More documents released in firing probe

Source: Associated Press

More documents released in firing probe

By LAURIE KELLMAN, Associated Press Writer
42 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - The Justice Department on Friday sent Congress more
documents on the firings of U.S. attorneys, satisfying one Democratic
demand even as a new fight erupted over White House e-mails that may
have been lost.

Anticipating the documents' release to House and Senate committees,
a lawyer for Attorney General Alberto Gonzales' one-time chief of staff
postponed Kyle Sampson's closed-door interview Friday with aides to the
House and Senate Judiciary Committees, panel officials said.

The release of new documents was unlikely to quell the storm of official
letters and threats that flew across town on Thursday over the White
House's claim that the e-mails in question — government business required
by law to be retained — may have been deleted.

The two committees acknowledged Friday morning that they had received
new documents and said they planned to release them publicly as soon as
possible. The Justice Department had declined to release the documents
publicly, citing privacy concerns.

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Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070413/ap_on_go_co/fired_prosecutors_97

Source: Associated Press

Justice weighed prosecutors' politics

By LARA JAKES JORDAN, Associated Press Writer
35 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - The Justice Department weighed political activism
and membership in a conservative law group in evaluating the
nation's federal prosecutors, documents released in the probe of
fired U.S. attorney show.

The political credentials were listed on a chart of all 124 U.S.
attorneys nominated since 2001, a document that could bolster
Democrats' claims that the traditionally independent Justice
Department has become more partisan during the Bush
administration.

The chart was included in documents released Friday by the
department Friday to congressional panels investigating whether
the firings last year of the U.S. attorneys were politically
motivated — an inquiry that has Attorney General Alberto
Gonzales fighting for his own job.

"This is the chart that the AG requested," Monica Goodling,
Justice's former liaison to the White House, wrote in a Feb. 12
e-mail to two other senior department officials. "I'll show it to
him on the plane tomorrow, if he's interested."

-snip-

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070413/ap_on_go_pr_wh/fired_prosecutors

SOP for these assclowns.