Bush political adviser attended meeting where witness on prosecutor firings was coached

[G_j]

Source: The Associated Press

Bush political adviser attended meeting where witness on prosecutor firings was coached

Published: May 4, 2007


WASHINGTON: A senior Justice Department official who testified about performance shortcomings of several fired U.S. attorneys has told congressional investigators he was coached the day before at a White House meeting attended by President George W. Bush's top political adviser, Karl Rove.

The witness, Associate Deputy Attorney General William Moschella, said he was urged during the dinner hour meeting on March 5 to specify publicly reasons for the dismissals, according to a transcript of the investigators' April 24 interview with him.

Until the March 6 hearing before a House Judiciary subcommittee, Justice Department officials had said publicly only that some of the firings were based on performance, offering no specifics. At the hearing, Moschella laid out detailed criticism of each of five fired prosecutors' specific performance.

Democrats, relying on thousands of e-mails exchanged among White House and Justice Department officials and testimony at other hearings, have insisted the firings were a political purge based on the prosecutors' perceived loyalty to Bush and their disregard for or reluctance to advance the Republicans' political agenda.



Read more: http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/05/05/america/NA-GEN-US-Fired-Prosecutors.php

[journalist3072]

1. Yep...was discussing it in this thread:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=826221&mesg_id=826221

[BleedingHeartPatriot]

2. First Newsweek, now AP. I notice Rove's name isn't in the subject line on a Saturday night.

Trying to quickly report, then bury.

Please, please, please Democratic Congress, subpoena Rove testify about his role in the DOJ firings.

MKJ

[rodeodance]

3. hey, I noticed that also. --I said to myself---"rove" is a shorter headline! odd

[struggle4progress]

4. New Story for Firing Emerges (WaPo)

~snip~ n a separate development, officials said that presidential adviser Karl Rove attended a crucial planning meeting March 5, the day before House testimony by Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General William E. Moschella. Moschella and Deputy Attorney General Paul J. McNulty have told congressional investigators that Rove attended the meeting along with White House Counsel Fred F. Fielding, Deputy Counsel William Kelley and other White House aides, congressional aides said.

McNulty and Moschella said that the meeting focused on how Moschella should describe the reasons for firing the eight prosecutors, and that none of the White House officials disclosed the extent of White House involvement in the dismissals at the session.

White House spokeswoman Dana M. Perino said yesterday that "it is not at all unusual, nor is it inappropriate, for people at the White House to meet with members of the administration before they are going up to testify in front of Congress."

Rove's involvement in the meeting was first described on Newsweek magazine's Web site. ~snip~

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/04/AR2007050402169.html

[Doctor_J]

5. I would bet that impeachment does not arise from this

Just a wild hunch

[LiberalFighter]

6. Dana Perino was at 3/5 meeting too