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February 29, 2008 at 19:25:04

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Mukasey Rebuffs Pelosi, Refuses to Prosecute Bush Aides for Contempt

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By Jason Leopold (about the author)     Page 2 of 2 page(s)

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In testimony before Congress last year, Iglesias said that a few weeks before the 2006 midterm elections he received telephone calls from Domenici, and the state's Republican congresswoman, Heather Wilson, inquiring about the timing of an indictment against a popular Democratic official in the state who was the target of a corruption investigation. Iglesias told Domenici and Wilson he could not discuss indictments with them. Iglesias was added to a list of US attorneys to be fired on Election Day in November 2006. The official or officials responsible for drafting the list is still unknown.

Last April, Iglesias filed a Hatch Act complaint with the White House Office of Special Counsel, alleging former White House political adviser Karl Rove and other Bush administration officials may have broken the law by orchestrating his firing. That investigation is still ongoing, but the obscure shop has hit some roadblocks. Special Counsel Scott Bloch, a Bush appointee, said he has been unable to obtain certain documents from the Justice Department (DOJ) to advance his probe into the firings.

John McKay, the former US attorney for the Western District of Washington who was also fired in late 2006 for reasons that appear to have been motivated by partisan politics, wrote in a lengthy article in the January edition of the Seattle University Law Review that Iglesias's firing stands out among the other eight federal prosecutors because it demonstrates "the very real prospect of improper interference with an ongoing criminal investigation involving public corruption and the seeking of political advantage."

"Violations of the obstruction of justice statute may have occurred and should be investigated," McKay wrote. "Even as the role of the White House remains shrouded in its claims of executive privilege, 23 certain White House employees appear to have been heavily involved in the dismissal of U.S. Attorney Iglesias. In several e-mails it appears that these officials were reacting directly to the complaints of Senator Pete Domenici (R-NM) and the ongoing investigation into public corruption in New Mexico. For example, Deputy White House Counsel Bill Kelley smugly e-mailed Gonzales’ Chief of Staff Kyle Sampson to report that Domenici’s office was 'happy as a clam' on learning of Iglesias’s ouster. Senior Counselor to the President Karl Rove bragged about Iglesias’s dismissal by proclaiming 'he’s gone' to the New Mexico Republican Party Chairman, who had previously complained to Rove about Iglesias."



McKay wrote that multiple investigations at the DOJ, which are said to be in the final stages, could result in "criminal charges" against former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and other former DOJ officials involved in the dismissals "for impeding justice."

If the DOJ's inspector general investigation concludes that further investigation into possible federal crimes is warranted and refers the case to the US attorney's office for the District of Columbia to probe the matter, McKay said a special prosecutor should be appointed instead because the US attorney in DC is Gonzales's former chief of staff.

"The Justice Department must seek a special prosecutor who will be seen as independent of the White House and of the Justice Department itself," McKay wrote.

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http://www.pubrecord.org

Jason Leopold is editor of the online investigative news magazine The Public Record, http://www.pubrecord.org, and the author of the National Bestseller, "News Junkie," a memoir. Visit www.newsjunkiebook.com for a preview. He is also a two-time (more...)
 

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Great update by Rob Kall on Friday, Feb 29, 2008 at 8:57:26 PM
Wanna bet? by Mr M on Friday, Feb 29, 2008 at 9:38:35 PM
Impeach by tjb on Saturday, Mar 1, 2008 at 5:10:31 AM
Feinstein & Schumer by Rae on Saturday, Mar 1, 2008 at 1:56:23 PM
How long though would this process take? by Brett Paatsch on Friday, Feb 29, 2008 at 9:49:14 PM
Lawsuit already prepared but by Jason Leopold on Saturday, Mar 1, 2008 at 8:03:48 AM
contempt for democracy by Joseph Danison on Friday, Feb 29, 2008 at 10:58:17 PM
Re: Mukasey Rebuffs Pelosi, Refuses to Prosecute Bush Aides by Munich on Friday, Feb 29, 2008 at 11:24:40 PM
defying logic by Houston Radical on Saturday, Mar 1, 2008 at 12:44:24 AM
Chalk Up Another One For Harry Reid by Ed Encho on Saturday, Mar 1, 2008 at 7:47:49 AM
Mukasey Rebuffs Pelosi by Peter Wedlund on Saturday, Mar 1, 2008 at 8:08:30 AM
Are you surprised? by b2008 on Saturday, Mar 1, 2008 at 8:35:49 AM
The more you give the more they take by ardee D. on Saturday, Mar 1, 2008 at 9:43:16 AM
DEMOCRACY THIEVES... by Professor Fandel on Saturday, Mar 1, 2008 at 10:19:52 AM
Parties are the Problem by Techknowledgie on Saturday, Mar 1, 2008 at 12:16:32 PM
Rather than commit murder by ardee D. on Saturday, Mar 1, 2008 at 12:35:43 PM
Parties are the problem by Peter Wedlund on Saturday, Mar 1, 2008 at 2:26:12 PM
Bottoms up by ardee D. on Saturday, Mar 1, 2008 at 5:35:52 PM
They all belong in jail by SpiritBlooms on Saturday, Mar 1, 2008 at 12:52:24 PM
It is time by ibrahim turner on Saturday, Mar 1, 2008 at 2:39:17 PM
In my opinion by ardee D. on Tuesday, Mar 4, 2008 at 7:47:09 AM
Bush will continue his lawlessness by Susan Nelsen on Saturday, Mar 1, 2008 at 5:16:12 PM
It's time for Congress to grow a spine!!!! by Caronome on Sunday, Mar 2, 2008 at 8:16:12 AM

 
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