By Candace Talmadge / North Star Writers Group

Dear Attorney General Mukasey:

Your comments the other day to the American Bar Association sicken me as an attorney.  Your comments start out with a plea for sympathy that because attorneys at the DOJ do not make salaries comparable to attorneys in private practice, we should have some level of sympathy for them.

A federal appeals court today upheld the dismissal of a lawsuit accusing U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney, former White House political adviser Karl Rove and former Cheney aide I. Lewis Libby of illegally conspiring to reveal the identity of a CIA agent.

It is still a federal crime to knowingly reveal a covert CIA operative's identity.  But as the AG announced while unveiling the new DoJ motto in front of the American Bar Association: "Not all violations of the law are crimes."  So treason is still a violation of the law, but it is not a crime for Bush & Co. because Congress gave them an exemption to infringe on individual privacy.

In keeping with this overhaul of government mottos, Sec. Rice will be unveiling the new State Department motto later today:  Oderint dum metuant.   Next week, the Pentagon will announce the return of human sacrifices to prime time TV.  Asked to comment, Sen. Obama called this "deplorable" and vowed to change it.  Sen. McCain could not be reached by phone.

F.O.O., it is 84 days until the election. 84...84... And, just to make sure my point is crystal clear to GWB, DICK, Senator McCentury, "Speaker" Pelosi, other spineless good - for - nothing Congressional enablers, and A.G. Mukasey, I repeat, "1984 was not meant to be an instruction manual!" Y'all think they'll hear me this time? Nah...me neither...

Let's count down with Keith & company for this loverly Tuesday evening!

http://legalschnauzer.blogspot.com/

email: rshuler3156@gmail.com

A transplanted Midwesterner puts down roots in Alabama and helps show how "loyal Bushies" have corrupted our justice system.

It sickens me to think that Zoe Baird and Kimba Wood were disqualified as choices for Attorney General because of nanny taxes and yet we get Attorneys General who believed in stomping on the Constitution (Ashcroft), approve of voter suppression and torture as well as lie to Congress and reporters (Gonzales) and who think torture is only torture if it is done to him, won’t prosecute or investigate crimes committed by the Executive Branch and now thinks that not all violations of the law are crimes (Mukasey).

Thanks for that last one, Senators Schumer and Feinstein.

Whether you look at the "regular" definition of the word "crime" or even the legal definition, you will find the most basic "violation of law" as part of the definition.

Who knew? Apparently breaking civil service laws in the name of improperly hiring Republican foot soldiers to supposedly non-political positions in the Justice Department is totally cool by our newest and scumbaggiest Attorney General, Michael Mukasey

So speaks Attorney General Michael Mukasey. The full quote from the article Justice Staffers Won't Be Prosecuted For Illegal Hiring Practices is "not every wrong, or even every violation of the law, is a crime. In this instance, the two joint reports found only violations of the civil service laws."

I agree that not every violation of the law needs to be prosecuted. But to say that a violation of the law is not a crime, is ridiculous. Next I expect to hear Attorney General argue that anyone in the executive branch who violates a law has not committed a crime.

Everyone should be furious about the Attorney General's statements. Yet few have even heard about the statement. Where is the media on this important issue.

Then let's get to what the issue is about, hiring illegally to promote a political agenda as expressly forbidden in the law. So now we know that the Attorney General is upholding the right to uphold only laws illegally hired attorneys decide to uphold. When those attorneys choose not to uphold a law, then breaking the law was not a crime.

Yeah, another short diary. No apologies.

Having worked at the Department of Justice, I was particularly torqued about the hiring scandal under the wildly incompetent Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez.  I thought Monica Goodling, the criminally corrupt White House Liaison who interviewed people and asked questions like "What is it about George W. Bush that makes you want to serve him?" and "Why are you a Republican?" represented the worst of Washington, and, frankly, broke the law.

Turns out I was right

In the wake of the favorable decision in the case of Committee on the Judiciary, U.S. House of Representatives v. Harriet Miers, et al., the Congress has its eye back on the "subpoena power" ball. The court's decision has done more than simply reaffirm that Harriet Miers and Josh Bolten must obey Congressional subpoenas (under penalty of exactly what, we still have not figured out). It may also have emboldened Congressional investigators and shaken loose some other exercises of the subpoena power that were waiting in the wings.

In the House Education and Labor Committee:

U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-CA), chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, today demanded that Charles E.F. Millard, director of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, immediately comply with a subpoena served July 16 by turning over documents regarding a report into the agency’s management and governance practices. The U.S. District Court today reaffirmed that the executive branch must comply with congressional subpoenas.

And this, via The Gavel, in the Government Oversight National Security and Foreign Affairs Subcommittee:

Subcommittee Chairman Tierney and Full Committee Chairman Waxman threaten Michael Dominguez, Principal Deputy Undersecretary for Defense, with contempt after he reveals that he has ordered Dr. Kaye Whitley of the DOD Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office to defy a subpoena to appear

And of course, there's the Judiciary committee's recent vote to hold Karl Rove in contempt for his refusal to comply with their subpoena, but that came before the court's ruling.

But if the action in the committees this week is any indication of a wider reawakening of interest in the subpoena power, things could really break open, sending the full extent of the Bush "administration's" stonewalling of all outside oversight spilling into view at long last.

Just a few weeks ago, there was this, back in Government Oversight:

The chairman of a House committee has warned Attorney General Michael Mukasey he could be held in contempt of Congress if he doesn’t turn over documents from an FBI interview with Vice President Dick Cheney.

Back on June 20th, subscription only Congressional Quarterly reported that:

Panel Chairman Henry A. Waxman, D-Calif., is investigating the White House’s role in an EPA decision to bar California from regulating vehicle greenhouse gas emissions. Separately, the panel is investigating the EPA’s decision to set a new smog pollution standard less stringent than what scientific advisers recommended.

Waxman had scheduled a Friday hearing to hold two Bush administration officials in contempt for failing to produce documents he had requested in subpoenas. But he said he would hold off on the contempt vote after learning the White House had invoked executive privilege.

The two officials are Susan Dudley, administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs at the Office of Management and Budget; and EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson.

There's even growing realization among Bush's Republican shock troops on the Hill that this "administration's" games are endangering their own powers and prerogatives.

Over in the Intelligence Committee, as noted in yesterday's Midday Open Thread, there was this:

In an interview, Hoekstra, the committee's senior Republican, said he told McConnell that he was disgusted with what he described as the Bush administration's continuing effort to undercut any kind of outside oversight.

"This is part of a systemic problem of the administration, and I said I'm not going to take it anymore," Hoekstra said.

This isn't news to Hoekstra's fellow Republican, Dana Rohrabacher (though you won't find either of them doing anything about it):

"The disdain and uncooperative nature that this administration has shown toward Congress... is so egregious that I can no longer assume that it is simply bureaucratic incompetence or isolated mistakes. Rather, I have come to the sad conclusion that this administration has intentionally obstructed Congress’ rightful and constitutional duties."

The fact is that this "administration" has stonewalled dozens of investigations into nearly every department and agency within the executive branch. There are more than a dozen investigative committees and subcommittees in the House alone, and almost all of them could tell you stories about being stonewalled across multiple investigations by the Bush gang. In the Senate, the situation may be even worse, committee and floor rules make it even more difficult to issue and enforce subpoenas. Witness what happened to Senator Barbara Boxer's efforts to chase down EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson:

A vote on the issuance of a subpoena for the draft endangerment finding on global warming emissions rejected at the highest levels in the White House was stymied when Republican members boycotted the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works business meeting, preventing a quorum

And many of you will remember that the Senate Judiciary Committee also has a very old outstanding (and unenforced) subpoena out for Karl Rove, for the defiance of which the committee voted to hold him in contempt. But the Senate has never bothered to have a floor vote to make the contempt official. And how could they? Where would they get the 60 votes to shut down a filibuster of such a resolution?

So, does the Miers ruling mean the dam finally breaks, and a new flood of subpoenas previously bottled up by the uncertainty of the situation are now unleashed?

Unlikely, although such a deluge would constitute the first and only real demonstration of just how obstructionist the "administration" has been, across the board and on every issue. There's been no comprehensive accounting of just how many avenues of inquiry into just how many areas of critical importance to the American people have been thwarted by White House intransigence -- an intransigence that the federal courts have now joined in declaring to be without support in law or precedent. But it's still unlikely.

That's because the Congressional leadership has retained fairly tight control over how many subpoenas are issued, and how far investigators should go in pursuit of their inquiries. It's been part of the overall political strategy that had its origins in not giving rise to any kind of panic or fear of political vindictiveness -- which Republicans promised Americans would be the case if Democrats were returned to the majority -- stemming from the elections of 2006, and which has morphed into the overall political strategy of not giving rise to any kind of panic or fear of political vindictiveness that might stem from the upcoming elections of 2008.

Well, that and the fact that there are probably no more than a few weeks left of active session in the 110th Congress, with both houses in recess for the month of August, and the House still aiming at a September 26th adjournment for the year... so that they can come back home and ask for your votes. No doubt so that they may bring some accountability back to Washington.

That's life. And that's politics. The best we can hope for is that our votes buy us a respite from such overwhelming and dire need for oversight into such basic issues of governance such as, "does the executive branch have to obey the law?" Or, "what if they have to, but they just don't?"

We won't likely be getting any actual answers to those questions before we're all asked to forget about them "for the good of the country." Perhaps we'll enjoy it more than we now think just to have relief from having to ask for a few years.

Today the new lead suspect on the Anthrax mailings was found dead, apparently by suicide:

The FBI's lead suspect in the September, 2001 anthrax attacks -- Bruce E. Ivins -- died Tuesday night, apparently by suicide.. For the last 18 years, Ivins was a top anthrax researcher at.. Ft. Detrick, Maryland Glenn Grenwald

Just 3 weeks ago, Patrick Leahy and Mukasey had a very curious talk about the dismissal of another leading suspect, as documented by emptywheel:

Call me crazy. But after viewing this very creepy exchange between Patrick Leahy and Michael Mukasey regarding the anthrax killer, I got the feeling that both of them know exactly who sent those anthrax-laden letters almost seven years ago......Leahy makes a curious statement: we're paying Hatfill, which means that the guy who committed the crime is going free. Emptywheel

Atrios & Glenn Greenwald reminds us that Richard Cohen had been warned at the time  and Glenn  reminds us of a botched attempt to blame IRAQ in the Anthrax mailings.. (see below)

I wrote my first letter to the editor of the San Francisco Chronicle today.  I have had it with Feinstein.  If we could establish a recall I would devote all of my free time to making this a reality.  I don't know if this letter will be published but I wanted to share my concerns with you.  I hope there are others who are terrified of this possibility as well.  

From the SF Chronicle's Matier & Ross column:
The Feinstein factor: Dianne Feinstein insists she hasn't made any calls about running for governor - but all the same, it's becoming a hot topic among Democratic insiders.
That's because of the recent poll by JMM Research that had the senator the first choice of a whopping 50 percent of the Democrats surveyed for the 2010 race.

Reading a New York Times article about "Mukasey’s Wary Start Dismays Ex-Backers," I stumbled across a statement that I would ordinarily attribute to ignorance. This source can't be considered ignorant; David B. Rivkin is a lawyer who served in the Justice Department during the Reagan and George H.W. Bush administrations, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and a Partner at Baker & Hostetler, whose client list includes 10 of the Fortune 25. Mr. Rivkin's incredible statement, and by incredible I mean "so implausible as to elicit disbelief"...

The fact that he is not willing to open investigations into everything the Democrats want should not be particularly surprising. Where you sit is where you stand. He’s not a judge anymore; he’s the attorney general of the United States. He’s defending the president’s prerogatives.

In the House, courtesy of the Office of the Majority Leader:

FLOOR SCHEDULE FOR WEDNESDAY, JULY 23, 2008

House meets at 10:00 a.m.: Legislative Business
Fifteen "One Minutes" Per Side

Last vote predicted: 6:00 – 7:00 p.m.

Suspensions (8 Bills):

1.     H.J.Res. 93 - Approving the renewal of import restrictions contained in the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act of 2003 (Rep. Crowley – Ways and Means)

2.     H.R. 6532 - To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to restore the Highway Trust Fund balance (Rep. Rangel – Ways and Means)

3.     H.Res. 1360 - Honoring and commemorating the selfless acts of heroism displayed by the late Detective John Michael Gibson and Private First Class Jacob Joseph Chestnut of the United States Capitol Police on July 24, 1998 (Rep. Edwards (MD) – House Administration)

4.     H.Res. 645 - Expressing the gratitude and appreciation of the House of Representatives to the professionalism and dedication of the United States Capitol Police (Rep. Mario Diaz–Balart (FL) – House Administration)

5.     H.Res. 1286 - Recognizing and celebrating the 20th anniversary of the National Black Arts Festival (Rep. Lewis (GA) - Education and Labor)

6.     H.Res. 1355 - Expressing support for designation of Disability Pride Day and recognizing that all people, including those living with disabilities, have the right, responsibility, and ability to be active, contributing members of our society and fully engaged as citizens.  (Rep. Davis (IL) – Education and Labor)

7.     H.Res. 655 – Honoring the life and accomplishments of Katherine Dunham (Rep. Rangel – Education and Labor)

8.     H.Res. 1296 – Supporting the designation of a National Child Awareness Month to promote awareness of children's charities and youth-serving organizations across the United States and recognizing their efforts on behalf of children and youth as a positive investment for the future of our Nation (Rep. Calvert - Education and Labor)

H.R. 3221 - American Housing Rescue and Foreclosure Prevention Act of 2008 (Rep. Frank– Financial Services) (Subject to a Rule)

H.R. 3999 - The National Highway Bridge Reconstruction and Inspection Act (Rep. Oberstar –Transportation and Infrastructure) (Subject to a Rule [That rule is contained in H. Res. 1344])

Postponed Suspension Bill (1)

1.     H.R. 6545 - National Energy Security Intelligence Act of 2008 (Rep. Cazayoux – Intelligence)

In the Senate, courtesy of the Office of the Majority Leader:

Convenes: 10:00am

Resume motion to proceed to S.3268, Energy Speculation, post cloture.

Time until 11:00am equally divided and controlled with the Republicans controlling the first half and the Majority controlling the next half. The time from 11:00 until 4:00 controlled in 30 minute alternating blocks with Republicans controlling first 30 minutes and the Majority controlling next 30 minutes.

Recall that post-cloture debate can go on no longer than 30 hours, with no Senator speaking for more than one hour during that time. (See Rule XXII). Cloture was invoked by a vote of 94-0 at 11:28 a.m. yesterday, and will wind up at 4:00 p.m. today, technically about an hour and a half short of 30 hours, but with the benefit of not having to stay up and in session all night to run the 30 hour clock. The Senators, by agreement, just gave themselves the 30 hours that Republicans could have forced them all to sit through, provided they had enough of them lined up to eat that clock up one hour at a time.

Considering that the cloture vote was 94-0, it might seem an unlikely prospect. But as a matter of courtesy, the 30 hours were preserved. Without that courtesy, it's possible that Republicans may well have found enough malcontents willing to inconvenience everyone, just to make the point that you shouldn't stick your finger in anyone's eye if you don't have to. I mean, if you can vote against your own filibuster -- which is exactly what they just did -- then anything's possible.

On the Radar:

• The "Coburn Omnibus" has been introduced and assigned a bill number: S. 3297.
• The House Judiciary Committee has Attorney General Michael Mukasey before them today, for a general DOJ oversight hearing. But look for some close questioning of the AG on topics including Karl Rove's claim of "absolute immunity" from subpoena, Mukasey's own refusal to turn over FBI reports of their interview with Dick Cheney regarding the Valerie Plame outing, and the enforcement of contempt of Congress charges against various officials, possibly to include Mukasey himself.

Off the Radar:

• Senate appropriators are likely giving up on moving their bills forward for the rest of the 110th Congress. Just as with their House counterparts, Republicans trying to shoehorn offshore drilling into every bill has frayed the Democrats' last nerve.
• A Senate "resolution of disapproval" aimed at blocking the Bush "administration's" heap of new rules making it harder for states to expand their SCHIP programs may now be doomed, a victim of poor clock management. The resolution, permitted under a procedure for negating executive rule-making established by the Congressional Review Act of 1996 (PDF), was submitted too late to qualify under the rules as privileged, which puts a motion to proceed to consideration of the motion at risk of a filibuster. Whose job was it to be watching the deadline? Why, none other than Health Subcommittee Chairman Jay Rockefeller. Where do you suppose his head has been, lately? Whoops! Sorry, kids! But at least we'll be able to tell when you're sick by monitoring your calls to the doctor. And maybe the phone companies will pick up your health care bills, now that they don't have to spend their money on lawyers.

No surprise here:

President Bush has asserted executive privilege to prevent Attorney General Michael Mukasey from having to comply with a House panel subpoena for material on the leak of CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity.

A House committee chairman, meanwhile, held off on a contempt citation of Mukasey — who had requested the privilege claim — but only as a courtesy to lawmakers not present.

Rep. Henry Waxman, chairman of the House Oversight Committee, rejected Mukasey's suggestion that Vice President Dick Cheney's FBI interview on the CIA leak should be protected by the privilege claim — and therefore not turned over to the panel.

Waxman said they will act in "a reasonable and appropriate period of time," which means the Attorney General of the United States will soon be cited for contempt of Congress...or there will be a flurry of sternly worded letters.

And yet Attorney General Mukasey is still preventing us from learning what happened.

Five years ago today, on a Monday morning just like today, this happened:

Our bedroom was just beginning to show the first hints of morning light on July 14 when Joe marched in, dropped the newspaper on the bed, and said in a tight voice, "Well, the SOB did it." He set a steaming mug of coffee on my bedside table and left the room. What? I struggled to wake up. I sat up, switched on the lamp, and opened the Washington Post to the op-ed page; I didn't know what I would find, but I knew it wouldn't be good. Rovert Novak had written in his column that "Wilson never worked for the CIA, but his wife, Valerie Plame, is an Agency operative on weapons of mass destruction."

Amongst all the furror over the passage of FISA yesterday few took note of a hearing the Judiciary Committee held with Attorney General Mukasey.   It was a hard-hitting serious of questions about a wide variety of issues.  From politicization, to torture memos, to hiring and firing practices, and selective prosecution many good Senators asked many good questions.  For the most part however Mukasey was evasive.  No one could pin him down.  That was however, until Sen. Joe Biden (D-DE) got his turn.

California Senator Diane Feinstein, supposedly a "liberal voice", proved once again yesterday that her primary allegiances lie with the rich and the powerful and not with her constituents, justice or the Constitution.

Despite a mountain of calls, faxes and e-mails urging her not to do so, she never wavered from her position of flat-out support for telecom immunity and support of the massively flawed FISA bill which now provides the current administration further legal cover for its illegal wiretapping activities.

Similarly, Ms. Feinstein's support (along with that of Sen. Charles Schumer of NY) was largely instrumental in winning approval of Michael Mukasey as attorney general, replacing the disastrous Alberto Gonzales.  And it is becoming increasingly clear how well that has worked out.   Via dday at Digby's Hullabaloo, a review today of just how forthright Mr. Mukasey has been in his actions as AG.....and then a look at Sen. Feinstein's views on the man she helped put in office: