In Chertoff's record, shades of politics

His past at Justice may be a hurdle if he's picked to succeed Alberto Gonzales as attorney general.

By David G. Savage and Tom Hamburger, Los Angeles Times Staff Writers - September 4, 2007



WASHINGTON -- Shortly after President Bush took office in 2001, Michael Chertoff, then head of the Justice Department's criminal division, met with the conservative group Judicial Watch. It wanted criminal charges brought against Hillary Rodham Clinton in connection with a lavish fundraising event in Los Angeles the year before.

"Chertoff personally assured us he would pursue it," the group's president, Tom Fitton, said recently, recalling the meeting with several top Justice officials. "They said they weren't afraid of taking on the Clintons."

Justice did not pursue a case against the senator from New York, but instead went after one of her fundraisers, David Rosen, who eventually was acquitted.

Now Atty. Gen. Alberto R. Gonzales has announced his resignation, brought down in part by allegations that he let politics influence Justice Department decisions. And Chertoff, secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, is a prominent candidate to succeed him.

(full story @ link below)

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-chertoff4sep04,0,6404489.story?coll=la-home-center

Justice Department officials say pressure from Judicial Watch -- which made its name by suing the Clintons in the 1990s -- played no role in the decision to prosecute Rosen. Chertoff will not discuss the case. But it seems to be an early example of department actions under Bush that critics say were tinged with partisanship.

that is like saying that Ben Ginsberg had "shades" of conflict of interest

them is going to get through. Lannie Davis is voicing his support for Ted Olson (another huge impeachment mover). Also, either of these guys is much smarter and savy than Gonzales which makes them so much more dangerous.