by TChris

Let's start by getting our terms straight. If you take property that belongs to another person without that person's consent, it's called theft. The fact that the property is easy to steal is not a defense to theft. So why does Manuel Miranda, who worked for Bill Frist and Orrin Hatch, continue to argue that taking over 4,000 memoranda that belonged to Democrats from the Senate's computer system isn't theft?

New York federal prosecutor David Kelley will lead a Justice Department investigation into the theft of the documents. The Justice Department had been urged to appoint an independent prosecutor to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest, but it's unclear just how independent Kelley will be since John Ashcroft hasn't recused himself from overseeing the investigation.

An investigation by the Senate's sergeant-at-arms suggested that the wrongdoing was not limited to the two Republican staff aides who downloaded and printed the files.

The report also suggested that many other Republican aides might have been involved in trafficking in the stolen documents, and Democrats have questioned whether officials at the Justice Department and the White House were also privy to the material in working to support Mr. Bush's nominees and derail Democratic opposition.

Whether Kelley will successfully uncover the full extent of the wrongdoing may depend upon the cooperation he receives from the Justice Department, but his appointment letter "left open whether he would have the type of broad autonomy given to the prosecutor in another politically sensitive case involving the leak of a C.I.A. officer's identity." Bowing to political pressure, Ashcroft recused himself from that investigation. Since this investigation could also lead to the White House, Ashcroft should recuse himself here, as well.