Schumer key in picking new federal prosecutors

[Robbien]

WASHINGTON — The change in administration offers real hope that it will not be business as usual in the way federal prosecutors are picked in New York, particularly for the Western District of the state.

Sen. Charles E. Schumer, the third-ranking Senate Democrat and chairman of a Judiciary subcommittee, will be a dominant voice in those choices, particularly in view of the likely departure of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton.

The recent past has not been uniformly kind to the U. S. attorney’s office in the Western District. It has sometimes been driven by partisan Republican politics, tainted by ideological excesses and lampooned in a movie.

. . .

Schumer says he has just begun thinking about the next set of federal prosecutors, but has not ruled out relying on a screening panel to help him give the best advice to Obama on the nominations.

“I have three main criteria,” Schumer said. “Excellence is the first. They cannot be hacks. The next is moderation. They can’t be extreme, either too far to the left or too far to the right. And I will seek diversity, hoping to help fill these posts with underrepresented people in society.”

http://www.buffalonews.com/149/story/546701.html


Schumer, the most business-friendly senator of the bunch is going to be "moderate". Which probably means to him moderate in social issues. Using his moderation in social issues as a smokescreen Schumer will cram through justices who believe the public be damned, business rights rule.

[lapfog_1]

1. Didn't he also "highly recommend" Mukasey? -n/t

[alsame]

4. Yes, he and DiFi did. I am a NYer and I don't want Chuckie

having too much influence.

[spotbird]

8. Yeah, this is another disappointment

At least Obama is going to close GITMO.

[Mass]

2. NY State paper pushing its own senator. Leahy is the chair of the

SJC. Kennedy is n 2. Feingold is on it as is Durbin, and many other ones.

Yes, Schumer is an influential member of the committee, but not the only one.

[Robbien]

6. Thanks for that. Didn't notice they were mainly talking about NY justice system

Leahy is a great choice for the US justice. Not a Federalist bone in his body I believe.


Poor New York state stuck with Schumer-style justices.

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

3. #1. Bring back Carol Lam and tell her to pick up where she left off

in her investigations.

If that's no good, at the very least make sure the new USA gets debriefed by her about what she unearthed.

[John Q. Citizen]

5. There he goes applying an ideological test.

[Robbien]

7. Notice that he wants to bring back balance to a system that is far right wing

by selecting "moderate" justices. No leftie justices for Schumer.

So how does hiring "moderate" justices bring balance to a far right system? Wouldn't that mean the system still would lean right since the left end of the teeter totter is empty?

[Mojambo]

9. More corporatist Judges. Oh joy.

:(