Mukasey: Ignoring Subpeonas Legal.

[SirNitram]

Link

WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General Michael Mukasey on Friday rejected referring the House's contempt citations against two of President Bush's top aides to a federal grand jury. Mukasey says they committed no crime.

Mukasey said White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten and former presidential counsel Harriet Miers were right in refusing to provide Congress White House documents or testify about the firings of federal prosecutors.

"The department will not bring the congressional contempt citations before a grand jury or take any other action to prosecute Mr. Bolten or Ms. Miers," Mukasey wrote House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

The House voted two weeks ago to cite Bolten and Mukasey for contempt of Congress and seek a grand jury investigation. Most Republicans boycotted the vote.

Pelosi requested the grand jury investigation on Thursday and gave Mukasey a week to reply. She said the House would file a civil suit seeking seeking enforcment of the contempt citations if federal prosecutors declined to seek misdemeanor charges against Bolten and Miers.

Mukassey took only a day to get back to her. But he had earlier joined his predecessor, Alberto Gonzales, in telling lawmakers they would refuse to refer any contempt citations to prosecutors because Bolten and Miers were acting at Bush's instruction.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General Michael Mukasey is refusing to refer the House's contempt citations against two of President Bush's to aides to a federal grand jury. Mukasey says they committed no crime.

In a letter Friday, he told House Speaker Nancy Pelosi that White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten and former presidential counsel Harriet Miers were right in refusing to turn over documents or testify about the firings of federal prosecutors.

The House voted two weeks ago to cite Bolten and Mukasey for contempt of Congress and seek a grand jury investigation. Most Republicans boycotted the vote.

Pelosi has threatened to file a civil suit over the issue.

(This version CORRECTS headline to reflect one current and one former aide involved.)

As I've posted before, the Citation language specifically runs-around Inherent Contempt to avoid Blue Dog/GOP interference and allows Conyers to directly file a civil action.

[CmdrWilkens]

The only problem with the civil suit is that, IIRC correctly, the courts have at least occasionally decided not to decide on the issue since it is a political doctrine question. They used it to ignore one of the contempt citations the Dems passed back when Regan's administration was being a douche.

[Eris]

There is only one many who can save us now. Wilson Livingood it is your duty as Sergeant at Arms to take up the Mace of the United States House of Representatives and bring these two fugitives to justice before Congress.

If that doesn't happen I'm going to be seriously disappointed. Think of the entertainment value alone. We could practically write an epic about it.

[Patrick Degan]

Well, didn't take Mukasey long to prove just what a useless, corrupt sack of shit he really is, did it? Exactly what one can expect of a Bush appointee.

[Flagg]

Well, didn't take Mukasey long to prove just what a useless, corrupt sack of shit he really is, did it? Exactly what one can expect of a Bush appointee.

He proved that when he still refused to make a judgment on whether or not waterboarding was legal after being sworn in and given time to "look at all of the classified documents".

[SirNitram]

There is only one many who can save us now. Wilson Livingood it is your duty as Sergeant at Arms to take up the Mace of the United States House of Representatives and bring these two fugitives to justice before Congress.

If that doesn't happen I'm going to be seriously disappointed. Think of the entertainment value alone. We could practically write an epic about it.

Yes. About how it failed when the conservatives in the House loyally folded like cards and let them go.

[Edi]

So, does that mean there's now precedent for anyone else to ignore subpoenas at will too? Because they could simply quote Mukasey to back them up and since it would be about some common peon instead of the ones in power, it'd be guaranteed to go to court.

[The Yosemite Bear]

hmmm, might make jury duty much more interesting.

oh, wait I do comply with that supeona, it's the neo-cons and fundies in my redneck county that keep ignoring it...

so anyone have odds on if I will be 4 for 3 on jury duty supeonas this year?

(federal grand jury last two years, murder trial year before last)

[EmperorChrostas the Cruel]

Depends. Are you a government official acting under orders from the executive branch? Has the supeona been chalenged, and the challenge not yet resolved? Is a jury summons the same as a supeona? I doubt it. Hint, are you being compelled to testify while on this jury?

Hint. Until the validity of this supeona is upheld, and THEN refused, will there be no grounds for contempt. Supeonas DO get quashed, and this one is still in the works. The apeal may be rejected, and the supeona upheld. Since the issue is executive privilege, and the division of powers, it may go all the way to the SCOTUS.

The House Democrats are not waiting for it to be decided in ongoing litigation to jump to the end of the process. They are claimng victory in an unfinished dispute, and fowl play at the executive branch not acting like it's already over.

Just as you can't collect on a judgement until the apeal process is done, you can't issue a comtempt citation for a supeans still being challenged.

[Elfdart]

Congress now has three choices:

1) Inherent contempt -something they haven't done in 70 years

2) File articles of impeachment

3) Take it in the ass balls deep from the Republitards, as usual

[EmperorChrostas the Cruel]

Ding ding ding! What's the temperature in Hell? I am in agreement with Elfdart.