Sent to The BRAD BLOG by the House Judiciary Democrats concerning this morning's oversight hearings on the U.S. Attorney firings (full statement posted at end of this article):
...
"Today's testimony signals that it is time to rein in this President and his Administration before they do any further damage to our democracy," said Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers. "Today, we received strong evidence that the firing of these U.S. Attorneys was politically motivated, and we clearly need to follow up on these developments with further investigations."
...
David Iglesias, former U.S. Attorney from New Mexico, testified that U.S. Senator Pete Domenici and U.S. Representative Heather Wilson called him in the days before the close 2006 elections to discuss issuing an indictment against a local Democratic official. Mr. Iglesias said that after Senator Domenici abruptly hung up the phone, "I had a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. Six weeks later I got the call that I had to move on."
H.E. "Bud" Cummins III, a former U.S. Attorney from Arkansas, testified that Michael Elston, Chief of Staff to Deputy U.S. Attorney General Paul McNulty, called him with a warning that any of the fired prosecutors who publicly discussed their cases would be targeted by negative information campaigns.
...
"The Department of Justice, which had no effective oversight during the previous majority, has been acting behind closed doors to empower political cronies and intimidate its own appointees," said Chairwoman Sánchez. "This thuggish behavior is beneath our democracy and underscores the importance of Congressional oversight, a function that Chairman Conyers and I are committed to continue."
In regard to the alleged threats of retaliation against the attorneys for speaking out on this, an email from Cummins, published by Sacramento Bee, gives contemporaneous specifics. According to SacBee...
Of course, Gonzales today said none of it ever happened, these aren't the droids you're looking for.
The complete statement issued by the Judiciary Committee Democrats follows below...
Fired prosecutors dispute administration, tell of government attempts to intimidate them.
Washington - In testimony before the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law (CAL), six former United States Attorneys contradicted Bush Administration explanations for their terminations. Several testified about the partisan political pressures placed on them before their firings and stated that they were terminated to make way for Bush political loyalists.
CAL Chairwoman Linda Sánchez subpoenaed the former federal prosecutors, most of whom had led investigations into cases of political corruption. The prosecutors cited positive job reviews and internal communications to dispel the Bush Administration's stated reasons for the terminations, and testified about an attempt by the Department of Justice to prevent them from publicly discussing their cases.
"Our country decided after the Watergate scandal that ideological partisanship has no place in our system of justice," said Chairwoman Sánchez. "Unfortunately, the firings of these attorneys indicate that the Bush Administration has once again acted in the interest of its political party instead of the good of the nation."
Former U.S. Attorneys David Bogden from Nevada and Paul Charlton from Arizona testified that Acting Associate Attorney General William Mercer told them that the prosecutors were not fired for job performance issues, as Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty had told the U.S. Senate in an earlier hearing.
"Today's testimony signals that it is time to rein in this President and his Administration before they do any further damage to our democracy," said Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers. "Today, we received strong evidence that the firing of these U.S. Attorneys was politically motivated, and we clearly need to follow up on these developments with further investigations."
David Iglesias, former U.S. Attorney from New Mexico, testified that U.S. Senator Pete Domenici and U.S. Representative Heather Wilson called him in the days before the close 2006 elections to discuss issuing an indictment against a local Democratic official. Mr. Iglesias said that after Senator Domenici abruptly hung up the phone, "I had a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. Six weeks later I got the call that I had to move on."
H.E. "Bud" Cummins III, a former U.S. Attorney from Arkansas, testified that Michael Elston, Chief of Staff to Deputy U.S. Attorney General Paul McNulty, called him with a warning that any of the fired prosecutors who publicly discussed their cases would be targeted by negative information campaigns. Mr. Cummins warned his colleagues that the Department of Justice would view their testimony as a "major escalation of the controversy," and that the fired prosecutors "might suffer some embarrassment from the disclosure of additional information" by the administration.
"The Department of Justice, which had no effective oversight during the previous majority, has been acting behind closed doors to empower political cronies and intimidate its own appointees," said Chairwoman Sánchez. "This thuggish behavior is beneath our democracy and underscores the importance of Congressional oversight, a function that Chairman Conyers and I are committed to continue."
"The testimony we heard today made a convincing case for passage of H.R. 580 to restore checks and balances in the appointment of U.S. attorneys," said Chairwoman Sánchez.

Fox 'News' and Repubs Were FOR Prosecuting Journalists Before They Were Against It
Video Trailer of Film Koch Brothers & PBS Tried to Keep You From Seeing
'Green News Report' 5/16/13
Climate Scientist on Climate Change Effect on Tornadoes
Bad News at ABC, NBC, CBS
Terminator: Schwarzenegger's Deadly Workers' Comp 'Reform'
IRS 'Scandal' Almost as Phony as Sherrod, ACORN 'Scandals'
WHAT IRS 'MISCONDUCT'?
Deficit Shrinks by Half Under Obama
'Green News Report' 5/16/13
Holder: 'Banks Are NOT too Big To Jail'
Repubs Suddenly Care About Big Government Overreach?!
KPFK 'BradCast': CO2 Madness, Obama Scandalpalooza
More Vote-by-Mail Fail, This Time in L.A.
INTERNET VOTING 'HACKED' ON 'THE VOICE'
'Weapons-Grade Climate Denial' from WSJ
Jon Stewart Explains the GOP Benghazi 'Scandal' For You
'White Boys' Bring Election Woes to Riverbank, CA
Dancing Everywhere on Earth
Singing Bowie in Outer Space
KPFK 'BradCast': SC's Unverifiable Election, Syria's Unverified WMD
Unverifiable Sanford 'LANDSLIDE' in South Carolina!
Report: Syrian Rebels, Not Regime, Used Sarin Nerve Gas
Wrong and Wronger on CO Election Bill
VA GOP VOTER REG FRAUDSTER OFF HOOK
Criminal GOP Voter Registration Fraud Probe Expanding in VA
DOJ PROBE SOUGHT AFTER VA ARREST
Arrest in VA: GOP Voter Reg Scandal Widens
ALL TOGETHER: ROVE, SPROUL, KOCHS, RNC
LATimes: RNC's 'Fired' Sproul Working for Repubs in 'as Many as 30 States'
'Fired' Sproul Group 'Cloned', Still Working for Republicans in At Least 10 States
FINALLY: FOX ON GOP REG FRAUD SCANDAL
COLORADO FOLLOWS FLORIDA WITH GOP CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION
CRIMINAL PROBE LAUNCHED INTO GOP VOTER REGISTRATION FRAUD SCANDAL IN FL
Brad Breaks PA Photo ID & GOP Registration Fraud Scandal News on Hartmann TV
CAUGHT ON TAPE: COORDINATED NATIONWIDE GOP VOTER REG SCAM
CRIMINAL ELECTION FRAUD COMPLAINT FILED AGAINST GOP 'FRAUD' FIRM
RICK SCOTT GETS ROLLED IN GOP REGISTRATION FRAUD SCANDAL
VIDEO: Brad Breaks GOP Reg Fraud Scandal on Hartmann TV
RNC FIRES NATIONAL VOTER REGISTRATION FIRM FOR FRAUD
EXCLUSIVE: Intvw w/ FL Official Who First Discovered GOP Reg Fraud
GOP REGISTRATION FRAUD FOUND IN FL
It Isn't Journalism: Woeful MSM Coverage of Wisconsin's Supreme Court Election 'Recount'





















































