JEFFREY A. TAYLOR: "What's he up to these days?" and other tales of high weirdness

Washington D.C.--I didn't notice this, but Jeffrey A. Taylor resigned as an interim appointed U.S. Attorney on May 28th of this year. Yeah, must have been all that Michael Jackson news...oh yeah, and all that drama in Iran that we're all soon to forget.

But at least we'll never forget all those missing kids.

Occasionally, I get an email from someone "in trouble," and they usually tend to be mistaken or just plain weird or disturbed writers. This weekend, I got a real live one that might, or might not be valid. That said, it was unsolicited, I'm not an attorney, and she wanted her "help," so I'm putting it out there mainly to see whether it's real or not. If it helps, good.

From Ms. Cooley, the entire text of what I assume is a form letter:

July 8, 2009

Dear [Matt Janovic/?]

My name is Michelle Cooley. I am a resident of the city [of] New York. I work for [a] customer support and tech support with a company called Arise. I am a single mother of a 14 year old boy.

These past 5 months I have been dedicated to the discovery process of investigating the parties involved in my late father's probate case. Amongst many possible legal violations -I have found possible elements of fraud, white collar crime, judicial fraud, IRS fraud, RICO Act Violations, and estate fraud. The estate could be worth possibly millions of dollars. My sister, myself, and sub sequentiality[SIC,] my 14 year old son would be the only heirs.

The last week of June, I discovered that the remains of my late father, William Mack Cooley, were missing from the Barrington, Illinios church where he was purportedly laid to rest. I was about to go to the F.B.I. with my information, and the documentation and evidence to back up my discoveries this past week - however impeding my contact with the F.B.I. was “gas leak” in my residence.

Starting on July 2, I was terrified and intimidated by a group of “FDNY” who appeared at my apartment on 2 occasions. I was told on both occasions that my gas had been turned off. I was informed by Con Edison that it had never been turned off. Apart from feeling terribly sick, I was terrified by the behavior of these “FDNY”. I have been a New York resident since 2000 and I have always found the FDNY very amicable and professional. This time however, I was treated with disrespect and contempt.

My life and the life of my 14 year old son were put at risk. Our gas was not turned off for over three days, despite being told that is had been by FDNY personnel. When I decided to go to the hospital to get tested for possible Co2 poisoning I was stopped by a group of amicable NY PD who informed me that someone had called them and told them “a women was passed out on the floor”. I never called the police that night. The NYPD did not seem to be aware of what was going on.

I was put in an Ambulance, and was told by an EMS worker repeatedly that I needed to “take my meds”. She then stayed with me until I was put in the psychiatric ward. She reported to the Doctor at Metropolitan hospital that I was “psychotic”, “suicidal”, “homicidal”, and “playing with the gas pipes.” She also told them I drank “booze”. Thankfully I was seen by a unbiased Psychiatrist at Metropolitan Hospital who released me just an hour later. I insisted on a co2 test, and was told my level was at 0.5.

I have never been diagnosed as psychotic, nor homicidal. I would never hurt anyone or anything.

I have repeatedly tried to find out the names of the FDNY who were dispatched to my apartment. No one at the FDNY, as of yet, will give me any information. I am too afraid for to even return to my apartment after what transpired this weekend. My family is afraid for my our safety as well.

The very people I grew up admiring and believing I could turn to for help – I now fear to call. My son and myself have been traumatized. We are both currently staying away from our home- too afraid to return.

Both my grandfather, and my grandfather worked for the United States Department of Defense.

There are many questions and concerning the events around my later father's death, and the handling of his estate by a the head Probate judge in Washington D.C.

As a citizen of the United States of America, I have a right to investigate the death of my father – and to find out what happened to his remains. My son and I have the right to live without intimidation and harassment.

I have since discovered that a Lt. Duggan was the person who was in charge of dispatching to Con Edison about my gas leak. The gas leak dispatch report was reported three days after the gas leak.

Robert McDonald the head supervisor of gas department was inside my apartment without me being there. I was informed by a Con Edison worker that “supervisors” do not usually go on “gas leak” calls at 1 am in the morning.

I have since learned that Lt. Duggan was in the army. I believe that all the “FDNY” that were dispatched to my apartment were Army reserve or personnel. I do not believe they know the reason that they were called for this “gas leak”.

I would like to inform them, and any anyone else, that I am a kind, caring human being. My son and I object to having been treated like an animals in a gas chamber. I also have the right to go to a hospital to check my physical health, and not be tossed into an ambulance whilst being accused and portrayed to medical personal with absurd accusations of psychiatric problems by FNDY EMS.

My son is an innocent little boy . He has done no harm to anyone.

For the record- I am not suicidal, psychotic, or homicidal. I do not no drugs of any kind. I am a daughter trying to find out what happened to her father. That is not a crime.

I am seeking protection and advocacy from the appropriate agency. We have the right to live our lives with the normalcy we had - before I discovered the possible criminal elements around my late father's case. I am attaching documentation to this letter with the cause of events, and other documentation.

My son and I are truly afraid for our safety at this point in time. We would appreciate any kind of support, advice, or protection..

Sincerely, Michelle Cooley ("Cooley to the author")

Pretty incredible claims, right? In another email she sent before this one--the first one--she enclosed the document below with the claim on Icke's b-board page that, "Well I was looking through the court papers of my "bankrupt" father whose probate case is still open in the Washington D.C. probate court... And look whose name is on the paper work for the judge AFTER he's already RESIGNED!!!" (Comment "#13" from the link below)

Yet, there's no real context given. The date on the document is April 6, 2009. Taylor split on May 28. Disinformation? Could be. Does it sound like a bad spy novel? It sure does, hence my suspicions.

"Context": http://www.davidicke.com/forum/showthread.php?s=44931b74b9a309cc88b1bc69cdc11b11&t=71259&page=2

Obama Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel releases more Bush II administration war on terror documents

Washington D.C.--You wanted change? You're getting it, today. This is a switch--even for the incoming administration: the release of more key Justice Department legal documents from the immediate aftermath of the events of September 11th, 2001, and they're eye-openers.

The Obama Justice Department has made available a series of key legal memos crafted byt eh Bush II administration that cover the power of the office of president to declare war, "Congressional Authority over Captured Enemy Combatants," the legality of torture, "Interpreting FISA and its Applicability to Presidential Authority," "Presidential Authority to Suspend Treaties" (curiously, ABM ones in one case), " 'National Self-Defense' as a Justification for Warrantless Searches," and so on.

The Obama Justice Department has made their stance on these questionable legal opinions of the Bush II Justice Department crystal clear:

For all the foregoing reasons, the propositions highlighted in the nine opinions identified above do not reflect the current views of the Office of Legal Counsel and should not be treated as authoritative for any purpose. A number of the opinions that contained these propositions have been withdrawn or superseded and do not constitute precedents of this Office; caution should be exercised before relying in other respects on the remaining opinions.

We have advised the Attorney General, the Counsel to the President, the Legal Adviser to the National Security Council, the Principal Deputy General Counsel of the Department of Defense, and appropriate offices in the Department of Justice of these conclusions. ("Office of Legal Counsel Memoranda," DOJ.gov, 0303.2009)

Here's what this writer finds most interesting: the opinions by the OLC were made just five days before the Obama administration came into office on January 20, 2009! In short, these decisions were likely being withheld from release by the outgoing Bush II administration and this week's release indicates the decisions were all but predetermined by the incoming administration for potential release. In other words, the Bush II administration was doing some back-peddling in their legal assertions at the tail-end.

That it took a little over a month for the Obama administration's Attorney General to releases them is a very tangible change considering these memos were suppressed by the Bush II administration for years. Say what you want--that it's "not enough," that it's "belated" (for whom?), and that we "won't be seeing much more of this," but it doesn't matter. It's real, and it happened, and more is coming. So far, it doesn't appear that the Obama administration have ruled on the findings of the OLC, but it's likely that they will concur with them in their own decisions.

Maybe it's just a start, but it's one of the best starts we've seen in at least three decades (if not more), and it's happening almost overnight. Patience has its own rewards, but keep demanding more of this, don't ask, and do tell.

"Office of Legal Counsel Memoranda," DOJ.gov, 0303.2009:

http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/documents/olc-memos.htm

The Bush II administration's time is finally ending, but...

"Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power."--Abraham Lincoln

It's incumbent on all of us to demand a Truth Commission on every single crime committed by them from the 2000 elections until their final day in office. The involvement of the RNC and her operatives should also be thoroughly investigated. This Truth Commission should be hydra-headed because of the multifarious nature of the crimes due to their breadth and scope and the fact that they were ongoing.

Every single pertinent classified record of the Bush II years must be declassified and reviewed by a special non-partisan prosecution and investigation team and all records must be preserved. If key records are found to have been negligently destroyed or eliminated with a dark purpose, all federal laws applying punitive legal sanctions should be employed swiftly and aggressively.

Any loopholes found in procedural laws regarding the executive branch should be noted, legislative proposals made to seal them by the special prosecution, and Congress should act swiftly with enforceable legislation to heal the breach. The whole point of this is not to allow the policies that expanded executive power to stand, this being a system of precedents. Each expansion of power should be challenged at every turn.

It would behoove President-elect Barack Obama to renounce these policies in no uncertain terms and it should be part of his first 100 days in office, making the top of the list of Bush II executive orders that must be rolled back with his pen. This is where the wildcard factor comes into play with the new president: for a past constitutional law scholar he's shown peculiar voting behaviors, made especially obvious in his "yea" vote for retroactive immunity for the telecommunications companies in the Bush II administration's warrantless surveillance program. This is just one of many troubling signs, but it begs-the-question of whether they were votes predicated on every occasion with a hint of a political calculus. He wanted to be president, after all.

But if ever there was a clear violation of the precepts of the Constitution of the United States, it was this NSA program whose entire scope we still don't know, but assuredly violated the Fourth amendment rights of tens of thousands of American citizens. What did the Bush II administration tell Obama and others in classified briefings about the program and the necessity for it? Did they lie to him and other members of Congress to intimidate them into an agreement to extend it and grant unprecedented legislative immunity? What is President-elect Obama's current knowledge of the program now that he's been given intelligence briefings?

With just 19 days left for the sordid Bush II administration, it's time to breathe a little easier. After taking those long, deep breaths, it's going to be time to roll-up our sleeves again and to begin demanding a Truth Commission. Democracy in North America depends on it. Our rights are non-negotiable and it's time to start acting like it for a chage.

President-elect Obama has said that Abraham Lincoln is his favorite American president, and as flawed as Lincoln was, I concur with him. He's always been my second favorite after FDR. But both men did things that caused significant damage to the rights of Americans at the same time they were adding to them. FDR and Lincoln began systematic extralegal surveillance through technological means of their perceived political enemies through the us of wiretaps.

So many presidents have engaged in this kind of behavior that it's a bipartisan tradition, and one that needed to die with the twentieth century, but has its convenient place when power feels threatened. It's the gun that all would-be presidents want to keep in the vest-pocket of the executive branch, as Noam Chomsky has pointed-out.

Time for some real gun control. The late President Lincoln's name is being bandied about a lot these days without much substance to it. We should change this, we should be sincere--we should say what we mean, and mean what we say. Without that, the future looks anything but bright.