Arkansas News: "U.S. Attorney Flap Escalates" (Senate Dems Liken To Nixon's 'Sat Night Massacre')

[Hissyspit]

http://www.arkansasnews.com/archive/2007/02/09/WashingtonDCBureau/340605.html

U.S. attorney flap escalates
Friday, Feb 9, 2007

By Steve Tetreault
Stephens Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON -- Conflict between Democrats and the Justice Department intensified on Thursday when the agency was accused of "cronyism" in the firing of at least seven U.S. attorneys including Bud Cummins of Arkansas.

Senate Democratic leaders likened the housecleaning to the "Saturday Night Massacre," when President Nixon fired Watergate prosecutors in October 1973.

They said they would try to force the Justice Department to turn over job reviews of departing officials after a senior Justice official this week said most of the dismissals stemmed from "performance-related" problems.

Majority leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., made Cummins' departure a major topic of a news conference. Reid said next week he will bring to the Senate floor a bill that would curb the Justice Department's power to appoint long-term replacements for departing prosecutors. Instead federal judges would appoint temporary replacements while new prosecutors undergo Senate confirmation.

- snip -

"It is wrong that what has taken place here is cronygate without any question," Reid said. "It's pretty obvious in Arkansas what is going on. One of Karl Rove's cronies is now the U.S. attorney."

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[texpatriot2004]

1. K & R nm

[originalpckelly]

2. Always bring in the little piggies, they almost always squeal on the big ones.

[SpiralHawk]

3. cronyism is what republiconism is all about

Special favors for 'special' people.

"So all you oridinary citizens, you little people, can just shut up and sit down." - republicons