Clement's appointment stinks...

[spotbird]

not that laws matter at this point, but if the AG can't serve the Deputy gets the appointment.

The Deputy Attorney General advises and assists the Attorney General in formulating and implementing Departmental policies and programs and in providing overall supervision and direction to all organizational units of the Department. The Deputy Attorney General is authorized to exercise all the power and authority of the Attorney General, except where such power or authority is prohibited by law from delegation or has been delegated to another official. In the absence of the Attorney General, the Deputy Attorney General acts as the Attorney General.

http://www.usdoj.gov/dag/

--------

Office of the Solicitor General

The original Statutory Authorization Act of June 22, 1870, states, "There shall be in the Department of Justice an officer learned in the law, to assist the Attorney General in the performance of his duties to be called the Solicitor General." The Office of the Solicitor General is tasked to conduct all litigation on behalf of the United States in the Supreme Court, and to supervise the handling of litigation in the federal appellate courts. The general functions of the Office can be found at 28 CFR 0.20.

http://www.usdoj.gov/osg/


--------------------------------------------------------------

I changed the diary because apparently the President has the authority to appoint anyone as Acting AG if that person has ever been confirmed by the Senate. Clement got the nod because the President wanted him, not because he was next in line for the job.

[soothsayer]

1. the deputy attorney general resigned, so clement is next in line

(according to a dude on cspan)

[eyeontheprize]

3. It's been reported that the job

was filled a few weeks ago.

[MonkeyFunk]

2. No

I think you're misunderstanding that.

[spotbird]

7. please elaborate. nt

[MonkeyFunk]

11. I don't think it means

that if there's a vacancy in the office, the Deputy AG MUST become acting AG.

You linked to a job description, not a law. "In the absence of the Attorney-General" doesn't necessarily mean when the office is vacant. It could mean when the A-G is unavailable.

[Timefortruth]

13. It seems straightforward to

me. What authority does the President have to side-step established procedure?

Aren't there laws about this kind of thing. Or are the stakes so low, the laws don't matter?

[MonkeyFunk]

15. Nobody's

quoted any law or procedure. Only a job description.

[spotbird]

16. You suggest the description is incorrect,

I assume?

[MonkeyFunk]

18. I'm saying

a job description that says the deputy serves in the absence of the attorney-general doesn't mean the law requires that he be appointed acting attorney-general when the AG resigns.

[spotbird]

20. So the statement on the DOJ

web page simply describes their hope about how thing go, but not policy or law?

Who knows? Maybe that's it. But the MSM keeps reporting Clement got the job because the Deputy position is vacant. That's false, but if it can be anyone at all, why include that false tidbit?

[MonkeyFunk]

21. well

according to the website you link to, there IS no deputy attorney-general at the moment. Only an acting deputy attorney-general.

[spotbird]

23. That must be the answer

or how they've avoided using him.

Acting officers have the same authority, Clement will learn that soon.

[Oreo]

4. Do we have a Deputy AG?

I just heard Schumer say that the top 3 positions at Justice are now empty.

[spotbird]

8. According to the DOJ web page

we do.

http://www.usdoj.gov/dag/dag-bio.html

[ROakes1019]

5. DAG

There is no deputy attorney general at present. Clement is the senior one serving.

[spotbird]

10. Not sure about that. nt

[annabanana]

6. the Deputy Attorney General, Paul McNulty

resigned under fire last May!

http://thinkprogress.org/2007/05/14/breaking-deputy-attorney-general-mcnulty-to-resign/

[spotbird]

9. He's been replaced.

If you believe the DOJ web site, but that might be a mistake.

http://www.usdoj.gov/dag/dag-bio.html

[onenote]

26. Moford is acting deputy attorney general

[spotbird]

28. OK, and as such

he does not act as the Attorney General in the AG's absence?

[onenote]

32. yes, but the AG isn't "absent"

Gonzo is staying in office until sept 17. At that time, the vacancy created by his resignation becoming effective will be temporarily filled by the Solicitor General, whom chimpy has named to the position in accordance with the Federal Vacancies Reform Act.

[orleans]

12. is this a "recess" appointment? n/t

[spotbird]

14. It's very strange in many ways,

that the MSM claims there is no Deputy when there is. And that the Deputy is next in line for the job, but it's ignored.

[onenote]

34. No. Its a temporary appontment to fill a vacancy per the Fed. Vacancies Reform Act

[RB TexLa]

17. Acting as AG is not the same as being appointed. There has been no announcement of an appointment

of anyone.

All cabinet secretaries have a Deputy that acts in their place if they are unable to do so. If a secretory dies someone has to be in charge of the department. Acting as Secretary of State, Defense, Transportation and so on is not the same as being appointed.

[spotbird]

19. What did Bush just announce?

I must have misunderstood, I thought he said Clement would be Acting AG.

[DemReadingDU]

22. I thought Bush said Clement would be Acting AG

edit to add link

White House sources confirm that U.S. Solicitor General Paul Clement will serve as acting Attorney General once Alberto Gonazles leaves the Justice Department in mid-September.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/20462117

[RB TexLa]

27. It can be delegated to him. It still isn't an appointment.

The web page for Craig Morford says he is acting deputy, probably means there is a confirmation that hasn't happened and could perhaps bar him from acting in a constitutional position. Clement has been confirmed, which would make delegating it to him reasonable.


Are you suggesting there be no Attorny General?

[spotbird]

30. Likely the acting has been confirmed

at some time, judging from his resume. Just not as Acting Deputy.

The point is, apparently, that an Acting Deputy does not serve as AG in the absence of the AG. It would be interesting to see the law on that, but I don't know how to research it.

[RB TexLa]

31. A previous confirmation is meaningless. Rumsfield had to be confirmed when he was appointed to be

Sec. of Defense the second time.

[spotbird]

36. If I under sand the issue,

Bush could have chosen Secretary of Robert Gates as Acting AG because he has been confirmed in another position. The normal lines of succession at DOJ are irrelevant.

Prior confirmation doesn't matter, in theory, when a nominee is confirmed for a new job, but that's a different question.

[Generator]

24. As if "illegal" ever stopped them before

Thanks for the laugh!

[RedStateShame]

25. Thank you.

Really? Bush presidency doing something illegal? Then, we better do something about that, unless of course, there's an election on the way, because we wouldn't want people to sympathize with Bush, and it would take too long, and whatever excuses the impeachment-phobes have.

[onenote]

29. No it is not. Its legal under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act

http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/uscode05/usc_sec_05_00003345----000-.html

Federal law provides that the "first assistant" to the office in which a vacancy has occurred is the default temporary replacement for the vacant spot. However, it goes on to confer on the president the authority to appoint someone else, provided that the person appointed is, for example, someone who has been nominated by the president and confirmed by the senate for another position -- and the SG qualifies under that standard.

[spotbird]

33. So the reason Clement is the new AG

is because the President has the authority to bypass the Acting Deputy, not because the position is vacant, or because the man currently serving in that job is "Acting". The guy who has the job now was certainly nominated by the president and confirmed as a USA, so he'd qualify, they just don't want him.

The MSM got it wrong, as usual.

[onenote]

35. Actually, Morford probably doesn't qualify as the "first assistant"

To be honest, I haven't reviewed the statute that carefully, but it appears that in order to qualify as the "first assistant" you have to have been in that position for 90 days. Morford was just named Acting AG in mid-July. Interestingly, from what I understand, the term "first assistant" isn't defined in the law, so I can't say for sure how you would determine who is the "first assistant" when the normal position (Deputy) is for these purposes not the first assistant.

[spotbird]

37. It may be Gonzo

left when he did because BushCO didn't want Morford to become AG, I wonder why? It would have been more complicated to skip him if he'd already been confirmed.

[MonkeyFunk]

39. Nobody automatically becomes the Attorney-General

the President appoints a replacement and the Senate has to confirm it.

There's no "line of succession" to fill vacant cabinet offices.

[spotbird]

41. For acting positions there is. nt

[MonkeyFunk]

38. Clement is NOT the new A-G...

he'll be the ACTING A-G.


Now, he may well be nominated to the job later.

[spotbird]

40. He is Acting for quite some time

I'm not clear on why Bush will bother with confirmation. They have a team player.

[bobthedrummer]

42. "BREAKING: AGAG's interim replacement-Cedarburg's own Paul D. Clement"

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=186x21683#21964

IMPEACH CHENEY FIRST.