The Daily MuckSen. Olympia Snow (R-ME) and Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) have not called for the resignation of Alberto Gonzales, but they both offered harsh criticism of the Attorney General after discovering that their state’s US Attorney spent time on the now-infamous firing list. (Portland Press Herald)
Gonzales’ performance over the past few months has reinforced the image put forth by his critics that the Attorney General is a “yes-man” to President Bush. (Associated Press)
US Attorneys across the country learned last week that many of them had been considered for replacement. Since then, several have been quick to point out their positive job reviews, while few recall hearing anything negative about their performance. (McClatchy Newspapers)
Meanwhile, Gonzales faced criticism from within the Justice Department. In a meeting with most of the current US Attorneys, more than a dozen prosecutors expressed concern about the scandal’s impact on the national system of justice. (Washington Post)
Wanted: a new Deputy Attorney General. (Legal Times)
Weeks before former US Attorney David Iglesias (NM) appeared on the Justice Department firing list, he sat down for lunch with a prominent Republican lawyer from New Mexico. According to Iglesias, the topic of the hour was voter fraud prosecutions, the lack of which Iglesias thinks led to his firing. (LA Times)
John McKay is not mincing words: he claims that the Justice Department is covering up the real reason for his firing.
The National Intelligence Council published two white papers as early as 2003 that predicted that a US occupation of Iraq could produce internal violence and an increase in terrorism and Islamic extremism. The reports, which are scheduled to be declassified this week, were available to the White House during the period of pre-war assessment. (Washington Post)
Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI) and Rep. John Murtha (D-PA) are set to take last week’s fight over earmarks to the House floor. Rogers intends to seek a House vote (sub. req.) on whether to reprimand Murtha for allegedly threatening to deny Rogers the opportunity to place earmarks in future appropriations bills. (Roll Call)
Rep. John Doolittle (R-CA) has found a way to explain the FBI’s repeated interest in his wife’s business dealings with Jack Abramoff: Democratic staffers at the Department of Justice. (Sacramento Bee)
The Senate is considering its first bill since the chamber adopted new rules on earmarking. For all the posturing on reform, the Democrats have let 446 earmarks into the bill, up from 272 that were in last year’s draft under Republican leadership. (LA Times)