D.C. Dispatches

A case of missing gun data -- and of a missing attorney general

Sam MacDonald from the November 2001 issue

(Page 2 of 2)

Harsh words. No doubt Ashcroft would have responded effectively had he been there. Where was he? Could it be true that he was laying a wreath at a Confederate memorial across the Potomac? Surely not. Acting Assistant Attorney General Stuart Schiffer was present in Ashcroft's stead. He cited the 26 government attorneys and eight staff members working on the case full time, and mentioned plans to add four more bodies. He said the effort cost the feds $23.2 million this fiscal year, and that he expects to ask for more than $40 million for fiscal year 2002. That should make us all feel better.

After Schiffer left, Durbin staged Act II of his melodrama. He trotted out another panel, including a woman who blamed the tobacco industry for the emphysema that came 40 years into her life as a smoker. A representative from the Clinton-era Department of Justice detailed how diligently he had sought funds for the case on his watch. Two legal scholars later debated the wisdom of using the judiciary to attack the tobacco industry. Ashcroft wasn't there to hear any of it. Could he have been tied up with the Washington visit of Mexican President Vicente Fox?

Actually, yes. Ashcroft's office says that's just how the attorney general spent the day, but that's all the details I got from his staff. Given how many frustrated lawmakers were lined up to talk to Ashcroft, whoever he met with at the White House was singularly fortunate. As for what Ashcroft spent the day talking about, well, never mind. Maybe he talked to Mexican officials about amnesty for illegal aliens. Or maybe they discussed browser bundling. Or maybe they snuck out to the Rose Garden for a quick smoke. After all, it had been a pretty intense week for everyone.

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