been about its workings, so I'm sure Ari Fleischer's word that they've all been good little boys and girls should be enough for anyone. How exactly is it that Fleischer's head doesn't explode when he talks?

By the way, I first called Kaus' declaration that Enron was dead as a scandal premature back on April 9. When will he admit he's wrong? Maybe I'll send him some email and see if he responds.

Posted by Charles Kuffner on May 22, 2002 to Enronarama