Posted by D. Cupples | Three witnesses testified yesterday at a joint hearing of the House Judiciary Committee on "Allegations of Selective
Prosecution: The Erosion of Public Confidence in Our Federal Justice System."
Richard Thornburgh, a Republican and former Attorney General under Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, thinks the Justice Department has prosecuted cases based on political agendas -- especially against his client Dr. Cyril Wecht,
a prominent Democrat who faced 84 federal felony counts based on things
like his having used an office fax machine to send his résumé. (See hearing video)
Another witness, communications professor Donald Shields, did a statistical analysis and found that in 820 Justice Department investigations of public officials, Democrats were investigated 5.6 times more often than
Republicans. (Hearing video)
G. Douglas Jones, attorney for former Alabama Governor Don Siegelman, said
that prosecutors seemed unsure of the case in
2004; after Washington officials stepped in, a
new case against Siegelman went forward. (See hearing video)
These witnesses' testimony isn't conclusive, but it does signify that Congress should keep investigating until it finds answers. Certain House Republicans think Congress should simply stop investigating....
Rep. Chris Cannon (R-UT) said roughly the same things he said months ago during hearings about Justice Department politicization: that the current hearings were 1) politically motivated, and 2) a waste of tax dollars. 'Nuff said: let's fold the tents, go home, and forget that some questions are still unanswered.
In a condescendingly prosecutorial tone, Rep. Ric Keller (R-FL) tried to discredit Thornburgh, using exaggeration and inaccurately repeating Thornburgh's statements. Thornburgh said something like: "You should be embarrassed for mis-citing the record." I suspect that Thornbugh was thinking something like: "Go back to the playground, you posturing pip squeak." It's just a guess.
Then there was Rep. J. Randy Forbes (R-VA). He went as far as saying that Dana Jill Simpson's testimony had been proven false and that she should be investigated. Simpson, a life-long Republican, testified under oath that she'd had a conference call on November 18, 2005 with current Alabama Governor Bob Riley and two advisers, during which Riley indicated that he'd talked to "Karl," who'd urged the Justice Department to prosecute former Alabama Democratic Governor Don Siegelman (see BN-Politics and Time Magazine). Is a perjury investigation in the cards for Riley and his advisers?
Rep. Artur Davis (D-Alabama) trotting out facts to refute Forbes. Davis pointed out that Gov. Riley and the two advisers had only yesterday sent affidavits to the Committee swearing that they had not talked on the phone with Jill Simpson on November 18, 2005. Davis then mentioned Simpson's phone records (and entered them into the Committee's records), which show an 11-minute call to Riley's office on November 18, 2005.
With my mind reading skills still on holiday, I don't know who's telling the truth. At this point, neither does the House Judiciary Committee -- which is precisely why it should keep investigating.
I don't get why those Republicans are so against the investigation. None of them is personally implicated in the Justice Department politicization scandal. They didn't even confirm Alberto Gonzales' nomination as Attorney General. And yet, they seem driven to robotically defend the Justice Department.
Related BN-Politics' Posts:
* Justice Department: Weapon Against Political Enemies?
* Overview: Fired U.S. Attorney Scandal
* Politics Played Part in Pentagon Prosecutions (like Justice
Dept.)?
* U.S. Attorney General Resigns
* Gonzales: It's not Just a Perjury Investigation Anymore
* How Just is our Justice Department? Ask Former USA Paul Charlton
* U.S. Attorney Scandal Update
* Fired U.S. Attorney McKay Speaks Out
* Schlozman Alters his Testimony
* Schlozman Doesn't Recall Much, Apparently Violated Dept. Policy
* Another U.S. Attorney Targeted for Political Reasons?
* Goodling Admits Administration "Caged" Votes in 2004
* This Administration's Monica: Loyal to a Fault?
* Ex-U.S. Attorney Thinks Justice Department in Cover-up Mode
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