Dick Cheney -- Desperate To Continue Bush's Illegal-Domestic-Spying Program.

More "General Hospital ICU..."
Well... it was Vice Pres. Dick Cheney who sent the White House thugs (Andy & Al) to the hospital, in 2003, to exploit an incapacitated John Ashcroft, who was heavily-medicated and recovering from major-surgery. The post-9-11 Justice Department authorization for Bush/Cheney's secret domestic-spying scheme was expiring.

They were (we assume) gonna stick a pen in his hand and scribble out a signature -- to continue their illegal spying program with (arguable) Justice Dept. authorization/approval -- WHEN (THEY KNEW) ASHCROFT DID NOT WANT TO SIGN... Ashcroft's Justice Department, by that time, had concluded that the NSA domestic-spying program was ILLEGAL.