| The New York Times 5/1/07 “It appears they were looking for ways to get him.” |
The government charged the pair with a crime that hasn't been a crime in Alabama, or anywhere.
Countless contributors to political campaigns end up holding some kind of public office just as Mr.
Scrushy did. Why did that activity suddenly become a crime in Alabama? The judge and prosecutors
saw beyond the law and convinced jurors the two committed a crime. The case smells of politics just
as the alleged political firing of the U.S. attorneys is troubling, so is this case because the suspicions
go to the heart of our system of self-governance. Congress should look beyond those firings and
into this case.
[The Decatur Daily, Editorial, 4/26/07] < link to full article>
Countless contributors to political campaigns end up holding some kind of public office just as Mr.
Scrushy did. Why did that activity suddenly become a crime in Alabama? The judge and prosecutors
saw beyond the law and convinced jurors the two committed a crime. The case smells of politics just
as the alleged political firing of the U.S. attorneys is troubling, so is this case because the suspicions
go to the heart of our system of self-governance. Congress should look beyond those firings and
into this case.
[The Decatur Daily, Editorial, 4/26/07] < link to full article>
Congress must reassert the balance of powers
Editorial by Leslie Sloan former U.S. Attorney in the San Francisco Chronicle
The White House, by proclaiming that it will not let the Justice
Department pursue contempt charges against a former White House
official who failed to comply with a congressional subpoena for
information regarding the firing of nine U.S. attorneys, has declared the
executive branch to be superior, rather than co-equal, to the other two
branches of government. Congress must look for other avenues of
redress to protect its oversight role.
....This leaves one final option:
Congress could pass a statute specifically granting federal
courts the authority to hear either just this specific matter or
to hear any cases involving the enforcement of
congressional subpoenas against the executive branch.
In 1973, the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign
Finances sought civil enforcement of its subpoena for Watergate tapes
and documents. After a lower court refused to hear the matter,
Congress passed legislation authorizing jurisdiction over just this
specific suit. Ultimately, the committee lost, namely because the House
Judiciary Committee already had the tapes. Nonetheless, by enacting
the statute, Congress had its day in court.
Melanie Sloan, a former assistant U.S. attorney, is the executive director
of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW).
<link to source>
.........................................................................................................................................................
Some Ideas for an Alabama Democratic
Politician
By Legal Schnauzer Friday August 31, 2007
We should have nonpartisan races for all judges, not just appeals-court
judges.
* Better still, judges should be appointed, using some type of bipartisan
system; they work well in several states....
* There should be some level of verified competence that a lawyer has
to meet in order to run for judge. Here's a huge myth: Judges are among
the most competent and qualified lawyers available. That's not even
remotely true.
<link to source>
Editorial by Leslie Sloan former U.S. Attorney in the San Francisco Chronicle
The White House, by proclaiming that it will not let the Justice
Department pursue contempt charges against a former White House
official who failed to comply with a congressional subpoena for
information regarding the firing of nine U.S. attorneys, has declared the
executive branch to be superior, rather than co-equal, to the other two
branches of government. Congress must look for other avenues of
redress to protect its oversight role.
....This leaves one final option:
Congress could pass a statute specifically granting federal
courts the authority to hear either just this specific matter or
to hear any cases involving the enforcement of
congressional subpoenas against the executive branch.
In 1973, the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign
Finances sought civil enforcement of its subpoena for Watergate tapes
and documents. After a lower court refused to hear the matter,
Congress passed legislation authorizing jurisdiction over just this
specific suit. Ultimately, the committee lost, namely because the House
Judiciary Committee already had the tapes. Nonetheless, by enacting
the statute, Congress had its day in court.
Melanie Sloan, a former assistant U.S. attorney, is the executive director
of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW).
<link to source>
.........................................................................................................................................................
Some Ideas for an Alabama Democratic
Politician
By Legal Schnauzer Friday August 31, 2007
We should have nonpartisan races for all judges, not just appeals-court
judges.
* Better still, judges should be appointed, using some type of bipartisan
system; they work well in several states....
* There should be some level of verified competence that a lawyer has
to meet in order to run for judge. Here's a huge myth: Judges are among
the most competent and qualified lawyers available. That's not even
remotely true.
<link to source>
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| __________________________________________________________________________________________ Sponsored by Friends of Don Siegelman 2007 <feedback> __________________________________________________________________________________________ |
Questions....
How to Turn it Around
How to Turn it Around
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Preserve the judiciary's constitutional role as a check on executive
abuses
abuses
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