Meet The New Boss

MEET THE NEW BOSS....Last October, after an investigation of the House Intelligence Committee's role in the Duke Cunningham scandal had been completed, Chairman Peter Hoekstra refused to release it. No surprise there. Hoekstra was hardly eager to publicize a fellow Republican's wrongdoing a few weeks before an election.

Today Hoekstra is no longer chairman, but the LA Times reports that nothing has changed:

Democrats complained bitterly a year ago when Republicans blocked release of a declassified version of the final report. But two weeks ago, several Democrats joined Republicans to block the report's release only to other members of Congress. Five Democrats objected to keeping the report secret.

....Congressional sources said [Chairman Silvestre Reyes] and other Democrats had initially voted to let other members of Congress see the document, but reversed course after a fierce protest by the panel's ranking GOP member, Peter Hoekstra of Michigan.

"They are so nervous about this report being out," said one congressional official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "Members oppose putting this thing out because you read this and the natural question is: 'Did you know this, and what did you do about it?' I don't think any members wanted that scrutiny."

....One top committee aide, Michael Meermans, told investigators that "on probably two or three occasions [Cunningham] figuratively put a finger in my forehead and said, 'You are going to make this into the bill, right?' "

....Current and former intelligence committee officials said staffers facing such pressure would almost certainly call the issue to the attention of their elected bosses.