Gorelick Should Resign III

The Washington Times this morning reports that newly released Justice Department memos indicate that Jamie Gorelick, a member of the September 11 Commission, was quite involved in the creation of a policy that constructed a virtual “wall” between law enforcement and intelligence operations. The wall impeded government agencies from sharing information that might have prevented the 9-11 attacks. The Commission has questioned a number of people involved in decisions leading to implementation of the wall policy. That Gorelick has not been asked to testify is an affront to what is supposed to be as a non-partisan investigation. That she actually sits on the Commission is a clear conflict of interest and an insult to government accountability.

The Times writes, “Asked by CNN's Wolf Blitzer earlier this month about whether she had written a memo helping establish the wall, she replied: "No, and again, I would refer you back to what others on the commission have said. The wall was a creature of statute. It's existed since the mid 1980s. And while it's too lengthy to go into, basically the policy that was put out in the mid-'90s, which I didn't sign, wasn't my policy by the way…”

Bill Clinton would be proud of such word parsing. The question is not whether the wall policy belonged to Gorelick, or whether she signed it in an official capacity. The question is whether she argued for the policy and defended it in an official capacity. If the answer to the latter question is yes, then she must resign from the Commission and testify. In fact, the answer is yes. A U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, in a June 19, 1995 memo written to Gorelick, described law enforcement problems resulting from the wall policy and recommended changes. Deputy Director Michael Vatis rejected the proposed changes in a formal memo, but the Times reports that Gorelick sent a handwritten note to Attorney General Jane Reno saying, “"I have reviewed and concur in the Vatis/Garland recommendations for the reasons set forth in the Vatis memo."

Gorelick must resign.