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New York (AP) -- No criminal prosecutions are planned for former Justice Department officials accused of allowing politics to influence the hiring of prosecutors, immigration judges and other career government lawyers, Attorney General Michael Mukasey said Tuesday. Mukasey used his sharpest words yet to criticize the senior leaders who took part in or failed to stop illegal hiring practices during the tenure of his predecessor, Alberto Gonzales. But, he told delegates to the American Bar Association annual meeting, "Not every wrong, or even every violation of the law, is a crime. In this instance, the two joint reports found only...

Excerpt - In March 2007 the U.S. government charged Axion Corp., a small business in Huntsville, Ala., with illegally giving technical drawings for a Blackhawk helicopter part to manufacturers in China. The prosecutors seized Axion's assets and took away its government contract business. The company won an acquittal at trial a year later, but by that time, it was out of business. Axion is the latest in a string of aggressive prosecutions brought by Birmingham U.S. Attorney Alice Martin. Those prosecutions are marked by convictions overturned and innocent men wronged. Two judges have openly questioned whether she knowingly prosecuted innocent...

Have any of you seen Karl Rove, former Deputy Chief of Staff to President Bush, on FOX news lately? He is a clever guy, isn't he? Indeed, quite brilliant in my eyes which makes me wonder why his name has such negative connotations, especially in the more liberal newspapers like the NY or LA Times. It seems the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee is trying to obtain information from Mr. Rove concerning the firing of several U.S. Attorneys by the President. Now, the way I understand it, the President has the right to fire any U.S. attorney. (This isn't the...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Karl Rove, who had been one of President George W. Bush's top aides, was subpoenaed on Thursday to testify before a congressional panel investigating the administration's firing of nine federal prosecutors. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee chairman John Conyers issued the subpoena after months of failed efforts to get Rove to voluntarily testify under oath. The Judiciary Committee, like its Senate counterpart, has been investigating for more than a year the administration's dismissal of nine of the nation's 93 U.S. attorneys in 2006. Despite White House claims to the contrary, critics charge the firings were politically motivated,...

Asked about the recent dismantling of a high-profile unit in the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles that specialized in public corruption cases, an office spokesman provided what some saw as a curious justification: Eliminating the public integrity and environmental crimes section, spokesman Thom Mrozek said, would actually enhance the effort to prosecute such cases. He explained that the unit's 17 lawyers would be farmed out to other sections in the office and that those types of cases would now be handled by a larger pool of attorneys, instead of by a select few. But in interviews with The Times,...

The Senate Ethics Committee says he should never have picked up the phone, but that it found no substantial evidence Sen. Pete Domenici tried to improperly influence an ongoing investigation when he called then-U.S. Attorney David Iglesias in October 2006. The committee made its finding in what it called a "Public Letter of Qualified Admonition" issed to the longtime Republican senator on Thursday. The ethics committee said Domenici should have known that his call "created an appearance of impropriety that reflected unfavorably on the Senate." Domenici, who plans to retire from the Senate after 36 years early next year, called...

US Attorney Joseph Russoniello Petitioned: Prosecute Civil Rights Violators Written by Melanie Morgan    Monday, 31 March 2008 Breezy winds chilled the tempertures today as eight super-heated pro-troop supporters from around the Bay Area gathered in front of the United States Federal Building in San Francisco. Jim Minder, Sherry Perussina, Bryan Weldon, Kevin Graves, Catherine Moy, myself, Ryan Gill, Danny Gonzalez, Eamon and Elizabeth Kelly (and Buddy, the dog) stood in front of a podium at the fortified entrance to the US Attorney's office. (photo of Kevin Graves, Gold Star Father)Three television cameras, including Fox News Network, were on-hand to record our demand...

BREAKING NEWS! Written by Melanie Morgan    Thursday, 27 March 2008 Move America Forward, the largest pro-troop grassroots organization in the country, is going on ‘offense’ in the situation involving our Military Recruiters in Berkeley, Ca. and across the United States.  It is long past time for the US government to involve itself in finding, arresting, and prosecuting those people responsible for attacking our service men and women involved in recruiting efforts to protect our country.   This Monday, we are going to the office of US Attorney Joseph Russoniello (First District of Northern California) to demand immediate action. It...

Earlier this evening, Puerto Rico Governor Aníbal Acevedo Vilá addressed the island on today's 19 indictments against him from the local U.S. Attorney's office. Acevedo is charged with several crimes, among these violation of federal campaign-financing laws, tax evasion, and filing false tax returns. The translated text of the Governor's speech follows: "These are hard and difficult times for the people of Puerto Rico. Our economy needs attention. I know your daily struggle with the increase in the cost of living and a slow economy that is affected by the increase in the price of oil and the recession in...

US to Drop Charge Against Ex-Prosecutor By COREY WILLIAMS December 9, 2007 DETROIT (AP) — The Justice Department has asked a federal judge to drop the final charge against a former federal prosecutor acquitted of holding evidence from the defense in a major terrorism trial. In documents filed Friday in U.S. District Court in Detroit, the government asked that an obstruction of justice charge from a 2003 drug case be dismissed. Former Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard Convertino had been accused of lying to a federal judge in that case. It is the last of four federal charges against Convertino, who...

US: Ex-Prosecutor Should Be Convicted By DAVID RUNK DETROIT (AP) — A former federal prosecutor and an ex-State Department investigator wanted so badly to win convictions in the nation's first major terrorism trial after the Sept. 11 attacks that they broke the law themselves, a government attorney said Tuesday. "They crossed over the line from upholding the law to violating it," Eileen Gleason told jurors in closing arguments in the case against Richard Convertino and Harry Smith III. The two have pleaded not guilty to charges of obstruction of justice, making false declarations before a court and conspiracy. The defense...

The U.S. Inspector General may recommend criminal prosecution of departed Attorney General Alberto Gonzales at the conclusion of an investigation, possibly as early as next month, the fired former U.S. attorney for Western Washington told a Spokane audience Friday.... McKay said he was summoned to Washington, D.C., in June and questioned for eight hours about possible reasons for his firing by investigators with the Office of Inspector General, who will forward their final report to Congress. “My best guess is it will be released sometime next month,’’ and likely will include recommendations for criminal prosecutions of Gonzales and maybe others,...

AN assistant US attorney from Florida has been arrested for allegedly flying to Michigan to have sex with a five-year-old girl. John D.R. Atchison, 53, was arrested after he participated in internet conversatons with a detective posing as a mother who was interested in letting men have sex with her young daughter, Associated Press reported. According to court documents, Atchison initiated the online chat on August 29. His correspondence with the detective lasted several weeks. At one point, Atchison allegedly said: "I'm always gentle and loving; not to worry; no damage ever; no rough stuff ever ever". He has been...

Open letter to Sen. Patrick Leahy By Carlos Romero Barceló Dear Sen. Leahy: Ever since your first two years as senator and my last two years as mayor of San Juan (1975 & 1976), you have been one of the most supportive senators and best friends the city of San Juan and all of Puerto Rico have had in the U.S. Senate for the past 32-and-a-half years. I cannot recall a single instance when, as mayor of San Juan, or as governor of Puerto Rico—from January 1977 until January 1985—I called upon you for support on some issue important to...

WASHINGTON: On the night of March 10, 2004, a high-ranking Justice Department official rushed to a Washington hospital to prevent two White House aides from taking advantage of the critically ill Attorney General, John Ashcroft, the official testified on Tuesday. One of those aides was Alberto Gonzales, who was then White House counsel and eventually succeeded Ashcroft as Attorney General. "I was very upset," said James Comey, who was deputy Attorney General at the time, in his testimony Tuesday before the Senate Judiciary Committee. "I was angry. I thought I had just witnessed an effort to take advantage of a...

Rove Saw Coaching of Prosecutor Witness WASHINGTON (AP) -- A senior Justice Department official who testified about performance shortcomings of several fired U.S. attorneys has told congressional investigators he was coached the day before at a White House meeting attended by political adviser Karl Rove. The witness, Associate Deputy Attorney General William Moschella, said he was urged during the dinner hour meeting on March 5 to publicly specify reasons for the dismissals, according to a transcript of the investigators' April 24 interview with him. Until the March 6 hearing before a House Judiciary subcommittee, Justice Department officials had said publicly...

Excerpt - A deputy prosecutor in the U.S. attorney’s office in Little Rock has fantasies about owning this newspaper. Robert Govar of Lonoke — formerly chief of the criminal division in the U.S. attorney’s office in Little Rock who’s now been demoted — threatened to sue me last week over a column I wrote about him and his buddy Jay Campbell, the crooked cop who was sentenced to 40 years in prison, along with his wife Kelly, who received a 20-year sentence. The deputy prosecutor fired off an hysterical e-mail from his office, predicting he would win a $50 million...

Dismissed U.S. attorney began Renzi probe FLAGSTAFF, Ariz., April 21 (UPI) -- A federal investigation into an Arizona congressman could put more pressure on the Bush administration in the flap over dismissed U.S. attorneys. Paul Charlton, who began the investigation into Republican Rep. Rick Renzi, was one of the eight federal prosecutors fired, The Wall Street Journal reported.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Desperate for support among fellow Republicans, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales faced grim prospects Friday after a bruising Senate hearing that produced one outright call for resignation and a fistful of invitations and hints to quit. One GOP member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, John Cornyn of Texas, predicted Gonzales would weather the furor and said he should. "Frankly, I don't think the Democrats are going to be satisfied with the resignation by Al Gonzales," he said. Gonzales gave no indication Friday that he was leaving. "Please know that as you continue your work, I am by your...

...Gonzales had gone to Capitol Hill Thursday with just one mission: to placate Republican and Democratic senators dissatisfied with his account of how eight federal prosecutors were fired. Apparently, he failed. For the first time, Republicans on the Judiciary Committee broke ranks and said it might be best if Gonzales stepped down. "It is generous to say the attorney general's communications about this matter have been inconsistent," Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., told Gonzales in a packed hearing room Thursday. "The consequence should be the resignation of the attorney general." Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., said in an interview after the hearing,...

Judging by his testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee Thursday, there are three questions about the U.S. attorneys mess that Attorney General Alberto Gonzales wants answered: What did I know? When did I know it? And why did I fire those U.S. attorneys? As the day dragged on, it became clear — painfully clear to anyone who supports Gonzales — that the attorney general didn’t know the answers. Much of the time, he explained, he didn’t really know much at all — he was just doing what his senior staff recommended he do. Gonzales began the day with an apology....

WASHINGTON - Attorney General Alberto Gonzales confronted a fresh call for his resignation from a fellow Republican Thursday as he struggled to survive a bipartisan Senate challenge to his credibility in the case of eight fired prosecutors. Gonzales told the Oklahoma Republican he disagreed, and said he didn‘t think resigning would put the controversy to rest. Gonzales sat alone at the witness table in a crowded hearing room for the widely anticipated hearing. There was no doubt about the stakes involved for a member of President Bush ‘s inner circle, under pressure to resign since the dismissals of the prosecutors....

Navarrette: Will Gonzales get a fair hearing? By Ruben Navarrette Jr. Special to CNN SAN DIEGO, California (CNN) -- Details, details. The critics of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales are absolutely sure of his guilt in the matter of the fired U.S. attorneys. They're just not sure what he's guilty of. Well, they had better figure it out fast. Gonzales testifies Thursday before the Senate Judiciary Committee. In an op-ed Sunday for The Washington Post, Gonzales admitted that he had "created confusion" with recent statements about the firings but insisted, "nothing improper occurred." He wrote that he directed his former deputy...

FROM THE SENATEDismissal of U.S. Attorneys Atty. Gen. Alberto Gonzales testifies before a Judiciary Cmte. hearing on the recent firing of eight U.S. Attorneys. Critics have questioned the motivation for the firing and the Atty. Gen.'s role in the process. The original hearing, scheduled for Tuesday, was post-poned because of the Virginia Tech University shootings. Thursday, 9:30 a.m. ET. CSPAN 3

Bush lawyers want to review messages on firings before Congress gets them. WASHINGTON -- President Bush's lawyers told the Republican National Committee on Tuesday not to turn over to Congress any e-mails related to the firings last year of eight U.S. attorneys before showing them to the White House.Democrats and Republican critics of the administration said the move suggests the White House is seeking to develop a strategy to block the release of the nongovernmental e-mails to congressional investigators by arguing that they're covered by executive privilege and not subject to review.Scott Stanzel, deputy White House press secretary, said the...

Immunity Considered for Ex-Gonzales Aide Laurie Kellman April 17, 2007 WASHINGTON (AP) - 0415dv-fired-prosecutors The House Judiciary Committee is set to vote on whether to grant Attorney General Alberto Gonzales' former counsel immunity from prosecution and force her to testify about the firings of eight federal prosecutors. "I am hopeful we can approve immunity so that we can schedule her to testify as soon as possible and begin to clear up the many inconsistencies and gaps surrounding this matter," Chairman John Conyers, D-Mich., said in a statement Tuesday. A two-thirds vote of the panel is required to approve the resolution,...

Former U.S. Attorney David Iglesias was fired after Sen. Pete Domenici, who had been unhappy with Iglesias for some time, made a personal appeal to the White House, the Journal has learned. Domenici had complained about Iglesias before, at one point going to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales before taking his request to the president as a last resort. The senior senator from New Mexico had listened to criticism of Iglesias going back to 2003 from sources ranging from law enforcement officials to Republican Party activists. Domenici, who submitted Iglesias' name for the job and guided him through the confirmation process...

In 2005, Doña Ana County District Attorney Susana Martinez had a nearly beheaded teenage corpse on a ditch bank. In 2006, Bernalillo County Sheriff Darren White had a deputy dead in the East Mountains. Federal law enforcement agencies led by the FBI were there to help. But Martinez and White said they had to kick and scream to get the attention of the U.S. Attorney's Office, run by fellow Republican David Iglesias. Martinez threatened to go to the president of the United States to get help in her case. It worked, and federal prosecutors took over the drug-related kidnapping and...

The firing of eight U.S. attorneys could have been handled better, but the prosecutors were not dismissed for any "improper reason," Attorney General Alberto Gonzales will say Tuesday. According to remarks prepared for delivery to the Senate Judiciary Committee, one of several congressional panels probing last December's dismissals, Gonzales insists that he has "nothing to hide" from investigators. "I have taken ... important steps to provide information for two critical reasons: (1) I have nothing to hide, and (2) I am committed to assuring the Congress and the American public that nothing improper occurred here," he said in the remarks...

U.S. Attorney Johnny Sutton, a longtime ally of President Bush, is being targeted by lawmakers and others across the country because of his successful prosecution of three U.S. Border Patrol agents and a deputy sheriff on charges of violating the civil rights of illegal aliens. One congressman accused Mr. Sutton of being "on the wrong side of the border war"; another called the prosecutions "the worst betrayal of American defenders I have ever seen"; one said the cases were a "grotesque misdirection of our judicial system"; and another introduced a bill, now co-sponsored by 90 House members, calling for congressional...

Sources tell TIME that discussions are under way on "Capitol Hill about whether to offer just such a deal to the key former aide to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. The discussions — still largely informal — follow Goodling's assertion of her Fifth Amendment privilege to refuse to testify about her role in the controversial firings. Were Goodling to receive some form of immunity, she could be legally compelled to testify or risk facing charges of contempt of Congress."

Bush aides' use of GOP e-mail probed By JENNIFER LOVEN, Associated Press Writer 17 minutes ago Congressional investigators are probing why aides to President Bush used Republican Party-sponsored e-mail accounts to help plan the administration's ouster of eight federal prosecutors. They are questioning whether the use of nongovernmental e-mail accounts was proof that the firings were political. They also want to know if White House officials are purposely conducting sensitive official presidential business via nongovernmental accounts to get around a law requiring preservation — and eventual disclosure — of presidential records. The investigators are seeking copies of any e-mails sent...

Republican staff in both the House and the Senate are stunned by the lack of push back from GOP members against House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Henry A. Waxman (D-Calif.), who last week launched an unprecedented fishing expedition to get at the files of an opposition party. Waxman sent a letter to the Republican National Committee demanding copies of all the e-mails sent by Bush Administration officials "for partisan political purposes." "On a limited basis, we [the GOP] have tried to get Democrat emails, and stuff from the DNC, we were doing it during some of the Clinton scandal...

One of the most ridiculous charges being leveled in the often-hyperbolic reporting about the Bush administration’s decision to replace eight U.S. attorneys (out of 93) is the idea that the firings were — brace yourself — politically motivated. These hyperactive news stories breathlessly report that the decision was hatched in, of all places, the White House, and that — perish the thought — the order was sent down to the Justice Department and was carried out — believe it or not — in broad daylight with the approval of U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and his subordinates (who are, after...

The House Judiciary Committee has served a subpoena to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales seeking documents related to the firings of U.S. attorneys.

THE DISPUTE between Democratic lawmakers and the Bush administration over access to documents and interviews with officials about the firing of eight U.S. attorneys seems to be escalating, not resolving. That's unfortunate, because it's become clear that the administration must make more information available than has been forthcoming. Perhaps the clearest case for that -- and the most troubling evidence of improper political motivations -- involves New Mexico prosecutor David C. Iglesias. -SNIP- Was voter fraud the real reason for his dismissal, or his alleged absenteeism because of military service? Or was it because he failed to produce in time...

Joining a growing list of Republicans, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said Sunday that Attorney General Alberto Gonzales should consider resigning. Gingrich noted that a president has every right to fire U.S. attorneys for any reason. Therefore, he said, all Gonzales had to do was say that Bush wanted new people. Instead, Gingrich said, the attorney general made a series of misstatements from which he was forced later to backtrack. "This is the most mishandled, artificial, self-created mess that I can remember in the years I've been active in public life," Gingrich said. "The buck has to stop somewhere, and...

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has virtually wiped his public schedule clean to bone up for his long-awaited April 17 testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee—a session widely seen as a crucial test as to whether he will survive the U.S. attorney mess. But even his own closest advisers are nervous about whether he is up to the task. At a recent "prep" for a prospective Sunday talk-show interview, Gonzales's performance was so poor that top aides scrapped any live appearances. During the March 23 session in the A.G.'s conference room, Gonzales was grilled by a team of top aides and...

Who tells the boss whom he can hire and fire? Other employees? Is it that way it is where you work? Maybe, if you're a member of Congress, or are part of a staff that answers to one of them. See, it's an accepted principle in the rarified air of American politics that if you want to maximize your political power, you stack the bureaucracies with your own people, just as fast and deep as you can. Before Franklin D. Roosevelt infamously sought to stack the Supreme Court — which he failed at, praise be to the almighty — this...

Per FR policy, hosted.ap.org is link only. STORY

Gonzales aide who asserted Fifth resigns By LARA JAKES JORDAN, Associated Press Writer 9 minutes ago WASHINGTON - The top aide to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales abruptly quit on Friday, almost two weeks after telling Congress she would not testify about her role in the firings of federal prosecutors. ADVERTISEMENT "I am hereby submitting my resignation to the office of attorney general," Monica M. Goodling said in a three-sentence letter. There was no immediate reason given, but her refusal to face Congress had intensified a controversy that threatens Gonzales' job. Asserting her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, Goodling had rejected...

WASHINGTON - The amounts of money involved seem small, almost trivial. Some of the East St. Louis, Ill., residents were paid only $5 or $10 for their vote. But handing out this old-fashioned walking-around cash still earned Sandra Stith a fine and a year's probation in a federal case wrapped up in 2006. According to Justice Department documents, Ms. Stith admitted that she had used money received from the St. Clair County Democratic Committee to influence votes for president and various Illinois races in the general election of Nov. 2, 2004. As this case shows, voter fraud still exists. Strictly...

WASHINGTON - Senate Democrats postponed on Thursday Attorney General Alberto Gonzales' first chance to testify in his own defense over the firings of eight federal prosecutors. The decision to shelve next week's Senate Appropriations hearing frustrated the White House, which wants Gonzales to quickly give lawmakers his side of the story amid calls for his resignation. But Sen. Barbara Mikulski (news, bio, voting record), D-Md, said the political firestorm should be resolved before Gonzales talks about the Justice Department's spending plan for next year. "It would be very difficult in this environment to give the department's budget request the attention...

House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Henry A. Waxman (D-Calif.) has asked the Republican National Committee to provide his committee with copies of all the e-mails sent by administration officials “for partisan political purposes.� Waxman, who is traveling in the Middle East this week with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), sent a letter to RNC Chairman Mike Duncan on Wednesday requesting his political committee to provide the government reform panel with e-mails that are still stored on RNC servers. The government reform chairman is following up on revelations that surfaced during a hearing last week that White House political aide...

Kyle Sampson, chief of staff to Atty. Gen. Al Gonzales, wrote an urgent note to White House Counsel Bill Kelly on May 11, 2006, warning that it was time to find potential replacements for U.S. Attorney Carol Lam. In the note, Sampson referred to “[t]he real problem we have right now with Carol Lam that leads me to conclude that we should have someone ready to be nominated 11/18, the day her 4-year term expires,” wrote Sampson, whose recent resignation and testimony have fueled the controversy that may cause Gonzales’ downfall.

Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) last week ignored a plea from the Bush administration by demanding that Kyle Sampson name other U.S. attorneys the Justice Department had been planning to fire. Schumer’s query to the former chief of staff to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales at last Thursday’s Judiciary Committee hearing is notable because he made it in highly public fashion after the Justice Department already gave him access to the answer. Schumer wants to know the names of U.S. attorneys the Justice Department had originally planned to terminate along with David Iglesias, Carol Lam, and six other attorneys. Democrats have alleged...

If the latest Democratic subpoenas threatened in the White House firing of eight U.S. attorneys sounds like a fishing expedition in search of wrongdoing, that's because it is.     It isn't clear whether anything in this story is illegal or unethical. But ever since the firings were first reported, amidst complaints by the dismissed U.S. attorneys that they were sacked for political reasons, the tone and tenor of the investigation and the ongoing hearings seems to have concluded something criminal happened here.     That remains to be seen, but so far no one has proven that replacing a few attorneys (most of...

(AP) WASHINGTON -- A Republican congressman on Saturday urged Attorney General Alberto Gonzales to resign, citing what he said were Gonzales' contradictory statements about his role in the firing of eight federal prosecutors. "I trusted him before, but I can't now," said five-term Rep. Lee Terry (news, bio, voting record), whose district includes metropolitan Omaha. Gonzales' credibility took a blow this past week during testimony by his former chief of staff, Kyle Sampson, before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Sampson, who resigned March 12, said the attorney general was regularly briefed about plans to fire the prosecutors and was involved with...

The White House made a point yesterday of reasserting support for Gonzales in an effort to quash suspicions that President Bush was preparing to push out his longtime friend. White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said Bush has "100 percent confidence" in Gonzales Full article here =============================================================== Wag the Gonzo Mahdi punk al-Sadr high-tailed it to Iran; 700 "fighters" from his mighty Mahdi "army" landed mightily in the slammer; Iraqi forces are reporting for duty; killings in the capital have dropped by 80% since Bush's failed surge began; U.S. military deaths are down by 60%; stores are popping back up everywhere...

DiFi Busted on Carol Lam March 30, 2007   RUSH: Folks, you gotta hear this. I'm going to briefly touch here on the so-called scandal of the fired US attorneys. Dianne Feinstein making a huge stink about whether US attorney Carol Lam was fired mistakenly or unfairly because she's making a case here about how great Carol Lam was on immigration cases.  This is yesterday during the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing with the former chief of staff to Gonzales, Kyle Sampson. It's just a portion of what Di Fi said.   FEINSTEIN: An accumulation study done by USA Today places Carol Lam as one...