Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington - Alberto Gonzales

From those who know the new special prosecutor: "Alberto Gonzalez is in trouble."

crew — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 09:03:49 -0500

Yesterday, Attorney General Michael Mukasey named Nora Dannehy as the special prosecutor, in the investigation of the firings of the U.S. Attorneys. Ms. Dannehy is well-known in Connecticut. She help convict the Governor. The Hartford Courant provided some background:

Dannehy, a career prosecutor known for winning convictions against Gov. John G. Rowland and state Treasurer Paul Silvester, was named by Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey to investigate "unanswered" questions about the Bush administration's dismissal of the U.S. attorneys, which was widely assailed as being politically motivated.

Dannehy's appointment followed the release Monday of a report on an 18-month-long, internal Justice Department investigation that concluded top department officials "abdicated their responsibility" by failing to supervise subordinates who carried out the nine dismissals. What's more, the inquiry found "significant evidence" that partisan political factors played a role in some of the dismissals.

The report, by the Justice Department offices of Inspector General and Professional Responsibility, said that former U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales "bears primary responsibility" for what amounted to a series of botched removals. But it said that gaps remain in the investigation because of the refusal by key witnesses — among them former White House officials Karl Rove and Harriet Miers and U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M. — to submit to interviews.

The authors of the report recommended that Mukasey name a special counsel to "ultimately determine whether the evidence demonstrates that any criminal offense was committed with regard to the removal of any U.S. Attorney, or with regard to the testimony of any witness related to the U.S. Attorney removals."

"Alberto Gonzalez is in trouble," said Connecticut defense attorney Hugh Keefe, who traded blows with Dannehy while representing Rowland co-chief of staff Peter N. Ellef Sr. in the corruption prosecution that led to the imprisonment of both Ellef and Rowland.

"She is analytical and she is thorough, and if she suspects wrongdoing she will not let it go."

18 months after CREW calls for special prosecutor to investigate firings of U.S. Attorneys, AG appoints one

crew — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 12:35:19 -0500

Too little, too late sums up CREW's reaction to the appointment of a special prosecutor to finally investigate the firings of U.S. Attorneys. We first made that call on March 13, 2007. It took a new Attorney General and a long overdue report, compiled without subpoena authority, to get there.

Here's our statement from Melanie Sloan:

Six more months have been wasted in getting to the truth behind the firings of the U.S. Attorneys. It should come as no surprise to anyone that the Inspector General and the Office of Professional Responsibility were not able to come to any firm conclusions given their lack of subpoena authority. After the top law enforcement officials in the nation lied with apparent impunity during congressional hearings, how could anyone reasonably expect that these officials would see the light, speak freely, and tell the truth now? CREW first called for the appointment of a special prosecutor to investigate the firings back in March of 2007; it is gratifying to see that 18 months later, the Justice Department finally has recognized the matter merits criminal investigation. Why the delay? The only feasible explanation: to ensure the Bush administration is long over before anyone could ever be held responsible for one of the most shameful episodes in the administration’s history.

Report from DOJ: "politics illegally influenced the hiring of career prosecutors and immigration judges"

crew — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 09:11:40 -0500

Newly released report finds illegalities in Department of Justice hiring practices. We'll have more as it develops:

A new Justice Department report concludes that politics illegally influenced the hiring of career prosecutors and immigration judges, and largely lays the blame on top aides to former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.

Monday's report singles out the department's former White House liaison, Monica Goodling, for violating federal law and Justice Department policy by discriminating against job applicants who weren't Republican or conservative loyalists.

The 140-page report does not indicate whether Goodling or former Gonzales chief of staff Kyle Sampson could face any charges. None of those involved in the discriminatory hiring still work at Justice, meaning they will avoid any department penalties.

However, Justice investigators said that Goodling, at least, may lose her license to practice law as a result of the findings.

Gonzales was largely unaware of the hiring decisions by two of his most trusted aides. The report said his aides' decisions weeded out Democrats and that Goodling also rejected at least one lesbian job applicant.

Legal Defense Fund raising money for former Attorney General Gonzales

crew — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 11:04:54 -0600

In late August, when Alberto Gonzales announced his resignation as Attorney General, CREW's Melanie Sloan stated very clearly our view that the on-going investigations of Gonzales should not end:

His resignation should not, however, end congressional and Department of Justice investigations into misconduct by the Attorney General and his former top aides. Questions of whether Justice Department officials lied to Congress, conducted criminal inquiries to further political ends, illegally fired U.S. Attorneys and made hiring decisions based on political affiliation still merit investigation regardless of Mr. Gonzales’ resignation.

Based on a report in today's Washington Post, it appears Gonzales is girding himself financially for continued investigations and possible criminal charges:

Supporters of former attorney general Alberto R. Gonzales have created a trust fund to help pay for his legal expenses, which are mounting in the face of an ongoing Justice Department investigation into whether Gonzales committed perjury or improperly tampered with a congressional witness.

The establishment of a legal defense fund for the nation's former chief law enforcement officer underscores the potential peril confronting Gonzales, who is one of a handful of attorneys general to face potential criminal charges for actions taken in office.

David G. Leitch, a Gonzales friend and general counsel at the Ford Motor Co., wrote in an e-mail solicitation to potential contributors last month that Gonzales is "innocent of any wrongdoing" but does not have the means to pay for his legal defense after a career spent mostly in public service.

Senate Judiciary Committee approves nomination of Michael Mukasey

crew — Tue, 6 Nov 2007 10:15:23 -0600

The successor to Alberto Gonzales as Attorney General moved one step closer to obtaining that job when the Senate Judiciary Committee voted in favor of his nomination:

Judge Michael Mukasey on Tuesday cleared the biggest hurdle that stood between him and the post of attorney general when the Senate Judiciary Committee approved his nomination 11-8.

Sens. Dianne Feinstein (Calif.) and Charles Schumer (N.Y.) were the only Democrats who voted to support Mukasey. The nomination is now headed to the Senate floor, where Mukasey is expected to pass easily.

The nation's former top lawyer got himself a lawyer. And sounds like he needs one.

crew — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 08:27:26 -0500

Upon learning that Alberto Gonzales had resigned, CREW's Melanie Sloan said the investigations involving the former Attorney General must continue.

Based on a report in Newsweek, it sounds like Gonzales has prepared for that outcome -- and that there are multiple prongs to the on-going investigations:

The top concern for Gonzales, and now Terwilliger, is the expanding investigation by Glenn Fine, the Justice Department’s fiercely independent inspector general, according to three legal sources familiar with the matter who declined to speak publicly about ongoing investigations. Originally, Fine's internal Justice probe—conducted in conjunction with lawyers from the department’s Office of Professional Responsibility—focused on the mass dismissal of U.S. attorneys late last year. The investigation has since broadened to include, among other matters, charges that Gonzales lied to Congress about the Bush administration’s warrantless surveillance program and the circumstances surrounding his late-night March 10, 2004, visit to the hospital room of then attorney general John Ashcroft. At the same time, Congress is continuing to pursue more documents on harsh CIA interrogation techniques approved by Gonzales.

Fine’s investigators, who received high-level security clearances, have been interviewing key players involved in the now-famous bedside confrontation in Ashcroft's hospital room, according to the legal sources. During the visit that evening, Gonzales, then White House counsel, sought to persuade an ailing and heavily medicated Ashcroft to overrule department lawyers who had refused to sign off on classified surveillance activities ordered by President Bush because of concerns about their legality. A rash of senior Justice Department officials—including then deputy attorney general James Comey and FBI Director Robert Mueller—threatened to resign over the incident.

Yet when Gonzales appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee in February 2006, he testified that "there has not been any serious disagreement" about the president’s surveillance program. He did acknowledge disputes about "other intelligence activities" that he declined to identify.

One former administration official close to Gonzales’s team (who, like others interviewed for this story, requested anonymity in talking about an ongoing probe) said the former attorney general is concerned that Fine may end up making a criminal referral to the Public Integrity Section of the Justice Department—or even seek the appointment of a special counsel to determine if Gonzales made false statements to Congress.

The former official—who did not believe such action was warranted—said that Gonzales's camp is increasingly worried that Fine might feel compelled to make such a move to avoid any suggestion that he was protecting his former boss and to reassert his independence. That would subject Gonzales to the unusual situation of being subject to a formal criminal investigation by the very department he used to head. “That is certainly one possible outcome of this,” said the former official.

Justice Dept. Inspector General is investigating whether Gonzales gave "false or misleading testimony to Congress"

crew — Thu, 30 Aug 2007 15:47:59 -0500

The Inspector General at the U.S. Department of Justice is still investigating outgoing Attorney General Alberto Gonzales -- and the charges are very serious:

The Justice Department is investigating whether departing Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales gave false or misleading testimony to Congress on a broad range of issues, including the Bush administration's warrantless surveillance program and the removal of nine U.S. attorneys last year, the lead investigator said today.

The disclosure by Inspector General Glenn A. Fine shows that internal investigations that began with the prosecutor firings have widened substantially to include a focus on Gonzales's actions and statements.

Capitol Hill Democrats will continue investigations of Justice Department

crew — Tue, 28 Aug 2007 08:04:39 -0500

Following the resignation of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, leading Congressional Democrats vowed to continue their investigations of the Justice Department and Gonzales:

Democratic leaders on Capitol Hill reacted swiftly Monday to the resignation of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, calling it long overdue and vowing to continue their investigations of the Justice Department and whether it had been politicized under his tenure.

The attorney general has been under intense scrutiny since Democrats took control of Congress and began investigating the firings of several U.S. attorneys and whether they were ousted for improper political reasons. Throughout the probe, Gonzales’s public statements and testimony before Congress, as well as those of his subordinates at the Department of Justice (DoJ), spurred more questions from Democrats and several Republican senators than they answered.

Most recently, Democrats and former DoJ officials have disputed Gonzales’s account of a bedside meeting with his predecessor, John Ashcroft, about a disagreement over the legal basis for the administration’s wiretapping program that occurred while Ashcroft was recovering from surgery and Gonzales was White House counsel. Critics have accused Gonzales of committing perjury in his testimony before Congress on that matter.

Yesterday, CREW renewed our call for a Special Prosecutor to investigate wrongdoing at the Justice Department.

CREW: Gonzales' overdue resignation cannot end the investigation of criminal misconduct -- and still need Special Prosecutor

crew — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 08:30:54 -0500

It is CREW's strongly held view that the investigation of criminal misconduct must continue. Melanie Sloan had this to say about the resignation of Alberto Gonzales:

Attorney General Gonzales’ resignation is welcome – and overdue – news. His resignation should not, however, end congressional and Department of Justice investigations into misconduct by the Attorney General and his former top aides. Questions of whether Justice Department officials lied to Congress, conducted criminal inquiries to further political ends, illegally fired U.S. Attorneys and made hiring decisions based on political affiliation still merit investigation regardless of Mr. Gonzales’ resignation.

Just as former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay’s resignation did not impede the ongoing criminal investigation into his conduct while a member of Congress, so Mr. Gonzales’ departure should not stop Congress, the Department of Justice’s Inspector General and the Office of Professional Responsibility from continuing their probes into the illegal actions of our nation’s top ranking law enforcement officials. Our democratic system of government depends on the principle that all public officials be held accountable for their conduct. To that end, CREW still believes that a special prosecutor should be appointed to investigate the potentially criminal conduct of Mr. Gonzales and his former aides.

Alberto Gonzales resigns

crew — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 07:38:27 -0500

Major news development on this Monday morning. The Attorney General has resigned. Cable news reporters are speculating that the replacement will be Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff:

Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, whose tenure has been marred by controversy and accusations of perjury before Congress, has resigned. A senior administration official said he would announce the decision later this morning in Washington.

Mr. Gonzales, who had rebuffed calls for his resignation, submitted his to President Bush by telephone on Friday, the official said. His decision was not immediately announced, the official added, until after the president invited him and his wife to lunch at his ranch near here.

Mr. Bush has not yet chosen a replacement but will not leave the position open long, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the Attorney General's resignation had not yet been made public.

Mr. Bush had repeatedly stood by Mr. Gonzales, an old friend and colleague from Texas, even as he faced increasing scrutiny for his leadership of the Justice Department, including his role in the dismissals of nine United States attorneys late last year and questions about whether he testified truthfully about the National Security Agency's surveillance programs.