Drapes Finally Removed from Spirit of Justice

[Dom Heffner]

Aside from the $159,000 salary we pay to Rove, this might have been one of the more inane uses of our money at work.

Ashcroft gone, Justice statues disrobe


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by Mark Sherman



June 24, 2005 | Washington -- With barely a word about it, workers at the Justice Department Friday removed the blue drapes that have famously covered two scantily clad statues for the past 3 1/2 years.

Spirit of Justice, with her one breast exposed and her arms raised, and the bare-chested male Majesty of Law basked in the late afternoon light of Justice's ceremonial Great Hall.

The drapes, installed in 2002 at a cost of $8,000, allowed then-Attorney General John Ashcroft to speak in the Great Hall without fear of a breast showing up behind him in television or newspaper pictures. They also provoked jokes about and criticism of the deeply religious Ashcroft.

The 12-foot, 6-inch aluminum statues were installed shortly after the building opened in the 1930s.

With a change in leadership at Justice, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales faced the question: Would they stay or would they go?

He regularly deflected the question, saying he had weightier issues before him.

Paul R. Corts, the assistant attorney general for administration, recommended the drapes be removed and Gonzales signed off on it, spokesman Kevin Madden said, while refusing to allow The Associated Press to photograph the statues Friday.

In the past, snagging a photo of the attorney general in front of the statues has been somewhat of a sport for photographers.

When former Attorney General Edwin Meese released a report on pornography in the 1980s, photographers dived to the floor to capture the image of him raising the report in the air, with the partially nude female statue behind him.

The first attorney general to use the blue drapery was Republican Richard Thornburgh, attorney general under Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. He had the drapery put up only for a few occasions when he was appearing in the Great Hall, rather than permanently installed as it was under Ashcroft.

Most news conferences now are held in a state-of-the-art conference room, although the Great Hall still hosts speeches and other special events.

[zombie-a-go-go]

Hey, we have to think about the children.

[KronoRed]

8000 dollars? how bout just put a paper bag on them?

[zombie-a-go-go]

Or black electrical tape.

[Falls City Beer]

Or black electrical tape.

Or John Ashcroft's panties.

[KronoRed]

Too expensive, you can get the bags free

[Yachtzee]

Hmmmm...Boobies

[Mutaman]

I know that a lot of intelligent folks who post here think there isn't much difference between the two political parties, and I agree that the Democrats aren't much to write home about, but this statue drapping is a good example of why I hate Republicans.

[RFS62]

I know that a lot of intelligent folks who post here think there isn't much difference between the two political parties, and I agree that the Democrats aren't much to write home about, but this statue drapping is a good example of why I hate Republicans.

You hate Republicans because of this ridiculous waste of time?

That's astonishing to me.

[Falls City Beer]

You hate Republicans because of this ridiculous waste of time?

That's astonishing to me.

While yes, it's ill-advised to hate a body of people based on one isolated incident, speaking for myself, an incident like this just pulls back the hair to reveal the horns of the devil on the beast. It's not so much that the horns themselves will kill you, but what the horns represent about the creature that bears them.

[RFS62]

What I find astounding is how such smart guys could rubber stamp all Republicans like this.

Prejudice is the purest form of ignorance.

[Falls City Beer]

What I find astounding is how such smart guys could rubber stamp all Republicans like this.

Prejudice is the purest form of ignorance.

Guys? I'm kidding. And I suspect (though I don't know) that Mutaman is as well.

Hate? Nah. Well, some of 'em (just can't apologize for that in some cases--some of 'em frankly deserve nothing but hatred).

But no, I don't have the time or energy to hate a populace. Nor the will for that matter.

[RFS62]

Listen, I've been a Republican all my life. I grew up in an area of Southern West Virginia with a ratio of about 20 or 30 to 1, Democrats to Republicans. I'm not a Republican to be popular.

And I loathe many things about certain aspects of the party. Just as I support many others.

Painting an entire party, Republican or Democrat, with a broad brush as if all are the same is prejudice. Pre-judging. And it's ignorant, no matter how educated or enlightened the person may be who makes such a declaration.

I have always admired you, FCB. I think you're a brilliant writer and from what I've gathered, an exceptional human being.

It saddens me to hear this kind of stuff.

[Falls City Beer]

Listen, I've been a Republican all my life. I grew up in an area of Southern West Virginia with a ratio of about 20 or 30 to 1, Democrats to Republicans. I'm not a Republican to be popular.

And I loathe many things about certain aspects of the party. Just as I support many others.

Painting an entire party, Republican or Democrat, with a broad brush as if all are the same is prejudice. Pre-judging. And it's ignorant, no matter how educated or enlightened the person may be who makes such a declaration.

I have always admired you, FCB. I think you're a brilliant writer and from what I've gathered, an exceptional human being.

It saddens me to hear this kind of stuff.

I just got finished saying I was kidding. I don't think it does paint a populace.

I have good friends who are Republicans, but they're GOP Republicans, not of this bitterly evangelical, nationalistic, morally repugnant and hypocritical stripe that runs through this current administration that is very, very dangerous for this country, liberals and, yes, conservatives alike.

So yes, I'm fully aware that "Republicans" isn't a catch-all term: I like and respect guys within the party like Arlen Spector who aren't trying to drive this country into a new Dark Age. I think there's real opportunity for growth and compromise between Democrats and the Republican party of guys like Eisenhower, Nixon, Ford, Reagan, McCain, and Spector, etc. But this clown and his goons that are currently in the White House are a disgrace to the Republican party I grew up with. I have to tell you. I do not use the word "hate" without first thinking long and hard about its severity, but I hate some members of this current administration. I just can't help that or apologize for it.

[RFS62]

I just got finished saying I was kidding. I don't think it does paint a populace.

Yeah, I replied before I saw that.

I'm not an evangelical Christian. I'm not in favor of the death penalty. I'm not even remotely wealthy. I've spent my life in service of people in need.

I'll be working until the day I die, most likely. I won't inherit wealth. I have worked for and with many government agencies, and I see incredible waste that nearly every agency, no matter how well intentioned, accepts as business as usual.

And even though I think that tax and spend liberals would cause the framers of the constitution to spin in their graves, I understand their motivation and don't doubt their good intentions. Nor would I ever paint them all as evil or ignorant. If I did, I'd have to include all of my relatives.

Speaking for myself, I find it incredible that John Ashcroft's hangups could be latched on to by good people to promote the notion that I'm like him in any way, just because I'm a Republican.

That's prejudice, no matter how you dress it up, and it's every bit as evil as Ashcroft's ignorance.