Immunity For Ex Gonzales Aide Considered

Will a former aide to Justice chief Alberto Gonzales be granted immunity to testify?Immunity for Ex-Gonzales Aide ConsideredBy Cliff Montgomery – Apr. 25th, 2007The row between Congress and the Bush Administration over the firing of eight U.S. attorneys is escalating again. Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee said last week they are considering an offer of immunity to a potential key witness in the investigation.As that went on, the Republican National Committee (RNC) flatly rejected congressional demands that it turn over emails related to the firings, which angered some on the Hill.Disappointed by Monica Goodling’s invocation of her Fifth Amendment right not testify for fear of incrimination, committee Democrats have said they may grant the former counsel to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales limited-use immunity.Such a deal would free Goodling to speak about both the plan to replace the U.S. attorneys and administration moves during its aftermath, without fear that prosecutors may use the testimony against her in a criminal proceeding. But the grant would require the approval of two-thirds of the nearly 40-member panel.Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers Jr. (D-MI) cited Goodling’s double duty as Gonzales’ aide and the Justice Department’s point-person to the White House for the unusual immunity offer, adding that she could “clear up the many inconsistencies and gaps surrounding this matter.””Ms. Goodling clearly has much to contribute to the committee’s understanding of the surrounding circumstances,” said Conyers.The immunity vote has been postponed until later this month, aides told the Washington Post.Eight federal prosecutors were fired last year as part of a plan originated in the White House to replace them, apparently because of their “disloyalty” to President Bush and his policies. Of course, U.S. attorneys are to have loyalty only to the law and the American people, and not to a career politician.The subsequent outrage over these firings has only grown, in part because internal emails and other documents released by the Justice Department openly contradicts some of the public statements and testimony of Gonzales and his top aides regarding the reasons for the firings.The RNC has agreed to administration requests that all documents from White House officials who used RNC email accounts first be reviewed by Bush’s lawyers–which, in view of events, is a bit like letting the fox guard your henhouse. Balance of power means the other branches of government get to investigate all your branch has done to cause a potential constitutional crisis, not that you get to show them only what you choose to show them.Congress has demanded several years’ worth of emails from top administration spinmeisters, including Karl Rove, as part of its investigation of the U.S. attorney firings.In letters to the House and Senate Judiciary committees, an RNC lawyer–who apparently has  never heard of Watergate–claimed the documents belong to the White House.”Recognizing the unique and significant nature of the potential privilege issue raised by the committee’s requests, the RNC has agreed to the White House’s reasonable request,” Robert K. Kelner, an RNC lawyer, spun to Conyers. Conyers retorted that the move was “a clear attempt on the administration’s part to delay this process.”House and Senate investigators have pounced on emails by Scott Jennings, the Bush Administration’s deputy political director, who used RNC email accounts to write of Rove’s desire to appoint a former aide as the new U.S. attorney in Little Rock. The previous Little Rock prosecutor, Bud Cummins, was one of the eight fired last year.In fact, almost one-third of the nearly four dozen U.S. attorney’s jobs that have changed hands since George W. Bush began his second term have been filled by the administration with trusted White House insiders, according to the Washington Post.It appears that as many as four years’ worth of Rove’s emails written on RNC computers may be “missing”. The emails are also being demanded in a congressional investigation of the possible politicization of the General Services Administration.When the congressional committees realized that Rove, Jennings and other administration aides were using RNC accounts in a possible attempt to avoid congressional oversight, they demanded access to those emails.If Goodling is granted immunity, the Justice Department may object only if it proves that such an arrangement would interfere with a criminal investigation. While there are no known criminal probes on the prosecutor firings, the department’s inspector general and Office of Professional Responsibility have begun reviews to determine if any policies were violated.At this point, even many Republicans have had enough. GOP presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee on Monday said that Gonzales has become a “major distraction” for George Bush and the Republican Party, and suggested that the Attorney General should voluntarily step aside.”Sometimes the best position would be for the appointee to make the decision and not force the president to do so,” Huckabee said to Associated Press reporters and editors in an interview.