Huge contracts awarded to former AG Ashcroft questioned by Judiciary committee

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http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/11/washington/11justice.html?_r=1&ref=todayspaper&oref=slogin

Lawmakers Ask Justice Dept. for Information on Monitors

By PHILIP SHENON
Published: January 11, 2008


WASHINGTON — The chairmen of the House and Senate Judiciary Committees joined in asking the Justice Department on Thursday for details of contracts that the department directed to former Attorney General John Ashcroft and other outside lawyers who are monitoring companies in out-of-court settlements of criminal allegations.

The requests were in separate letters to Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey from Representative John Conyers Jr. of Michigan, the chairman of the House panel, and Senator Patrick J. Leahy of Vermont, his Senate counterpart. Both are Democrats.

The letters followed news reports that the top federal prosecutor in New Jersey directed a medical-supplies company to hire Mr. Ashcroft as a monitor in an out-of-court settlement with the Justice Department last fall. Mr. Ashcroft’s consulting company is to receive payments of $28 million to $52 million under the no-bid contract.

The Justice Department confirmed Thursday that it was conducting an internal review of the procedures used to hire monitors, although it insisted that the review predated the news reports about Mr. Ashcroft’s contract and that the inquiry did not focus on it. There has been no accusation of wrongdoing by Mr. Ashcroft or by the New Jersey prosecutor, United States Attorney Christopher J. Christie.

In his letter to Mr. Mukasey, Mr. Conyers said that he was concerned about “the lack of real oversight and transparency” in the selection of monitors and that many of the monitoring contracts “have been completely shielded from review by either the legislative or judicial branches of the government.”

Mr. Leahy asked Mr. Mukasey for “a list of all contracts, including dollar amounts, awarded since 2001 to outside lawyers retained by companies for monitoring compliance” and to “explain the procedure followed to select the person or firm.”