For those who missed it, something remarkable happened on Face the Nation last week. During a discussion of the Chinese spying scandal, Sen. Robert Torricelli became the first Democrat in the Senate to suggest that Janet Reno should resign. Torricelli accused Reno of exercising terrible judgment in her response -- which, as he pointed out, was late, halting, and ultimately impotent -- to espionage at the Los Alamos labs. Specifically, Torricelli said, the Justice Department's refusal to allow the FBI to tap the phone of suspected spy Wen Ho Lee was "almost inexplicable."
As Matthew Rees's story in this issue shows, the department's refusal was indeed inexplicable. At least. But then so were Torricelli's remarks.
For years, you'll remember, Torricelli has been one of Bill Clinton's worst hack defenders, a redfaced conspiracy buff who once sent a letter to the very same Janet Reno complaining about -- and implying the federal government should take action against -- the American Spectator magazine for running an uncomplimentary article about the Clintons.
What happened? Torricelli isn't returning calls about his comments, a sure sign that someone has told him to cool it. And in fact, someone has. At a meeting of Senate Democrats last week, the New York Times reports, several female senators scolded Torricelli, claiming his remarks about Reno were "unfair."
Our plea to the senator: Don't stop now. More outbursts, please. It's nice to see at least one Democrat tell something like it is. And it's a good lesson for the White House: The thing about loose cannons is that they sometimes swivel 180 degrees.