Fired Attorney Recalls White House Meeting (highly partisan discussion with Miers!)

[grytpype]

Source: Washington Post

One of the eight former U.S. attorneys fired by the Bush administration said today that White House officials had questioned his performance in highly partisan political terms at a key meeting in Washington last September, three months before his dismissal.

John McKay of Washington state, who had decided two years earlier not to bring voter fraud charges that could undermine a Democratic victory in a closely fought gubernatorial race, said that White House counsel Harriet Miers and her deputy William Kelley "actually asked me why Republicans in the state of Washington would be angry with me."

McKay said on NBC's "Meet the Press" that the question -- which he took as a challenge to his 2004 decision -- surprised him because the issue was reviewed by his office and supported by the FBI's office in Seattle. "We expected to be supported by people in Washington, D.C., when me make tough decisions like that," McKay said.

He added that he took umbrage at the idea that he had other responsibilities beyond focusing "on the evidence and not allow(ing) politics into the work that we do in criminal prosecutions." Those involved in the scandal over the firings who acted unprofessionally "or even illegally" have to be held accountable for what they did, he said.

Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/25/AR2007032500860.html

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Wow, USAgate is really heating up!

I wonder if this is what Sen. Schumer was talking about when he said there are some former DOJ employees who are pretty POd and are talking!

[brentspeak]

1. The spelling in your header needs to be corrected. It's "Miers", not Myers

[drm604]

25. Actually, according to the rules

the header should be "Ex-Prosecutor Says He Faced Partisan Questions Before Firing" which is the headline on that Washington Post article. No skin off of my nose either way, but the mods are probably going to request a change.

[Jackpine Radical]

2. Tell me it's not gonna all go away one morning.

Tell me they're going down on this one.
Please. Even if you have to lie, tell me that anyway.

[merh]

5. Let's put it this way, if the dems do nothing and let this slide

they don't deserve to hold office and we will never have a chance at winning or healing our nation.

[w4rma]

6. I agree. Fortunately it doesn't look like that is even a possibility of being the case. (nt)

[yellowcanine]

16. You mean like the Walter Reed (who?) scandal? Again we see the inablility of the MSM to

cover more than one scandal at a time.

[MasonJar]

3. Thank God these attorneys are speaking up. It is vital to take politics out

of the courts.

[TheCowsCameHome]

4. Al-batross Gonzales can't last much longer - the flames are rising

And the winds are fanning them.

[aquart]

8. Let him burn.

I like my toast with a little charcoal.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

7. I tild my friend, The Lawyer...

What Dear Leader's nickname for Abu Gonzales was: Fredo. He hadn't heard that one. His reaction was "Oh, my god! That tells you everything about the guy! He's a hired hack!".

[thereismore]

9. This just proves that repugs never did get over the close election in WA.

Get over it already!!!

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

10. if there was significant fraud I am sure it was on the GOP side,

Dino (real name) ran a terrible campaign "Locke is a douche bag, I know he isn't running again, but vote for me", his debate performance was a joke, he came across as completely exasperated and unprepared, I recall he just repeated some campaign promises broken by Gary Locke (who wasn't running for re-election).

Dino Rossi didn't seem to be aware of the fact he was running against Christine Gregoire!

I have family involved in State Politics in Washington (Republican) and they had written off the election as had most of their cohort, and out of nowhere an squeeker of an election comes through???

I don't get it... and given Dino seemed reluctant to push the issue very far I suspect he knew something was up too. He didn't even take it to the state supreme court!

[Heathen57]

11. I think the DOJ

needs to pony up for some remedial classes in the Constitution and basic law.

Rule# 1 - Prosecutors are supposed to follow the law, not partisan politics. Supposed to be for all lawyers.

Rule# 2 - If you can't understand rule # 1, then you have no business calling yourself a lawyer.

I doubt that it would do much good since they didn't understand the first time.

I think the best place for Miers and Gonzo to learn this important lesson would be in Attica or Supermax. Then there is always the resort down in Gitmo.

[leftofthedial]

12. and exactly who is going to do what about this?

nobody and nothing

this is a classic repuke fake scandal--burn the token brown-skinned pawn and use the whole affair to deflect attention from the serious treason, theft and crimes against humanity that are ongoing. By the time the house does anything about this scandal, it will be too late to pursue any of the more serious issues. The criminal plutocrats will have gotten away with another generation of crimes against our country, our constitution and the world.

[NewJeffCT]

14. well, they put Al Capone in jail for income tax evasion

even though there was a lot more going on there as well.

Sometimes, you have to take what you can get.

[wakeme2008]

13. And this Repug Hack wanted to be on the Supreme Court

:grr:

[KansDem]

24. Yeah, he's the one who DIDN'T make it!

THAT'S what's truly scary!

The Supreme Court of the United States: wholly-owned subsidiary of the Republican Party.

[Robbien]

15. For six years USA's were being told they work for the RNC

Only hire GOPers, only favor GOPers.

If anyone played fair they were called activist and were drummed out.

The mindset of the justice system has been that the RNC rules.

This is some scary shit.

[suffragette]

22. Very scary, indeed

The attorneys who were forced out are a small number compared to those who weren't.
And how many of the ones who remain have been politicizing the legal process?
Who has been prosecuted during this time by the attorneys who were in lockstep with the RNC?
Have many of them been appointed to be judges?

[UTUSN]

17. The wingnuts shot themselves in the foot by dumpting her out of SCOTUS

If she had made it into the inner sanctum, which she WOULD have if the wingnuts (COULTERgeist, INGRAHAM) had not raised heck, she would have been untouchable for all the crap about her that's coming out.

[IWantAChange]

18. Letting the fired Attorney's build the case is a great move on Dems part...

can't be accused of leaking or partisan witch hunt - just letting the participants tell their story all over MSM and getting FACTS out to the public - it's genius.....

[Jade Fox]

19. Good for McKay for speaking up publically.....

The Republicans were major-ly pissed that McKay would not do their bidding over the gubernatorial election in 2004. I just didn't realize HOW pissed they were--pissed enough to get him fired.

[Supersedeas]

20. And Harriet Bushbot Miers was nearly appointed to the Supreme Court!?!

[paulk]

21. Schumer was probably talking about this -

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,261052,00.html



Prosecutor Says Bush Appointees Interfered With Tobacco Case


http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=389&topic_id=485601

[Mr. Ected]

23. And Yet These Scumbags Whine Incessantly About Judicial Activism

While surrepticiously undermining the autonomy of the judicial branch themselves.

What I hate almost more than the crime is the HYPOCRISY!