There has been an ongoing question on this blog and many others about the issue of bringing accountability to the criminals we call the Bush/Cheney gang. Obama has been coy about his full intention in this matter. Man, can he keep his cards close or what? The poker player knows his game. Of course, this has driven an already rabid bunch of progressive lambs to ever greater doubt. Will he or won't he?
Obama's choice of Holder is seen as leaning closer to "he will", based upon some of Holder's remarks. Our own dengre thinks so. Glenn Greenwald thinks Obama's pick to head the Office of Legal counsel is impressive. And any prosecutor can see the wisdom of "keeping their powder dry" until the right time. But as many know and fear, dry powder can get moist and misfire in the humid Washington atmosphere.
I have an intriguing little piece to add to the mix on this question. It actually came some weeks ago. And since we'll know more soon enough, I thought I should share it to establish my bragging rights now. So follow me over the fabled fold for an interesting tale of intuition.
I want to take you back to the time just before the VP announcement. You remember the frenzy as the window for the announcement was narrowing and the Obama campaign was being in charge and tight-lipped. I didn't sign up for the text message so I was in the dark until that Saturday morning when I fired up the electron machine and signed in to dkos. Huh, Biden. And then I saw that amazing picture of them together from the website. I'm sure you saw it. Obama on the left looking to the right, with Biden slightly behind Obama's left shoulder. I had to put on my sunglasses. Does anyone in government have a bigger smile, or more prominent teeth? It brought to my mind the I-ching hexagram "Biting Through". So I did the google and here is some of what I found.
In the so-called Judgment verse that has been associated with this image from very ancient times, the oracle says, "Biting through has success. It is favorable to let justice be administered." And in the central verse associated with the image of Biting Through, the oracle says, "Thunder and lightning: the image of Biting Through. Thus the kings of former times made firm the laws through clearly defined penalties."
Another take:
This hexagram represents an open mouth (cf. hexagram 27) with an
obstruction (in the fourth place) between the teeth. As a result the lips cannot
meet. To bring them together one must bite energetically through the
obstacle. Since the hexagram is made up of the trigrams for thunder and for
lightning, it indicates how obstacles are forcibly removed in nature.
Energetic biting through overcomes the obstacle that prevents joining of the
lips; the storm with its thunder and lightning overcomes the disturbing
tension in nature. Recourse to law and penalties overcomes the disturbances
of harmonious social life caused by criminals and slanderers. The theme of
this hexagram is a criminal lawsuit, in contradistinction to that of Sung,
CONFLICT (6), which refers to civil suits.
Some more:
As a rule, 'Biting Through' is something you do, not something that happens to you. It always indicates that there is a problem to be tackled, and usually you are the one who needs to get your teeth into it. The basic pattern of this hexagram, which you can understand at all levels from personal to social, is the presence of some obstacle to unity, like something tough between your teeth. It may be some deception or a third party keeping a relationship apart, or some obstacle such as self-deception dividing you from yourself: in all cases, it has to be bitten through to restore wholeness and make things work again.
Again this:
Shih Ho means literally 'Union by gnawing.' We see in the figure two strong lines in the first and last places, while all the others, with the exception of the fourth, are divided. This suggests the idea of the jaws and the mouth between them kept open by something in it. Let that be gnawed through and the mouth will close and the jaws come together. So in the body politic. Remove the obstacles to union, and high and low will come together with a good understanding. And how are those obstacles to be removed? By force, emblemed by the gnawing; that is, by legal constraints. And these are sure to be successful. The auspice of the figure is favourable. There will be success.
My emphasis in above excerpts.
People forget it won't be Obama going after anyone. Not because it won't happen, but because he's the President, not the prosecutor. He can keep his hands clean. All he has to say is that the DOJ is doing its job and it would be inappropriate for him to comment.
Maybe speaking softly and carrying a big stick is the game plan. Obama really doesn't have to say much at all.