Firings furor puts Gonzales on hot seat

Did the attorney general mislead Congress about the firings of eight US attorneys?

from the March 15, 2007 edition

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No one questions whether the president or his attorney general has a right to replace US attorneys, who are the top federal prosecutors. Presidents Ronald Reagan and Jimmy Carter did so gradually, letting four-year terms expire. Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton made changes at the start of their terms.

What raises controversy is any appearance that replacements are politically motivated. When Mr. Clinton fired all 93 US attorneys at once in March 1993, critics saw a bid to derail a federal prosecution against Rep. Dan Rostenkowski (D) of Illinois, the powerful chair of the House Ways and Means Committee. It didn't. Mr. Rostenkowski was convicted of mail fraud and later pardoned by Clinton.

"It wasn't a scandal; it was a kerfuffle," says John Pitney, a professor of government at Claremont McKenna College in Claremont, Calif. "That's an example of a story that looked as if it might have something behind it, and it didn't."

But the firing of a critical mass of US attorneys midterm is unusual, therefore raising more questions.

Since 1981, only 54 US attorneys have not filled out their terms, according to a recent Congressional Research Service study. Of those, only eight appeared to be firings for cause. Reasons cited for dismissal in these eight cases include grabbing a TV reporter by the throat, disclosing information on an indictment, perjury, and biting a topless dancer on the arm after losing a big drug case, according to the CRS report.

"There is no doubt...that the Attorney General has the authority to replace United States attorneys. There is a serious question if they are replaced for improper motives," Senator Specter said Tuesday on the Senate floor.

When the scandal broke, Gonzales and other Justice Department officials assured lawmakers that the firings were over performance, not politics, and that the White had not been directly involved. But e-mails released this week show several White House officials to have been deeply engaged in the firing decisions.

A system Sampson used to evaluate US attorneys included whether they "exhibited loyalty to the president and attorney general" or "chafed against administration initiatives." One top-rated US attorney, David Iglesias of the District of New Mexico, was added to the termination list after complaints from Sen. Pete Domenici (R) of New Mexico. Mr. Iglesias testified last week that Senator Domenici had urged him to step up prosecution of corruption charges against Democrats before last year's election.

The released documents also reveal that the White House did not plan to use its new powers under the USA Patriot Act to bypass Senate confirmation for those nominated to replace the eight fired US attorneys, as some lawmakers had feared.

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