Press Releases
Brendan Daly/Nadeam Elshami
202-226-7616
05/22/2007
Pelosi: ‘House Restores Constitutional Checks and Balances in Appointment of Interim U.S. Attorneys’
Washington, D.C. Speaker Nancy Pelosi released the following statement this afternoon on House approval of S. 214, Preserving United States Attorney Independence Act of 2007, which passed the House by a vote of 306 to 114:
“Politicization of federal law enforcement erodes public confidence in our justice system.
“Strong evidence indicates that the Bush Administration abused a loophole provided by the prior Republican Congress permitting the indefinite appointment of interim U.S. Attorneys without Senate confirmation. This legislation, which now goes to the President’s desk, restores Constitutional checks and balances in the appointment process of interim U.S. Attorneys. It is a small but necessary step toward restoring confidence and independence in the administration of justice.
“However, much more needs to be done to restore the public’s trust that has been badly shaken by almost-daily revelations suggesting that the ends of justice have been subverted for political purposes. Congress must now find out what happened with the unprecedented mid-Administration firings of U.S. Attorneys, and whether improper criteria were used to retain the remaining U.S. Attorneys. It is long past time for the White House to cooperate in producing the necessary witnesses and documents.”