AG says Siegelman findings to be released

[maddezmom]

Source: AP

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Attorney General Michael Mukasey now says that findings from a Justice Department investigation into former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman's corruption case will be released to Congress.

Clarifying earlier comments that the investigation might be kept private, Mukasey said at a congressional hearing Wednesday that lawmakers would be informed of the findings because Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee requested the probe. He said that depending on the findings, the full report also might be released publicly.



Read more: http://www.wztv.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.al/2b5274e7-www.fox17.com.shtml

---

Karl Rove denies influencing Don Siegelman prosecution

Karl Rove says he didn't do it.

In a letter to the ranking Republican on the House Judiciary Committee, Lamar Smith of Texas, Rove says that he never tried to influence the prosecution of former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman on political corruption charges.

"I have never communicated, either directly or indirectly, with Justice Department or Alabama officials about the investigation, indictment, potential prosecution, prosecution, conviction or sentencing of Gov. Siegelman, or about any other matter related to his case, nor have I asked any other individual to communicate about these matters on my behalf. I have never attempted, either directly or indirectly, to influence these matters."

Rove, the former political maestro at the Bush White House, also suggests that the committee should ask Siegelman why he has made "baseless allegations of impropriety" against him. "The committee should require Siegelman to substantiate his allegations about my 'involvement' in his prosecution -- something he has failed to do in either media interviews or court filings," Rove says in the letter, provided to C2C (that's Countdown to Crawford) by the committee Republican staff.

A few weeks ago, Rove was subpoenaed to testify for a hearing on the issue and failed to show up, saying that he was protected by executive privilege. Before and after what's being called "the empty chair hearing," Rove offered to testify in private or answer questions in writing. So Smith, says a committee staffer, decided to take him up on it.

more: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/presidentbush/2008/07/rove-denies-sie.html


Siegelman supporters call for expanded probe
July 23, 2008 15:56 EDT


WASHINGTON (AP) -- Supporters of former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman are calling for a broader investigation into his corruption case after the Justice Department acknowledged that information about potential juror misconduct was withheld from the defense.

~snip~

Two weeks ago, the Justice Department informed Siegelman's attorneys that it had recently discovered that, during mistrial proceedings, U.S. Marshals informed Fuller that federal investigators concluded the e-mails were fakes. But the information was not passed along to Siegelman's attorneys for cross-examination.

more:http://www.wztv.com/template/inews_wire/wires.regional.al/3c5273de-www.fox17.com.shtml

[defendandprotect]

1. The criminals investigating themselves . . . ???

[asjr]

2. One way to look at this is Mukasey

saying mea culpa here it all is, or he finally received the special script from BushCo.

[JDPriestly]

3. Did you read the article?

The Justice Department is claiming that an investigation showed that e-mails said to be evidence of jury tampering were determined to be fakes, but that the fact that they were fakes was not conveyed to Siegelman's defense counsel. It is possible that evidence may have been tampered with. The Justice Department is precluding a genuinely objective look at the facts and evidence by conducting its internal investigation on its own. Congress would have to do nothing but investigate the Bush administration to determine just the most basic facts about corruption -- or the appearance of corruption at the highest levels. I can understand how frustrated Democrats in Congress must be. They would really like to be accomplishing something other than just trying to get documents from this administration.

[CanonRay]

4. Well if they'd f-ing arrest somebody, it might help!

What a bunch of pansies. Get the Sgt. at Arms to drag one of the bastards in and throw away the key. He'll talk.

[man4allcats]

5. Ditto

:thumbsup:

[maddezmom]

6. emptywheel: Rove All-But Confirms He DID Talk to Non-DOJ People About Siegelman

Rove All-But Confirms He DID Talk to Non-DOJ People About Siegelman
By: emptywheel Wednesday July 23, 2008 12:20 pm 23

In a classic non-denial denial, Karl Rove makes it clear that he did talk to people about Siegelman's prosecution--even while he denies that he spoke to anyone in DOJ about it.

As I posted three minutes before TPM posted these "exclusively" (huh), Rove has submitted answers to questions that Lamar Smith decided to ask him about Siegelman, in lieu of actually showing up before Congress and answering questions that someone without an interest in covering up Republican politicized prosecutions might ask.

We can talk about these documents in more detail in comments (and I'll post a timeline in a follow-up post). But here's the most important part of the question and answers. Smith repeatedly asks Rove whether or not he ever communicated with:

Department of Justice officials, State of Alabama officials, or any other individual about the investigation, indictment, potential prosecution, prosecution, conviction, or sentencing of Governor Siegelman

more:http://emptywheel.firedoglake.com/2008/07/23/rove-all-but-confirms-he-did-talk-to-non-doj-people-about-siegelman/

[fascisthunter]

7. Mukasey the Bush Dog is Going to.... whatever

[Deny and Shred]

8. Writing a letter to Lamar Smith is NOT the same as testifying

Let him say all that crap UNDER OATH. Short of that, lock him up. These drips and drabs of quasi-compliance have gone on long enough. He's in contempt, do it.
As for the "investigation", Mukasey has already stated before Congress that his role is to advise the White House. He had to be reminded that this isn't his only role as AG. No way it was designed to find the truth - simply an exercise in obfuscating the truth.

[annabanana]

9. How heavily redacted?

is my first thought...

[struggle4progress]

10. Siegelman supporters call for search into e-mails

By Ben Evans • July 24, 2008

... At issue is a series of e-mails that arose in 2006 suggesting that two jurors had outside influence as they decided Siegelman's bribery conviction. After he was found guilty, Siegelman sought a new trial over the e-mails, printed copies of which had been mailed to defense attorneys.

U.S. District Judge Mark Fuller denied the motion for a new trial, ruling that the allegations were unsubstantiated. Siegelman has cited the issue as a central point in his ongoing appeal.

Two weeks ago, the head of the Justice Department's appellate division, Patty Merkamp Stemler, informed Siegelman's attorneys that the department had discovered undisclosed information about the controversy as attorneys prepared for the appeal. In a July 8 letter, Stemler wrote that while Siegelman's mistrial proceedings were pending, acting U.S. Attorney Louis Franklin asked U.S. postal inspectors to try to determine who sent the e-mails through the mail ...

But the information produced for prosecutors and given to the judge was never passed along to Siegelman's attorneys for cross-examination ...

http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080724/NEWS02/807240315