Deep throat: Apply your skills to finding Cheney's energy advisors

Cheney's son-in-law, Perry, was at one time associated Latham and Watkins.

I suspect the "real issue" with the "decision not to release the names of the Cheney energy commission" has something else besides privacy.

There were some people who did some careful analysis of Deep Throat. They got Felt's name right many years ago.

I would encourage the same type of careful analysis to go into independently identifying the names of the firms on the Cheney Energy task force.

IN my opinion, the first firm to look at would be Latham and Watkins. They are well known in Southern California for being related to the oil industry. Also, their personnel have an interesting habit of providing EPA with documents, which the government later denies.

Also, Latham is well connected in DHS, EPA, and DoJ. It's not a stretch to imagine this firm providing direct inputs.

Rather, in light of the visibility and high profile, it would almost be foolish for Cheney not to have consulted with them: Latham and Watkins does M&A deals, and is well versed in the securities laws.

What is puzzling thought, is why despite all the "concern" with the Iraqi oil, did the Iraqi planning get botched?

I suspect it is because the law firms providing the "advice" don't understand the customer: In this case, the Iraqis, and they have a poor understanding of how civilian populations who are not being manipulated would reasonably react.

IN short, law firms like Latham and Watkins enjoy giving money to government personnel who have the power of law enforcement to intimidate civilian populations.

I don't think a law firm that is used to this "ability to pay to play and get the government to generate energy policies in the EPA" is going to think to consider that the situation Iraq might have been different.

IN other words, I suspect that the American law firms on the Cheney Energy commission failed to plan for the insurgency and didn't even consider the possible consequences of an American invasion.

There's also been some talk about Bush campaign contributors getting kickbacks in the oil for food program. It wouldn't surprise me if Latham and Watkins was part of this. I have no idea.

The same skills applied to finding Deep Throat need to be applied to finding the complete list of law firms on the Cheney Energy Commission task force. If you want more names, I suggest you consider starting with the Latham and Watkins client list, and all firms that Latham and Watkins has made an appearance on behalf before the EPA and Departments of Energy.

Also, consider the overseas deals Latham works on. Latin America satellite and cable firms. Guess which DoD contractors relied on Latham for support before the FCC? That's right: The same ones that are fighting over the DHS and DoD contracts.

You'll also want to look at the Iraqi oil field-maps and find out which firms were providing inputs. Those names on the maps are known to DoE analysts who manage the strategic petroleum fund. The same contractors working with DoE also would be good to look at in terms of finding out who attended these meetings.

Who attended?

How would they benefit after the Iraq war started

How much money they got through the oil-for-food kickbacks

It is curious that they had maps of Iraqi oil fields, knew enough to plan in 2001 to invade, but in 2005 they now have no plan "other than cutting training hours for fighter pilots"

What would you expect from people who never served in combat, but got deferments. They wanted to avoid a war in Vietnam in the 1960s and 1970s.

Now they have their new Vietnam in 2005. IN Iraq. Too bad they didn't face those ghosts in the 1960s. They ran away, and now the problem that they created won't leave.

How fitting. For arrogant Americans. Who only "lead" with threats. What happens when the law firms go up against prosecutors who know the ways of the firm better than the senior partners?

I'm sure the Supreme Court, as they did with Andersen, will come to their rescue. How fitting that the weakest branch would come to the "defense" of DoD, DoJ, and DoE contractors who allegedly have been linked with war crimes.

Latham was Andersen's defense counsel before the Supreme Court. X-tones of documents shredded, firm no longer able to do business in the United States, but the Supreme Court said the jury instructions were incorrect.

Remember, Hitler used the lawyers to "legalize" his war on the Jews. What happened to the legal oversight and how can a tyrant march to war, but nobody can find out "where he got this advice" from .

Oh, that's right "priviledged communications" between the attorney and the client. But what happens if the legal counsel is allegedly providing legal advice on how to engage in unlawful wars -- should that remain priviledged?

Agreements, in my view, that further unlawful objectives and purposes, should not be binding.

It is a shame that war crimes can be "made to go away" if everyone agrees that they "can't talk about it."

That's not America. That's Nazi Germany, 1941.

The Germans, like the Romans, eventually lost. Some haven't forgotten the Constitution, Article VI which makes one's oath of office linked with the Geneva Conventions.

You can't expect to invade a country in a war of aggression and ask the world to believe you are a nation or a law firm that stands for the rule of law. Attorneys, who fail to preserve the constitution, can lose their license to practice before the American bars.

Your conversations are monitored by NSA's echelon. They can descramble it all.

You're going to lose. That's not a promise. It's the constitution. It will win.

We outnumber you. Or are you going to lock all of us up? If "nobody is working," who's going to pay your legal fees?

Oh, that's right: Asset seizure. Law firms like to repossess houses. Too bad they slide off hills.

Looks like it's time for you to start selling apples in Iraq. Or are you getting a cut of the opium out of Afghanistan?