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WH Seeks to Delay Answering Congressional Subpoenas
Nothing can ever be easy with these two.
The Justice Department, on behalf of Harriet Miers and Joshua Bolten, filed its request for appeal today in the July 31 ruling in House Judiciary Committee v. Miers et al.
While the appeal is resolved, however, the DOJ also requested that the judge grant a stay on the subpoenas, allowing Miers and Bolten to continue to evade the House Judiciary Committee.
From the AP:
Without a quick stay of the ruling, Miers and Bolten may be forced to testify before an appeal can be heard, the two said in a court filing. Democrats have announced they would schedule hearings in September, at the height of election season."Whatever the proper resolution of the extraordinarily important questions presented, the public interest clearly favors further consideration of issues before defendants are required to take actions that may forever alter the constitutional balance of separation of powers," the Bolten and Miers request said.
A stay would also benefit Republicans, since the subpoenas expire at the end of the year, not long before Bush leaves office.
Late Update: Also today, White House Counsel Fred Fielding sent a letter to Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, saying that despite the court order last week, the White House will wait for the outcome of its appeal before responding to further subpoena request.
Comments (13)
Remember the recent Republican stunt during the recess, conducting a sit in. Maybe Conyers should adopt that tactic. Scheduling hearings before camera for 10 days before the election where they are asked to show up and their contempt of the House and even their patriotism is put on daily display. I know, this is a cheap tactic but it seems the way the game is pled these days.
August 7, 2008 3:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
This is tactical. They know if the matter is not resolved before the end of the year, it will automatically be dropped and will have to be re-voted by a new congress.
August 7, 2008 3:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
Since Suskind's book reveals that there are interrogation rooms beneath the White House, I suppose that there are torture chambers down there, too.
Torture and injustice--that's what this White House stands for.
August 7, 2008 3:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
Government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.
Why is this happening in America today and why do we allow it?
August 7, 2008 3:40 PM | Reply | Permalink
They're delaying for the eventual Presidential pardon that they know is coming in the early new year.
August 7, 2008 3:43 PM | Reply | Permalink
What's the point of delaying for a pardon? Even if they get pardoned the next Congress can subpoena them again and they either testify or become subject to contempt charges all over again.
August 7, 2008 3:48 PM | Reply | Permalink
That's just a pro forma step they are getting out of the way - to ask for a stay from the Dist. Ct. Judge. Part of his rationale for ruling was that allowing the judicial tug of war to continue too long would moot the subpoenas and set up a system wher they could continually be mooted by delay, since each 2 year period ushers in a "new" Congress that would have to start over.
But they have to get out of the way asking him first, before they go to the appellate court and ask for the same. My expectation is that will be the interesting "ask" and the response the makes or brakes.
August 7, 2008 3:48 PM | Reply | Permalink
OK, let's say that Bush makes a blanket pardon, of all of the White House crimes and everything that involves torture. Then, next year or the year after, Congress issues new subpoenas. Then, if Meirs, Bolton, Rove, Gonzales, etc. lie before Congress, the pardons won't do them any good. If they don't lie, we will be able to find out the whole truth.
August 7, 2008 5:41 PM | Reply | Permalink
There's a detailed piece at HuffPo about the Justice Department's investigation into the firings of nine U.S. attorneys. Apparently the investigation has been extended to include senior White House officials who are "alleged" to have provided false and misleading information to Congress. Rove, Miers, Sampson, et al.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/08/07/white-house-nightmare-sce_n_117548.html
August 7, 2008 5:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
"The Justice Department, on behalf of Harriet Miers and Joshua Bolten...."
Is this not just more of the same politicizing by the Department of Justice and Mukasey?
Is this not the same Department of Justice that the American people are supposed to trust to imparitally investigate criminial wrong doing and to prosecute criminal wrong doers - including a sitting president and members of his staff who are, supposedly, not above the law?
You don't have to be a blind conservative not to see it, just an ignorant one to deny it.
August 7, 2008 9:46 PM | Reply | Permalink
Then Bolten and Bush43's 'office wife' can wait out the appeal in a Federal holding cell . . .
August 7, 2008 9:51 PM | Reply | Permalink
The WH obviously has a huge interest in not "forever alter[ing] the constitutional balance of separation of powers." They wish to maintain their theory that the WH has infinite power and Congress has none. What are these people hiding? We think we want to know; we will probably be shocked to the very core of our beings. I know personally that my faith in the integrity of the office of the President has been forever altered - all thanks to the gleeful evil-doing of bush and his grinning band of monkeys. We can never again allow this to happen.
August 8, 2008 1:12 AM | Reply | Permalink
Watch Pelosi go along with the delays... another nail in the coffin of the head Democrat doing everything to look tough but not enforce the law... she and other key Democrats get real nervous when the their actions bring the law close to Bush..Cheney has something hanging over these people. The corruption goes DEEP.
August 8, 2008 10:04 AM | Reply | Permalink