Justice Department Official Reportedly Told Fired U.S. Attorney not to Talk to Media

The shoes just keep dropping on the fired U.S. Attorneys story. Now it is being reported that a Justice Department official told one of the fired U.S. Attorneys that if they talked to the media more information about them would be released publicly. Although that U.S. Attorney didn't regard the tone as threatening, another one of the fired U.S. Attorneys, when told of the conversation, regarded it as a threat. That Attorney believed that the implication was that if the fired U.S. Attorneys talked to the media, damaging information on them or their families would be released.

One thing that should be kept in mind when considering this aspect of the story is that all U.S. Attorneys go through background checks by the F.B.I. when being considered for appointment. These background checks are known to be very thorough. The fired U.S. Attorneys would know that somewhere in the Justice Department was a file with their name on it. They would also know that it might contain information that they wouldn't want publicly released. An Administration that "outed" a covert CIA agent who was working on weapons of mass destruction to get back at her husband while this nation is at war wouldn't hesitate to destroy the personal and professional reputations of six or seven fired U.S. Attorneys.