http://judiciary.house.gov/...
Ms. Goodling: In every case I tried to act in good faith and for the purpose of ensuring that the department was staffed by well-qualified individuals who were supportive of the Attorney General’s views, priorities, and goals. Nevertheless, I do acknowledge that I may have gone too far in asking political questions of applicants for career positions, and I may have taken inappropriate political considerations into account on some occasions. I regret those mistakes.
Rep. Bobby Scott’s followup questions about Goodling’s political litmus test for hiring of non-political Department positions in which she admits she stepped over the line.
http://judiciary.house.gov/...
Mr. Scott: In your testimony, you indicated that you have "may have taken inappropriate political considerations into account on some occasions." Do you believe that those political considerations were not just inappropriate, but in fact illegal?
Ms. Goodling: That’s not a conclusion for me to make. I know I was acting ...
Mr. Scott: Do you believe that were legal or illegal for you to take those political considerations in mind? Not whether they were legal or illegal, what do you believe? Do you believe that they were illegal?
Ms. Goodling: I don’t believe I intended to commit a crime.
Mr. Scott: Did you break the law? Is it against the law to take those political considerations into account? You have civil service laws, you have obstruction of justice, any laws that you could have broken by taking political consideration into account, "on some occasions."
Ms. Goodling: The best that I can say is that I took political considerations into account on some occasions.
Mr. Scott: Was that legal?
Ms. Goodling: Sir, I’m not able to answer that question. I know I crossed the line.
Mr. Scott: What line? Legal?
Ms. Goodling: I crossed the line of the civil service rules.
Mr. Scott: Rules? Laws? You crossed the law on civil service laws. You crossed the line on civil service laws. Is that right?
Ms. Goodling: I believe I crossed the law-"lines. But I didn’t mean to.
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