Remember What "Procurer" Means...

Finally, somebody has been frog-marched out of the White House. And not just anybody:

"The man who up until Friday was overseeing contracting policy for the multi-billion dollar relief effort has now been charged with lying and obstructing a criminal investigation."

That would be the very special David Safavian. When he was appointed in December last year as the new administrator for Federal Procurement Policy, Washington Technology called it a "welcome turn of events." And I quote:

"Safavian will face many challenges, including difficult issues such as competitive sourcing, business ethics and the future of the General Services Administration's Schedules and Governmentwide Acquisition Contracts."

Challenging and difficult, aren't they, those business ethics. Especially the "competitive sourcing" bit. Now, it's important to stress that the fraud in this case is not related to Iraq or New Orleans, and in fact dates from before Safavian's term at the White House. But there are interesting family values involved:

"His wife, Jennifer Safavian, is chief counsel for oversight and investigations on the House Government Reform Committee, which is responsible for overseeing government procurement and is, among other things, expected to conduct the Congressional investigation into missteps after Hurricane Katrina."

That would be the very special independent inquiry, which cynical Democrats have been complaining about. Not to worry: justice will be served. (It would be nice if she were served on the steps of the White House.)