Don't Let the Door Hit You In the Ass on the Way Out

Soon-to-be ex-Attorney General John Ashcroft has been letting fly with some parting shots as his time in office winds to a close. Of particular interest was this gem about the Supreme Court's recent decision in Booker:

In his remarks to reporters and in a speech earlier in the day, Ashcroft also criticized a Jan. 12 Supreme Court ruling that sentencing guidelines for federal judges are advisory, not mandatory. Without stricter guidelines, Ashcroft said, prosecutors will lose leverage over suspects and judges are likely to hand out more lenient sentences.

The ruling, Ashcroft said at the Heritage Foundation, is 'a retreat from justice that may put the public's safety in jeopardy.'

This conveniently overlooks the fact that, as Doug Berman over at Sentencing Law and Policy pointed out, Breyer's remedial scheme from Booker is basically what Ashcroft's DOJ argued for! Some people are just never happy.