SHE DOESN’T HAVE TO GO HOME, BUT SHE CAN’T STAY THERE…. When the U.S. Attorney purge scandal was at its height, some federal prosecutors became famous for getting fired for purely political reasons. Other U.S. Attorneys became notorious for being loyal Bushies who seemingly used their offices to advance the Republicans’ agenda.
Take Mary Beth Buchanan, for example, the U.S. Attorney in Pittsburgh since 2001. Buchanan has been accused, repeatedly, of being one of the more blatantly partisan prosecutors in the country, and using her post to launch politically-motivated investigations. With Bush’s second term nearly over, many have been looking forward to Buchanan stepping down, as all U.S. Attorneys do when the White House changes hands.
But therein lies the twist. As Faiz noted this morning, Buchanan wants to stay right where she is.
Despite a new administration coming into power, U.S. Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan said she plans to stick around.
“It doesn’t serve justice for all the U.S. attorneys to submit their resignations all at one time,” she said yesterday. [….]
More than that, she said she would consider working in the Obama administration. She would not discuss what her future might hold beyond the U.S. attorney’s office.
“I am open to considering further service to the United States,” Ms. Buchanan said.
Well, that’s certainly generous of her to offer, but I’m going to go out on a limb here and guess that the Obama administration will replace her very quickly if she refuses to step down. As Faiz reminds us, Buchanan not only brought dubious charges against Democrats while overlooking Republican wrongdoing, she also hired Monica Goodling and spoke with Kyle Sampson about some of the prosecutors who were ultimately fired in the purge scandal.
I can appreciate the whole “reconciliation” dynamic, but Buchanan really has to go, whether she wants to leave or not.
