Gonzales, Expect a Subpoena from the Senate on Thursday!

[babylonsister]

http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/?q=node/21139

Gonzales, Expect a Subpoena from the Senate on Thursday!
By Matt Renner, www.truthout.org

Democrats in the US House of Representatives served a subpoena on Tuesday demanding all previously undisclosed documents relating to the firings of eight US attorneys in 2006. The Senate is considering a similar action.

The subpoena requires the Department of Justice (DOJ) to turn over all documents pertaining to the Congressional investigation. The DOJ voluntarily provided more than 3,000 pages of emails to Congress in March. But instead of satisfying critics of the attorney firings, these documents raised new questions.

snip//

In a separate letter on Monday, Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont), Ranking Member Arlen Specter (R-Pennsylvania) and Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-California) and Charles Schumer (D-New York) also requested documents from the DOJ that have not yet been disclosed. While much of their request overlaps with the information being subpoenaed by the House Judiciary Committee, they are looking at some additional factors as well.

The Senator's letter references an article in the American Spectator from April 2 which says that "a series of files and documents that could prove critical to the Congressional investigation into the firings ... remain in the office of the deputy attorney general and the executive office for the US attorneys, but have not been produced by the Department." These documents are reported to include evaluations and rankings of all 93 US attorneys, as well as relevant briefing materials known to have been provided to the attorney general prior to the investigation into these firings.

The Senate letter sets a deadline of Wednesday April 11 for full cooperation by the DOJ. The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to vote Thursday to authorize subpoenas for this material. According to Democratic staffers, subpoenas will only be issued if the DOJ does not cooperate voluntarily.

In his letter to the attorney general, Congressman Conyers explained why subpoenas have become necessary: "Recent developments, including the apparent inconsistencies between your statements and the testimony of ... Kyle Sampson; declarations that your former senior counsel and White House liaison, Monica Goodling, intends to invoke her Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination rather than answer the subcommittee's question; and a series of recent resignations by senior officials at the Department.... Under these circumstances, you must understand why we cannot accept the Department's unilateral judgment as to how much of this information it needs to disclose...."

[wake.up.america]

1. And... what happens if the DOJ refuses to comply with the subpoenas? SCOTUS?

[babylonsister]

2. I think logically SCOTUS is the next step, but I'm no lawyer.

And damn, how long would that take? As it is, it seems this admin is trying to run the clock out:
(from yesterday)

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/013552.php

It simply doesn't matter what the real substantive basis for any objection is, this is an old, old litigation tactic that is helpful in any number of broader strategies. And the strategy that the Administration is playing is Delay and Stonewall Until the Clock Runs Out. Dan Bartlett has a clock on his desk that counts down the months, weeks, days, hours, minutes and seconds (or so I read in the Washington Post). I suggest that many other officials keep a similar clock, at least in the back of their mind. If this goes to court, Gonzalez stays in the position until it is resolved.

But wait: each litigation shield has an opposing sword. The Senate will and should swear him in next week, take his testimony, and note that they are reserving the right to call him back on these issues if and when they get those documents. An old litigator's play. Keeps the pressure on.

The document delay may limit the damage Gonzalez faces next week, but it is probably not enough. They pulled their shield out too late. I am sure they've served only to irritate the Senate with this latest stunt.

Months, weeks, days, hours, minutes, seconds. Tick tock, tick tock.

I think time is about up for the Attorney General.

[Wilber_Stool]

3. Do you think he could be

taken into custody by a US Marshall and sit it out in jail?

[babylonsister]

4. Just that vision makes me smile! I wish it could be, but I kind of doubt it;

that sounds more like the wild West. On second thought...;)

[calimary]

5. YAHOO!!! What does it say about a United States Attorney-General

who is subpoenaed?

Amazing. The "chief law enforcement officer" is a frickin' CROOK. GEEZ. Visions of nixon and john mitchell dancing in my head. AND reagan, and his schmucky AG, ed meese.