Ex-Lawmaker's(Sen. Pete Domenici) Records Subpoenaed In Firings Probe

[Purveyor]

Source: Associated Press

(02-11) 15:42 PST WASHINGTON (AP) --

A federal grand jury has subpoenaed records of former Sen. Pete Domenici, and prosecutors are preparing to interview an ex-aide to former White House political adviser Karl Rove in an investigation of politically tinged firings of U.S. attorneys.

The moves are the clearest sign yet that the criminal inquiry, which began in September, is likely to continue for many months.

Career federal prosecutor Nora R. Dannehy is looking into whether former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, other Bush administration officials or Republicans in Congress should face criminal charges in the dismissals.

Some White House officials, including Rove as well as Domenici, R-N.M., the retired senator's former chief of staff and others refused to be interviewed in an earlier joint inquiry by the Justice Department's inspector general and the department's Office of Professional Responsibility.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/02/11/national/w133541S76.DTL

[abq e streeter]

1. Please god, let Pete (and Heather) rot in prison with Rove and all the rest of em

[NM Independent]

3. I'll second that.

I would love, love, LOVE to see Wilson behind bars for a while.

At least end her career, so she dare not run again.

[VP505]

5. I share your sentiment,

there was a time when "Pete" was doing good for NM, but when Booo$h was elected, Domenici seemed to forget who he was representing and it seemed to me that he devoted most of his effort to working entirely for his President and his Party with his constituents pretty much ignored..

[burrowowl]

8. Amen to your statement!

[MO_Dem]

2. Good!

:popcorn:

[maddezmom]

4. Good

K&R

[pacalo]

6. Woohoo!

Dropping a subpoena on Domenici may have at least as much to do with the conduct of Justice Department officials as about Domenici, who retired from the Senate this year.

Domenici made three phone calls to Gonzales in 2005 and 2006 and one to Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty in October 2006 complaining about the performance of U.S. Attorney David Iglesias, one of those fired for what the Justice Department's inspector general said were political reasons.

In a February 2007 briefing for the Senate Judiciary Committee, McNulty did not mention Domenici's phone calls, nor were they listed on a chart prepared for the briefing at the Justice Department.

[DCKit]

7. Geez Pete, did'ja really think "retiring to spend more time with the family"....

was going to get you off the hook for your un-American activities?

Must really suck that the whole "Permanent Republican Majority" thing didn't work out for you.