LEAHY: Bush's AG Choice Not Going Anywhere-Until We Get Info From WH On Wiretapping & Firings

[kpete]

Leahy: Our Focus is on Getting Information
By Paul Kiel - September 17, 2007, 11:02AM

Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT), the man who will preside over Michael Mukasey's confirmation hearing, signals hard that Mukasey's not going anywhere until the committee gets the information it's been seeking on the U.S. attorney firings and the administration's warrantless wiretapping program. A statement just out:

“The Judiciary Committee will approach consideration of the nomination of an Attorney General in a serious and deliberate fashion. The Administration took months determining that a change in leadership was needed at the Department of Justice and then the President spent several weeks before making a nomination. Our focus now will be on securing the relevant information we need so we can proceed to schedule fair and thorough hearings. Cooperation from the White House will be essential in determining that schedule.

“The next Attorney General needs to be someone who can begin the process of restoring the Department of Justice to its proper mission. I am hopeful that once we obtain the information we need and we have had the opportunity to consider the nomination, we will be able to make progress in this regard.”

http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/004198.php

[cali]

1. Goddamn spineless

dems!

[L. Coyote]

41. It took a minute, but I see the sarcasm dripping now! Hooooray for Leahy.

We know he does not speak without being able to back it up too!
He has the support in the committee, or we would not be hearing this.

[jpgray]

2. Great! Let's hope everyone sticks with him. Call your congresscritters, people!

If the party runs away from this, Leahy gets left holding the bag and looking like an asshole. Get him some support.

[Hepburn]

4. Yep....

....I am in Calif...and IMO both Boxer and Feinstein will support him. Boxer for sure and I am emailing Feinstein's office to make sure she gets the message that Calif Dems are behind Sen. Leahy!

[cali]

5. I sure hope Feinstein will support him

She's on the Judiciary Committee

[Hepburn]

10. I agree...and that is why it is important IMO....

...that she gets behind this. Some times she is just too moderate for me and needs to come around and stand with the progressives of the party.

[Supersedeas]

55. don't expect the Media to give this story a blink or a knod

[Hepburn]

3. Go for it, Sen. Leahy!

:applause:

[rateyes]

6. I hope he means it. I've heard this song and dance before...

just saying.

[cali]

8. Really? From Senator Leahy? Do give details.

Or don't you have them? Make a claim, back it up.

[rateyes]

15. Two words:

Maher Arar. Google Arar+Leahy.....don't you remember? "I'll give you a week." ---Leahy to Gonzales. Well, we're still waiting on that report.

[cali]

25. I don't need to Google

I remember it. And he's still going after Gonzo. It's folks like you, who constantly attack the dems, often justifiably, for lack of spine, but refuse to back those dems who are fighting for us, that have no credibility.

[rateyes]

26. Uh huh. Those who say things like:

"No more blank checks for the Iraq War," who then turn around and write a blank check....they're the ones with all the credibility. We should NEVER criticize them. Right? Got to be a good Democrat, first. Right?

He gave Gonzales one week...in the strongest of terms....we've heard nothing since.

I like Leahy...but, again, I've heard this song and dance before. I'll believe it when I see it.

[creeksneakers2]

47. Since then I heard Gonzales had to resign. n/t

[Richard Steele]

38. Nope. But Leahy can't do it by himself. nm

[0007]

7. I like this kind of action, now if only they'll hold their mud. n/t

[cali]

9. He can't do it alone.

If the other dems don't back him, he just can't do it.

[0007]

27. There's something to what you're saying ... n/t

[cali]

11. Not as "sexy" an issue but

more important than

Gore winning an Emmy

Sally Field speaking against the war

Britny anything

OJ anything

McCain's sudden conversions

is getting hold of the information that the admin is stonewalling.

[gateley]

12. K&R nt

[yodermon]

13. What is the procedure for holding somone in Inherent Contempt?

Can it be done with a committee vote, or must it be the full Senate? If the full Senate has to vote, would it need a simple majority to pass?
I think that Inherent Contempt will be the only way to hold these thugs accountable.

[cali]

14. It'a nor going to happen, but here:

Procedures
Following the refusal of a witness to produce documents or to testify, the Committee is entitled to report a resolution of contempt to its parent chamber. A Committee may also cite a person for contempt but not immediately report the resolution to the floor. In the case of subcommittees, they report the resolution of contempt to the full Committee, which then has the option of rejecting it, accepting it but not reporting it to the floor, or accepting it and reporting it to the floor of the chamber for action. On the floor of the House or the Senate, the reported resolution is considered privileged and, if the resolution of contempt is passed, the chamber has several options to enforce its mandate.


Inherent contempt
Under this process, the procedure for holding a person in contempt involves only the chamber concerned. Following a contempt citation, the person cited is arrested by the Sergeant-at-Arms for the House or Senate, brought to the floor of the chamber, held to answer charges by the presiding officer, and then subjected to punishment as the chamber may dictate (usually imprisonment for punishment reasons, imprisonment for coercive effect, or release from the contempt citation.)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contempt_of_Congress

[yodermon]

21. Thanks. Why won't it happen? n/t

[cali]

22. Well, I'm going by history mainly

Inherent contempt hasn't been used in something like 75 years. Not during Iran Contra or Watergate or any other crisis. It just isn't likely that the dems will try and push it through. It's not like they'd get a conviction on the floor, and it's not like they'd get the information that way either.

[yodermon]

54. Well then, how is Congress supposed to conduct oversight?

If the have no enforcement power of their own, and must rely on the Justice department to enforce subpoenas, but the justice department is hopelessly corrupt, what the hell are they supposed to do?

Do we wait til Januaray 2009 to finally get the subpoenas enforced?

[malaise]

16. I love Patrick Leahy

big time.

[cali]

17. He's great but

if he doesn't get support from other dems, particularly those on the JC, he's screwed here. And Schumer is not backing him up. If we- dem activists- don't call our dem Senators, particularly those on the JC, and ask that they support him, we're the ones endorsing spinelessness.

[tomp]

49. bullshit.

chuck shumer, et al know the score very well. they shouldn't need us to tell them the right thing to do. this has nothing to do with US. it's THEM and the stupid political games they play, like the dems always have in our glorious two party dictatorship.

[rosesaylavee]

18. Senator Leahy

:patriot:

Thank you for holding their feet to the fire.

[alfredo]

19. bush has appointed Peter Keisler, a Kool Aid drinker as a fill in

until confirmation hearings are complete.


Keisler is a right wing asshole who puts bush over our constitution.

[cali]

20. What?

I thought bush had appointed Paul Clement as Acting AG.

[alfredo]

28. No, he wants to poke us in the eye with another Gonzo wannabe.

[L. Coyote]

43. I smell a double ploy in this switch. First, it distracts from the nominee. Second it

puts pressure on the DEMs to move the nomination forward.

Leahy is saying, Give us the facts."
Bush is saying, "Go fuck yourself" by putting someone more objectionable in charge of DoJ. This illustrates how weak Bush is now.

Back to the first ploy. There must be something they don't want us to focus on about the nominee. I would look to all the cases going through that court, So NY. That means, for example, Securities and Exchange Commission cases where cases involving billions and billions in government fraud got settled out for pennies on the dollar and the CEOs walk free. Also, Bush just raided that office for a batch of new White House lawyers to fight Leahy. There is probably more "Go fuck yourself" to this story than meets the eye. It needs the most intense scrutiny possible on all fronts, and having a lot of time will make that possible.

[cali]

23. not that this is important but

kick.

[in_cog_ni_to]

24. Excellent news! Now someone needs to whip the other Democrats on the committee to stay IN LINE with

Leahy! This is THE BEST option we have of ever getting that info!

GO, Senator Leahy!

[MzNov]

33. At least he's making the attempt at using the Power the Dems have...

unlike big mouth Chuck Shumer who couldn't wait to give a presser about how wonderful Bush's AG pick is and how the Dems OF COURSE will confirm him. Why doesn't he just shut his pie hole!!!

I am very glad that someone in the Senate is saying, hold on, this is not a sure thing. (It probably still is a sure thing, but at least Leahy isn't acting like he can't wait until he gives the Bully in Chief everything he wants!!!)

:grr:

[cali]

34. I completely agree

Schumer really pisses me off. He has a lot of nerve undermining Leahy like that.

[MzNov]

40. yeah, these little boys' egotistical power plays are getting REALLy old nt

[frylock]

29. here we go again..

should be interesting to read the spin when this guy is being sworn in.

[cali]

30. No one is saying he won't be confirmed

He was actually on Schumer's list of acceptables that he sent to the WH. He is a fuck of a lot better than than the new acting AG. Greenwald doesn't think he's a terrible pick.

You simply want to whine about the dems. That's easy to see. Instead of standing with them when they do stand up, you bitch. Pathetic.

[Name removed]

31. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[cali]

32. bullshit.

not even worth refuting to someone who has they're mind so made up. Leahy doesn't have a magic wand that he can wave. He's introduced legislation to restore Habeas, to harshly punish those profiteering in Iraq and Afghanistan. He's held Gonzales accountable, and is still pursuing him, and you bitch that Harriet Myers isn't in jail. Typical.

[frylock]

37. when something actually gets done, i'll offer my praise..

what will your response be 6 months from now when nothing has changed?

[cali]

50. yawn.

If nothing has changed in 6 months, I'll be bitching, but I suspect your idea of nothing, and mine, are entirely different. I'm pleased with what Waxman and Leahy have done.

[frylock]

56. aww gee. was my post deleted cuz i called out the dems?

tsk tsk

[AtomicKitten]

35. On Ed Schultz today it seemed the Dems are acquiescing &

actually applauding this nominee.

:wtf:

[cali]

39. Well, Leahy's evidently not

unless you heard him say something that contradicts this.

[AtomicKitten]

51. I believe it was Schumer who was purrrring.

[L. Coyote]

45. The response is relative, relative to expectation like Ted Olson of the Arkansas Project

and typical Bush selections. The expectation was for an obvious co-conspirator to get nominated.

[AtomicKitten]

52. I think you nailed it.

[Vidar]

36. Brave words. I hope he follows through on it.

[librechik]

42. did Leahy notice * changed the interim AG to Jabba the Hut?

no more Paul Clement. The new suv is so bad we're going to be begging to confirm Mukasey.

Can they do nothing at all without a whiff of extortion?

Why did i even ask?

[cali]

46. Why did you ask?

Must of been rhetorical, and I'm sure Leahy noticed, and I bet it simply made him madder.

[Trillo]

44. I like it!

K&R

[creeksneakers2]

48. No way this guy should be confirmed until we have a sworn

promise from the nominee and confirmation from the White House that contempt of Congress cases will be criminally prosecuted. How can an AG who refuses to enforce the law be confirmed?

If anybody is going to stick it to Bush its Leahy. Leahy is the best. I wish he was drafted as the Democratic presidential nominee.

[PATRICK]

53. Amen

So much for the safe nominee ploy. I hope. The new AG must be a wedge of justice into the heart of government, undo and investigate and prohibit crime. No nice talk and vagaries and no sweeping the election fraud, the partisan hiring and Constitutional violations under the rug.

Broom meet dirt. That should be the process for any nominee, not another polite benefit given the unchallenged fake of a president who occupies our WH.