Blog Post

Conyers Demands More Answers from Attorney General Gonzales

National Journal reports that Gonzales may have advised President Bush to shut down OPR inquiry on warrentless wiretapping

(Washington, DC)- Today, House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI) sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales demanding he answer allegations that he may have advised the President to shut down an Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) inquiry into the Administration's domestic wiretapping surveillance program because of his role in the program.

Next week, Members of the House will have a choice: vote to continue the President's open-ended commitment to a war without end or vote to responsibly redeploy our troops based on performance benchmarks the President and the Iraqi government have already endorsed.

The American people have sent a strong message that they want a new direction in Iraq. The Appropriations Committee heard that message today.

Ranking Member Jerry Lewis (R-CA) offered an amendment during the committee markup which would have stripped language from the Iraq supplemental restricting the use of troops who are not properly equipped or trained, with the only exception being when President Bush is willing to publicly certify it is necessary, along with language requiring that the Iraqi government meet the benchmarks previously laid out by President Bush.

The Judiciary Committee is currently webcasting the markup of: H.R. 580, "Restoring Checks and Balances in the Confirmation Process of U.S. Attorneys"; H.R. 1433, "District of Columbia House Voting Rights Act of 2007"; and Approval of assignment to subcommittee vacancies.

The Ed & Labor Committee is currently webcasting a hearing on "Examining Innovative Approaches to Covering the Uninsured Through Employer-Provided Health Benefits."

"I expect a lot of amendments today. This is a serious proposition, and I think people on all sides of these questions will be taking it seriously, and I expect this will be a very long discussion. If it continues on past the adjournment of the House, the committee will remain in session until we have completed action on the bill -- even if we have to go around the clock this evening."

"As Washington debates whether Alberto Gonzales, the Attorney General, survives by the weekend, some of us want to know whether we can bring back to life these public corruption investigations in these five jurisdictions."

Transcript:

"Madam Speaker, in a memo sent to the White House, the Justice Department laid out a plan to replace seven U.S. Attorneys who were cracking down on public corruption.

"This 'smoking memo' seems to confirm that this Administration targeted U.S. Attorneys involved in ongoing public corruption cases.

"Today, as we learn more about the Attorney General's failure of leadership, many are eager to debate the future of Attorney General Gonzales and whether he will remain in office.

"As Americans, we have a responsibility to ensure that our men and women in uniform, who have sacrificed so much in this time of war,
receive the care they rightfully deserve."
- Rep. John Murtha

The Appropriations committee markup of the U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans' Health and Iraq Accountability Act begins this morning at 9:00AM. To watch it live, click here.

Rep. Murtha issued the following statement this morning: