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Leahy seeks middle ground on AG hearings, Bush administration’s subpoena compliance |
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By Elana Schor
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Posted: 09/19/07 07:34 PM [ET] |
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) on Tuesday signaled he is willing to meet the White House halfway in talks over how much cooperation with Democratic subpoenas is necessary in order to begin confirmation hearings on attorney general nominee Michael Mukasey.
But as the Bush administration insisted that Democratic document demands are not tied to the nomination, Republicans continued touting the bipartisan praise for Mukasey, aiming to increase the pressure on Leahy to give ground.
“The goal ought to be a timely and fair process for confirming the next attorney general,” Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), a senior Judiciary member, said. “He should not be used as trade bait for something that’s extraneous to this issue.”
After meeting privately with Mukasey, a former federal judge who now advises GOP presidential hopeful and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, Leahy reiterated past acclaim for Mukasey’s qualifications. He told reporters that the White House would not need to release the entire battery of subpoenaed documents on mass U.S. attorney firings and warrantless surveillance in order for confirmation hearings to start.
Releasing material specific to potential lines of questioning at a Mukasey hearing “is relevant to the next nominee and future attorneys general, so that past excesses and mistakes are not repeated,” Leahy said.
The Vermonter and other Judiciary Democrats continue to negotiate with White House counsel Fred Fielding over subpoena compliance. Mukasey remains on the outside of those talks, even as he courted Leahy by citing the legacy of Harold Tyler, a former law partner of the nominee. Tyler maintained cordial relations with the Judiciary Committee while serving as deputy attorney general under President Ford.
The White House dismissed the argument that Democrats need subpoenaed documents in order to appropriately question Mukasey, for whom it is seeking a confirmation vote by Columbus Day.
“These issues are separate. Judge Mukasey deserves to be confirmed,” White House spokeswoman Dana Perino told reporters Tuesday. “And these very senators are the ones who said that we need to have Justice Department leadership … [Mukasey] should not be held hostage to politics.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), also a Judiciary member, predicted that Democrats would pay a political price for delaying a Mukasey hearing as subpoena talks with the White House drag on.
“Protracted debate about documents that probably will be covered by executive privilege does not seem to help their case,” Graham said.
One Senate GOP aide predicted that Leahy ultimately would abandon efforts to tie the confirmation to White House cooperation. “You can only delay for so long,” the aide said, adding, “at some point, [Democrats] are going to say, ‘Enough, Leahy.’”
Yet some Democrats maintain that sharing information with Congress will be crucial for Mukasey to demonstrate that he is serious about changing the culture at the Justice Department. House Intelligence Committee Chairman Silvestre Reyes (D-Texas) made a direct plea to Mukasey on Tuesday.
“One of your first tasks as attorney general will be to repair [Justice’s] relationship with Congress,” Reyes said during a hearing on modifying the rules for warrantless wiretapping. “You can start by turning over the documents that all members of this [panel] have long sought relating to the [administration’s] surveillance program.”
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), a freshman Judiciary member, said Mukasey’s reputation for balance might make Democrats’ promised overhaul of the surveillance program easier.
“He’s a reasonable person,” Whitehouse said. “I’m guessing it’ll be less ideological.”
Mukasey also met on Tuesday with Sen. Charles Schumer (N.Y.), a Democratic leader who recommended him to the White house, and will meet with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) on Wednesday. |
