If you have solid tips, news or documents on potential ethical violations or abuses of power, we want to know. Send us your suggestions. 
Unfortunately I believe that we are limited in what we can focus on. I think that if we proceed with the partisan sideshow of prosecuting Bush admin. officials, healthcare will get lost in the brouhaha.
The Washington Post's permanent investigative unit was set up in 1982 under Bob Woodward.
Senator Doubts Anthrax Scientist Acted Alone
One of the targets of the anthrax panic that gripped the nation after 9/11 said today he does not believe the FBI's assertion that bioweapons researcher Bruce E. Ivins acted alone, The Post's Carrie Johnson reports.
Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont), who received one of the anthrax-laced letters that killed five people and sickened more than a dozen others, told FBI leaders at a hearing this morning that he does not believe "in any way shape or manner" that Ivins -- who took his life this summer as the FBI was closing in -- sent the letters without any help.
"I believe there are others out there who should be charged with murder," Leahy said.
FBI director Robert S. Mueller III told Congress yesterday that the bureau will ask the National Academy of Sciences to organize an independent review of the evidence.
Government officials have claimed that a near-perfect match of anthrax spores in Ivins' custody and a record of his late-night laboratory work just before the toxic letters were mailed show he was their man.
They also released court documents in August contending that Ivins had recently told a therapist that he had a plan to kill co-workers and other individuals who had wronged him.
Another twist in the case emerged this week, when details were published about the will Ivins wrote a few months before the FBI focused on him. He expressed the wish to be cremated and to have his ashes scattered, but apparently was worried that his wife might not honor his wish.
So he wrote a provision that would send a $50,000 donation to Planned Parenthood -- which he knew went against the beliefs of his anti-abortion wife -- if his body were buried intact.
By The Editors |
September 17, 2008; 3:48 PM ET
Previous: Candidates Duel Over Wall Street Probe |
Next: Congress: $15 Billion in Failed DHS Contracts
Posted by: J Johnson | September 17, 2008 4:56 PM
http://www.ph.ucla.edu/epi/Bioter/messageanthrax.html
Letters were sent Sep 20, 2001 from St Petersburg Fl to Tom Brokaw in NY at NBC and from Trenton NJ Sep 18 2001. The St. Petersburg letter said anthrax would come, the Trenton letter said this is next, i.e. its what the St Petersburg letter predicted. The Trenton letter had the actual anthrax.
Ivins was not able to mail the Sep 20 St. Petersburg letter. This proves Ivins could not not have done it alone. The FBI won't release the St. Petersburg letter to the public, Senate, to its outside doc expert or inside doc expert.
Posted by: Old Atlantic | September 17, 2008 5:05 PM
That should have been that the FBI won't release the St. Petersburg letter to the public and Senate, and other letters to the outside and inside doc experts. The outside expert had seen the St. Petersburg letter from the link discussion.
Posted by: Old Atlantic | September 17, 2008 5:12 PM
Dr Phillip Zack, please pick up the white courtesy phone...
Posted by: aperfectbob@yahoo.com | September 17, 2008 6:03 PM
Post a Comment
We encourage users to analyze, comment on and even challenge washingtonpost.com's articles, blogs, reviews and multimedia features.
User reviews and comments that include profanity or personal attacks or other inappropriate comments or material will be removed from the site. Additionally, entries that are unsigned or contain "signatures" by someone other than the actual author will be removed. Finally, we will take steps to block users who violate any of our posting standards, terms of use or privacy policies or any other policies governing this site. Please review the full rules governing commentaries and discussions.
Lets keep this straight. Not BS what Leahy said, but keep to the facts.
Leahy said if in fact Ivins was involved in it at all, said that Ivins did not act alone.