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With Impeachment Talk Swirling, Bybee Reaches Out to Nevada Lawmakers
Via Think Progress:
Jay Bybee may not be responding to Pat Leahy's invitation that he testify before the Senate Judiciary committee. But that doesn't mean he isn't trying to get out his side of the story behind the scenes.
The federal appeals court judge -- who's now facing widespread calls for his impeachment, thanks to his authorship, as a DOJ lawyer in 2002, of one of the torture memos released last month -- has been quietly reaching out to members of the Nevada congressional delegation.
Reports the Las Vegas Sun:
The judge, who lives in Southern Nevada and has his office in Las Vegas, reached out to Democratic Rep. Dina Titus, who represents Bybee in Nevada's 3rd Congressional District.
And:
Democratic Rep. Shelley Berkley's office was also contacted by Bybee's representative in April. Berkley's spokesman said the two have not met, and he was unsure whether they would.
Both Titus and a spokesman for Berkley told the paper that the lawmakers believe the memos approved torture. It's unclear whether Bybee has been in touch with other members of the delegation.
There have been conflicting accounts of Bybee's current attitude toward his work at OLC. Bybee associates told the Washington Post last month that the judge "was not pleased" with his opinion in the memo he wrote, but Bybee later told the New York Times that he "believed at the time, and continues to believe today, that the conclusions were legally correct."
Josh
Zachary
Democrats couldn't even get 67 votes for something as bipartisan as S-CHIP reauthorization. How do Democrats expect to get 67 votes to remove Jay Bybee?
May 7, 2009 11:38 AM | Reply | Permalink
Only the vote on whether to convict requires 67 Senators, and we're a long way from that point. It's possible that the impeachment hearings would produce some particularly damning evidence that would peal off 7 Republicans. Even if the impeachment doesn't result in a conviction, I believe there's still value in having the hearings and investigation.
I'd like to see Rep. John Conyors schedule hearings and start that investigation through the House Judiciary Committee. I can understand why he'd want to wait for the OPR report though.
May 7, 2009 12:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
The chance that a single Republican would vote to impeach is a pipe dream. And emphasis on "pipe," because anyone who thinks the Republicans won't politicize and polarize the living hell out of any attempt to hold anyone to account for torturing "evildoers" has moved beyond weed to opium.
Not that my opinion means anything, but anyone who wants to have any credibility with me in talking about prosecutions or impeachments or anything else as a result of the torture program has to start by acknowledging that it will be politicized by the Republicans, they will do everything they can to maximize polarization, and the fight presents a significant risk of a) swollowing up Obama's entire agenda and b) ensure that if/when the Republican Party gets back into power, they will be indicting and impeaching people from the last Democratic Administration for no other reason than payback because they are incapable of seeing any other reason why we would have indicted and impreached them for merely going a little Jack Bauer on subhuman Islamofascists.
May 10, 2009 1:41 PM | Reply | Permalink
Look Jim. Deterence is important here. Maybe no impeachment occurs. Remember, of course,bills of impeachment are issued by the HOUSE. The trial is held in the senate.
But getting this information out there puts pressure on future to governmental attorneys to mine their p's & q's and their Ethics Code.
May 7, 2009 12:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
I suggest a different approach to this guy: This is a Congressional integrity issue. He both lied and concealed material information from Congress during his 9th Circ. confirmation process. But for his deceitful and intentionally misleading testimony and response to Congress' written questions, he would not have been confirmed. Simple as that.
As an institution, Congress has a strong interest in maintaining its processes. It doesn't like being lied to. Perjury and/or failing to disclose those patently key memos, and the circumstances surrounding them during the confirmation process are a clear affront to Congress.
Any impeachment effort would be far better served by investigating his confirmation testimony's fraud and deceit aspects rather than simply attacking the substance of the memos themselves.
May 7, 2009 12:50 PM | Reply | Permalink
Good thought. Let's take it a few steps further.
1) Investigate fraud. If proven, fraud is an act of "moral turpitude."
2) Moral turpitude may be grounds for disbarment.
3) Even though there is no formal requirement for a sitting federal judge to be a member in good standing of their bar, I believe all current judges are.
4) There would be substantial pressure on Bybee to resign from the bench if he were disbarred. It is likely that many lawyers and clients would not allow him to preside over their cases, if he were disbarred.
5) Even if he doesn't resign, the fact that he was disbarred could then be used in an impeachment trial.
May 7, 2009 1:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
Bybee needs to reach out to Jane Harman, Im sure she'd give him some help.
May 7, 2009 3:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
What puzzles me is this story that keeps coming back about Bybee being sorry and feeling uncomfortable about the time he spent in the OLC. So, as a sort of penance, he seeks a promotion to a federal court? Wouldn't a more prudent thing have been to either resign from the OLC, resign from his chosen profession, or perhaps do some work for Amnesty or any other international anti-torture group?
May 7, 2009 5:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
That would require intellectual honesty, or at least scruples, neither of which this bunch has.
May 7, 2009 7:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
Methinks all the stories about "friends" of Bye-Bye telling us how "sorry" he is are the result of an astro-turf public relations campaign. Have bucks will travel.
May 10, 2009 10:49 AM | Reply | Permalink
Uh, excuse me... Jay? You have the moral depth of a snail.
May 8, 2009 6:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
First of all, let me say, Bybee's Crocodile tears mean nothing. He never uttered a single word or remorse until his name started popping up as an advocate of torture. I agree with Formerly NCSteve that the Republicans would politicize impeachment hearings. I also believe as more and more details of this come out, it would put Republicans in a difficult position. The Democrats have to position this as unAmerican activities and continue their message that torture is not only illegel, but ineffective.
When I am talking to people who support torture, they always seem to believe the movie myth of a ticking time bomb and a Jack Bauer character trying to save the world. I would say to them, in that scenario, I would torture the guy myself, but that has never happened --not a single documented case. So we can safely take that idiocy off the table. What the US Government did was authorize the use of torture against American soldiers because the enemy will simply say they tortured our guys (and maybe girls) under the same rationale as we tortured others. I have found that to be very a very effective arguement.
I don't believe in political expediency. I didn't approve of it under the GOP and I don't under the Democrats. I don't care if we can get 67 Republicans, start the hearings and let the chips fall. I blieve the American people will eventually come around the the right side on this.
May 10, 2009 11:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
I think Bybee is scared to death.
May 11, 2009 1:30 PM | Reply | Permalink