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Domenici Gets a Subpoena

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I’m guessing he’ll cite the William Jefferson and Tom Feeney precedent and ignore this and then Dannehy will hit a wall. But for the moment, at least, Pete’s been served (h/t scribe):

A federal grand jury has subpoenaed records of former Republican Senator Pete Domenici of New Mexico.

[snip]

The grand jury subpoena for some of Domenici’s records has been confirmed by two private attorneys who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not representing the former senator.

Domenici’s attorney, K. Lee Blalack, has declined to comment.

So long as Domenici can shield stuff through speech and debate, he can probably protect Bush without too much personal downside.

They’re Close to Domenici … Are They Close to Bush?

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Murray delivers the news he promised the other day, revealing that the grand jury investigating the US Attorney firings is getting closer to Pete Domenici.

A federal grand jury probe of the firings of nine U.S. attorneys during the Bush administration is focusing on the role played by recently retired Sen. Pete Domenici (R-NM) and former senior Bush White House aides in the 2006 dismissal of David Iglesias as U.S. attorney for New Mexico, according to legal sources familiar with the inquiry.

The federal grand jury is investigating whether Domenici and other political figures attempted to improperly press Iglesias to bring a criminal prosecution against New Mexico Democrats just prior to the 2006 congressional midterm elections, according to legal sources close to the investigation and private attorneys representing officials who prosecutors want to question.  Investigators appear to be scrutinizing Iglesias’ firing in the context of whether he was fired in retaliation because Domenici and others believed that he would not manipulate the timing of prosecutions to help Republicans.

Apparently, Murray’s inquiries to both Domenici and his aide involved in Iglesias’ firing did not reveal whether or not Domenici will now cooperate with the investigation (he refused to cooperate with DOJ’s own investigation). 

Blalack, a partner with the law firm of O’Melveny and Myers, who is representing Domenici in his dealings with the Justice Department, declined to discuss anything related to the matter, including whether his client will cooperate with prosecutors conducting the current federal grand jury probe.

[snip]

Michael Madigan, an attorney representing [Domenici Chief of Staff Steve] Bell, did not respond to several telephone and email requests for a comment for this story.

[snip]

Although Domenici has refused to be interviewed by the Justice Department, and also declined to comment for this story, he said in a statement in March 2007 that "in retrospect I regret making that call and apologize" and that he had "never pressured [Iglesias] or threatened him in any way."

It’ll be interesting to see whether Domenici cooperates. That’s because–according to an often-ignored story from the Albuquerque Journal–Domenici had to call Bush directly to get Iglesias fired.

In the spring of 2006, Domenici told Gonzales he wanted Iglesias out.

Gonzales refused. He told Domenici he would fire Iglesias only on orders from the president. Read more →

Still Investigating Crimes Associated with the USA Purge

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Via Marty Lederman, an update on the investigation(s) into the USA Purge.

But recent behind-the-scenes activity in several investigations suggests that the issue that roiled Congress in 2007 could re-emerge in the heat of the election year. Two inquiries by the House and Senate ethics committees are examining whether several congressional Republicans, including one running for the Senate this year, improperly interfered with investigations.

As potent as the congressional probes might be, they appear to be far narrower than a sprawling inquiry launched by the Justice Department’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) and the Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR).

Investigators from these offices have been questioning whether senior officials lied to Congress, violated the criminal provisions in the Hatch Act, tampered with witnesses preparing to testify to Congress, obstructed justice, took improper political considerations into account during the hiring and firing of U.S. attorneys and created widespread problems in the department’s Civil Rights Division, according to several people familiar with the investigation.

It is mostly just a review. The two most interesting details I found were, firstly, the news that the House and Senate Ethics Committees were still pursuing this. That suggests that–as we suspected–Pete Domenici may well be leaving the Senate because he knows he broke the law when he tried to get David Iglesias fired for not indicting Democrats according to the election schedule. It also means Representative Heather Wilson will have some challenges as she runs for the Senate this year (the House inquiry will predictably lead nowhere, but if this report comes out before the election…). 

The other interesting detail is a partial list of those whom the OIG/OPR investigation have interviewed (including David Iglesias’ wife): Read more →