Monica Goodling: Diva Is As Diva Does
We were planning to do a quick write-up on the Senate Judiciary Committee testimony of Kyle Sampson. But many such write-ups have already been done. And the Sampson testimony, while it had its moments, wasn’t quite as exciting as we were hoping.
So forget about the decidedly unglamorous Kyle Sampson, accurately described by Emily Bazelon as “sweaty, nervous, and soft-spoken.” Let’s talk about a more exciting and dynamic personality, the real breakout star of U.S. Attorney-gate to date:
MONICA GOODLING!!!
Today brings two new, juicy profiles of Monica M. Goodling — one from the Washington Post, and one from the Harrisburg Patriot-News. They contain a lot of interesting material.
Discussion and links, after the jump.
The Washington Post piece, by Alan Cooperman, kicks off with a positively diva-licious anecdote:
When a college intern in the Justice Department whined that all he was doing was filing and answering phones, Monica M. Goodling took him aside. If he wanted to do “substantive work,” she told him, he was going to have to prove himself first.The intern walked out of the office in a huff, and when he returned an hour later, Goodling took him aside again. “You’re fired,” she said.
“Some people in the office thought: ‘Wow! That was tough,’ ” said Mark Corallo, her former boss in Justice’s Office of Public Affairs, who recalled the incident. “But I thought, ‘Good for her.’ “
We couldn’t agree more. Move over, Donald Trump; Monica Goodling is walking the halls of justice.
Yes, she’s a bit young. But Goodling is well on her way towards joining the top tier of DOJ Divas, such as Alice Fisher and, of course, Shanetta Cutlar (who has been on her best behavior lately, or so we hear; that’s why we don’t have any new Shanetta stories for you).
On Monica Goodling’s diva-hood, see also:
To her detractors, Goodling was an enforcer of political loyalty who was not squeamish about firings — of interns or of senior officials.“She forced many very talented, career people out of main Justice so she could replace them with junior people that were either loyal to the administration or would score her some points,” said a former career Justice official who spoke on the condition of anonymity, citing fear of reprisal.
For those of you who scoffed at Goodling’s law degree from Regent, founded by religious broadcaster Pat Robertson, here’s a tidbit worth noting:
Goodling enrolled in law school at American University, but transferred to Regent… Goodling and her lawyer declined to comment for this article, and classmates said they did not recall the reasons for her transfer. But “the curriculum at Regent is different from other law schools. There is an attempt by professors to integrate biblical principles into areas of the law,” said Dugan Kelley, who worked with Goodling on Regent’s moot court.
In addition, both the Post and Patriot-News cite sources who praise Goodling for her intellect, her work ethic, her leadership skills, and her engaging personality. Clearly she is an impressive and accomplished young woman.
So we know all about Goodling as a professional. What about the personal?
Goodling may be a high-powered career woman. But unlike, say, La Hillary, Monica embraces rather than disdains the domestic arts:
A friend and former department co-worker, Susan Richmond Johnson, said Goodling was also an amateur photographer and world-class baker of desserts…
YUM!!! We’re sure the Rev. Pat Robertson would be proud.
Finally, a quick quasi-correction. In a previous post, we mentioned reader speculation that Goodling, a native of York County, Pennsylvania, was related to a former Republican congressman from York County, Rep. Bill Goodling (R-PA).
As it turns out, this speculation is incorrect. Per Brett Lieberman of the Patriot-News:
Former Rep. Bill Goodling doesn’t think he’s related to Monica Goodling.“She is apparently very bright and the president of her class and I wish I could say she got her brilliance from me, but I don’t believe she’s related to my family,” said Bill Goodling, who represented York County in Congress until his retirement in 2000.
Good stuff. But our favorite quote from the article comes from Goodling’s mom:
“She hasn’t really done anything,” Goodling’s mother, Cindy Fitt of Osceola Mills, told the Associated Press. “But she is not talking to me about it, needless to say.”“Monica’s not going to do anything wrong,” Fitt said. “Monica has very high standards.”
Bush Loyalist Rose Quickly at Justice [Washington Post]
WHO IS MONICA GOODLING? [Harrisburg Patriot-News]
Earlier: Prior ATL coverage of Monica Goodling (scroll down)
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Comments
The "diva" title gets watered down yet further.
"But unlike, say, La Hillary, Monica embraces rather than disdains the domestic arts..."
So that's what they call it these days.
The story of how she canned that intern's ass is deserving of the diva label. Who the hell fires their interns? It's like firing your law clerks (and we know only divas do that).
So wait, when we laughed at her degree from Regent, we're supposed to not laugh at the fact that she was a stellar enough candidate to be among the elite few* admitted to... American?
* few tens of thousands.
Unless Monica Goodling is a glamorous and successful female performer or personality, which appears NOT to be the case, then the diva label is misplaced. Very, very misplaced.
Maria Callas, you missed this crucial piece of information from the profile:
"Tim Dawson, assistant dean of admissions at Messiah, remembers being impressed with Goodling when the two were in a production of Brigadoon.... He played the lead role of Tommy Albright and she was a freshman chorus member."
An undergrad production of "Brigadoon" is a regular diva-fest.
12:47 :
Give it up. There are smart people at just about every law school.
That Monica Gooding is the "breakout star" of this scandal shows how pathetic it is.
I never thought I'd say it, but I actually miss the days of Monica Lewinsky.
So now I have to suck off Pat Robertson to get a job?
So now I have to suck off Pat Robertson to get a job?
She's a kiss-ass Bushie with no brains and no talent that got far in this administration because she'll fire anyone who does not worship the President? *Yawn* See Gonzo, Harriet "I'm in Love with the President" Miers, etc. Hell, at least Cheney's guys are smart (and diabolical but thats another story).
6months in the AUSA's EDVa office prosecuting traffic tickets... prestige indeed
Maybe someone already mentioned this, but to me, she looks like a fatter Gwenyth Paltrow. Maybe some sort of nickname can be finagled out of that? Something involving the word "paltry." Or "poultry."
Divas don't plead the Fifth!
Good riddance! Now this freakshow can go back to Jesusland where she belongs. 2008 cannot come soon enough. We need to purge DOJ of these people, not promote them!
Don't you think you're stretching Diva a bit far? She seems to avoid attention, not seek it.
She also seems very, very, very supportive of Bush. I would think real divas are all about themselves, not sycophantic true believers.
1:47: I generally agree. But surely a diva will strategically suck up to superiors to advance her own career.
Solo cup, print t-shirt, chubby arms . . . nothing in that picture says diva
Being supportive of Bush is not always a selfless or principled path. Sometimes people are supportive of Bush because they think it will get them a better place in heaven.
Right on, 1:21. A true diva wouldn't take the Fifth. She would show up before the SJC, in head-to-toe Prada, and rip Chuck Schumer a new one: "You want the truth? You can't handle the truth!"
Meh (1:16) -- what was the name of Paltrow's character in "Shallow Hal"?
Is anyone else at all disturbed by the fact that she made a habit of removing senior career employees to replace them with junior political hacks (sorry, "loyal to the administration")? The whole point of having career lawyers, and only rotating political appointments, is to have continuity from administration to administration, and not allow politics to dictate day-to-day legal work (as opposed to high level policy). If the entire Justice Department turned over every four years, our legal system would be a complete trainwreck (no matter who was in the White House).
3:14 --
I'M very disturbed by her practice of replacing career employees with hacks. There is an article in Salon today about how the Bush administration has systematically gutted DOJ and filled it with right wing Christians and Federalist society members whose political agendas are at odds with the laws they are supposed to enforce.
http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2007/03/30/civil_rights/
You may need a subscription, or may be forced to watch an ad in order to read the article.
This administration has filled itself with over 150 Regent University Law alums.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/huffpost/20070330/cm_huffpost/044588;_ylt=Atr_LmLPuslW7DeyNBtEf0jMWM0F
That editorial paints a bleak picture of what almost appears to be the closest thing to a religious litmus test.
Learning all this stuff about the Bush administration, I have "converted" to a Democrat.
Learning all this stuff about the Bush administration, I have "converted" to a Democrat.
I am ashamed to work at justice
those articles are unreal...do republican lawyers who aren't fanatics really support those kinds of tactics in the administration?
hey, would you feel the same way if a Democratic president used an atheist litmus test to fill up the vacancies in DOJ?
An underwhelming diva. MMG acts tough with the summer interns. But when the big boys ask her to step up to the plate, she acts like a "damsel in distress" and invokes the Fifth.
So she's an obnoxious unintellectual hack political enforcer?
I don't think we should be celebrating these kinds of people.
She just sounds like an awful person who got people fired for their political views.