David Ogden Steps Down at DOJ
More turmoil in the Obama Administration’s legal team.
Deputy Attorney General David W. Ogden, the Justice Department’s second in command, is stepping aside to return to private law practice in Washington after less than a year of service, according to two sources familiar with the move.
Ogden had managed the day-to-day operations of the department’s more than 100,000 employees since his Senate confirmation earlier this year.
I can only imagine what the back story to this is–but this is not a good way to turn DOJ around from its Alberto Gonzales disfunctionality.
First guess: this probably shows us there will be no actions taken after release of the OLC report.
I wonder if this has anything to do with delays in releasing the OLC report?
Also, was Ogden the guy who was supposed to re-staff the DOJ, cleaning out the Bush-Cheney moles? Was his responsibility primarily hiring-firing, or did he also have supervision responsibilities?
Bob in AZ
I noticed at Main Justice that they now have an interactive chart to show Bush holdovers as US Attorneys. Still lots of red in the chart…
And speaking of Main Justice:
What does “too territorial” mean in this context?
Bob in AZ
Thanks for the link for this chart of all US Attorneys!
I see that there are a dozen Bush holdovers for whom no replacement has even been nominated.
Of the others, I do not have any knowledge to know how many are Bush political hacks, or decent USAs.
Of course there is one Bush holdover who has been nominated to continue that I support — Patrick Fitzgerald!
Bob in AZ
Leura Canary right at the top should have been gone on day one. What’s with this administration and l’Affaire Don Siegelman?
Absolutely. Their behavior on that one stinks.
As with much else about this administration, it’s done a Bush. In this case, that means defining down its job description in order to qualify itself as a success – and to avoid the most horrible sin Villagers can imagine: legitimate conflict over issues of substance. In many cases, that means it has concluded there’s nothing about Bush’s egregious legal and regulatory dismantling that it wants to change.
From its public statements, this administration has concluded there is no l’Affaire Siegelman, except in the mind of a convicted felon. Another reason I wish Dawn Johnsen would publicly remove her name from consideration as head of OLC, citing irreconcilable differences over priorities and issues of legal substance.
Not that I would know, but Holder’s statement sounds pretty minimal to me given Ogden’s position. Like Jim, I’m wondering whether this has anything to do with the OPR report?
Bad sign. A cabinet deputy does not resign after less than a year in office unless there is something seriously wrong – either personally or professionally. And I don’t think an appendicitis attack qualifies.
Uh oh.
Was it personal differences or to spend more time with his family. Major law firm partners are not known for working less than 24/7, so it seems unlikely to be the latter.
Turning around the DoJ is something Mr. Obama has obviously decided requires looking back. He has, therefore, decided to avoid it. Amazing, isn’t it, how many victories a football team can win when their opponent is so afraid of taking a knock or two, that it avoids picking up the ball at their feet and running with it.
Well, here’s a bunch of aimless, kinda baseless spec –
Early on in discussions about the OPR report, Holder said that he hadn’t seen it yet and that Ogden, as DAG, would get it before Holder.
http://www.mainjustice.com/2009/05/20/holder-opr-report-on-torture-memo-authors-expected-soon/
From May 20,
There were also reports that Ogden was getting some pressure from Durbin (can’t find a link right now) to get the OPR report moving.
Ogden comes to his slot as DAG (and presumably is going back) from WilmerHale (the mega merged combo of Hale & Dorr with Wilmer, Cutler, Pickering)
Ogden was very notably slippery and non-condemning in his nomination when it came to torture questions.
Someone else who was just as non-condeming of torture in HIS nomination proceedings was Ogden’s former law partner at WilmerHale – Stephen Preston. Preston is who Obama put in as Gen Counsel for the CIA.
And Daniel Levin, who together with Comey signed off on at least one memo that was at least as bad as anything from Yoo – although still IMO not quite as depraved as what came from Bradbury – is an ex-Hale & Dorr partner.
WilmerHale, is huge – and it is also deserving of some kudos for things like its Boumediene involvement. But the fact of the matter is, some very tapped in guys with the WilmerHale “family” are in the sign off chain on some of the memos (Levin) or have strongly vested interests in keeping the OPR report from shaking the foundations of the CIA actions and reliance (Preston) or are in a position to delay the report (Ogden).
And while once upon a time it looked like Ogden would be the last step before the OPR report got to Holder, more recently we are hearing that it Margolis is the last step reviewer.
So I’m thinking that, while you could go several way on this story, two possibles that aren’t great news for the OPR would be: 1) Ogden was there to help provide cover for Preston at CIA and he’s at Mission Accomplished now, as an OPR (that already was worth very little imo given the limits on mandate and topic within mandate) that is wildly watered down is about to become a fait accompli and Ogden can go back to making the WilmerHale bucks; or 2) Ogden has been a big block on the OPR, it is coming out watered down as he and Preston pushed for (while pushing Craig out) and the bone Obama is going to toss to Holder (after having knifed Craig in the back) and what he’s going to offer up to forestall more defections like Philip Carter is kicking out Ogden – now, of course, that it’s too late. He’ll couple it with his finally realized Johnsen nomination (two guys who couldn’t figure out if torture was a bad thing or not – Ogden and Preston – flew through advice and consent, while Johnsen,despite heavy hitters like Lugar, Bayh and Lee Hamilton in her court, is just now going
forward).
OTOH, it could all be very very different. I just thought the torture answers from Ogden and Preston, coupled with their backgrounds, their linkage in the chains of the Admin, and the WilmerHale ties to Levin as well – were all food for fodder.
Thanks for the info on Ogden’s hearing and questions on torture. It doesn’t sound like he’s a huge loss, then. Maybe his departure could even be good news?