[Infowarrior] - US Attornies' Firings Had Genesis in White House

[Richard Forno]

Firings Had Genesis in White House
Ex-Counsel Miers First Suggested Dismissing Prosecutors 2 Years Ago,
Documents Show

By Dan Eggen and John Solomon
Washington Post Staff Writers
Tuesday, March 13, 2007; A01

The White House suggested two years ago that the Justice Department fire all
93 U.S. attorneys, a proposal that eventually resulted in the dismissals of
eight prosecutors last year, according to e-mails and internal documents
that the administration will provide to Congress today.

The dismissals took place after President Bush told Attorney General Alberto
R. Gonzales in October that he had received complaints that some prosecutors
had not energetically pursued voter-fraud investigations, according to a
White House spokeswoman.

Gonzales approved the idea of firing a smaller group of U.S. attorneys
shortly after taking office in February 2005. The aide in charge of the
dismissals -- his chief of staff, D. Kyle Sampson -- resigned yesterday,
officials said, after acknowledging that he did not tell key Justice
officials about the extent of his communications with the White House,
leading them to provide incomplete information to Congress.

Lawmakers requested the documents as part of an investigation into whether
the firings were politically motivated. While it is unclear whether the
documents, which were reviewed yesterday by The Washington Post, will answer
Congress's questions, they show that the White House and other
administration officials were more closely involved in the dismissals, and
at a much earlier date, than they have previously acknowledged.

Seven U.S. attorneys were fired on Dec. 7 and another was fired months
earlier, with little explanation from the Justice Department. Several former
prosecutors have since alleged intimidation, including improper telephone
calls from GOP lawmakers or their aides, and have alleged threats of
retaliation by a Justice Department official.

Administration officials have portrayed the firings as a routine personnel
matter, designed primarily to rid the department of a handful of poor
performers.

But the documents and interviews indicate that the idea for the firings
originated at least two years ago, when then-White House counsel Harriet E.
Miers suggested to Sampson in February 2005 that all prosecutors be
dismissed and replaced.

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031201
818_pf.html