Justice Department

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Purge of 'Crazy Libs' by Bush Civil Rights Boss Broke Law

'Commies' pushed out for 'real Americans'

(Newser) - A Bush appointee who headed the Justice Department's civil rights division blatantly violated federal anti-bias laws in his hiring policies and then lied about it to Congress, according to government authorities. An internal report quotes emails from Bradley Schlozman, who ran the department from 2003 to 2006, in which he...

Illegal Immigrant Cases Hog Justice's Resources

Once-federal cases get bounced to state, local officials

(Newser) - A federal focus on prosecuting immigration crimes is killing resources to deal with a wide variety of other cases—meaning those cases go to state and local authorities, often overwhelming them, the New York Times reports. Immigration cases have soared in the past 5 years, while federal prosecution of drugs...

Republicans Picking a Fight Over Holder

Dems need one GOP vote to move AG pick out of committee

(Newser) - Senate Republicans seem to have settled on attorney-general-designate Eric Holder as their main target for a tough confirmation hearing. Thanks to his liberal leanings and his role in the Clinton administration—especially the controversial 11th-hour Marc Rich pardon—Holder will get a grilling in the Judiciary Committee. Ranking Republican Arlen...

4 Justice Dept. Picks Mark Break From Bush Era

Obama taps Harvard dean, Clinton vets

(Newser) - Barack Obama announced his nominees for four top positions in the Justice Department yesterday, all of whom suggest a sharp turn away from Bush-era legal policies. Among them is Elena Kagan, the dean of Harvard Law School and a Clinton adviser, who is the first woman named solicitor general. In...

Bell, Carter's AG, Dead at 90
 Bell, Carter's AG, Dead at 90 
Jan 5, 2009 5:24 PM CST

Bell, Carter's AG, Dead at 90

Bell defanged Jim Crow as appellate court judge

(Newser) - Griffin Bell, a Southerner who opposed racial segregation and led the Justice Department under President Carter, died today at age 90, the New York Times reports. Bell handled damage control as a post-Nixon attorney general, de-politicizing the Justice Department and the FBI. His earlier rulings as an appeals court judge,...

'American Taliban' Pleads for Mercy

Seeks freedom after 7 years in prison

(Newser) - A young California man captured with the Taliban in 2001 is asking President Bush to commute the remaining 13 years of a 20-year prison sentence. John Walker Lindh, 27, joined the Taliban a month before the US-led invasion of Afghanistan following the 9/11 attacks. Lindh claims he was never a...

Wiretap Whistleblower Reflects on Fateful Leak

Fmr. Justice official wrestles with effects of NYT call

(Newser) - The government lawyer who blew the whistle on the Bush administration’s domestic wiretapping program has wrestled with the consequences of his decision, but he felt obligated to tell the truth, Newsweek reports. “I thought this (secret program) was something the other branches of the government—and the public—...

Illinois' New Eliot Ness Bags Another Scalp

From twin towers to Valerie Plame, Fitzgerald is relentless

(Newser) - With the arrest of Rod Blagojevich, federal prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald notched up his second indictment against an Illinois governor in five years. But it's just another scalp for the US attorney who's brought down everyone from World Trade Center bomber Sheik Omar Abdel Rahman to media mogul Conrad Black, not...

Blackwater Guards Charged With Manslaughter

(Newser) - Five former Blackwater guards involved in a 2007 shooting that left 17 Iraqi civilians dead turned themselves in today and were charged with voluntary manslaughter, attempted manslaughter, and using firearms in the commission of a crime, CNN reports. The men, all in their 20s, were arraigned in Salt Lake City...

Holder's Nom Raises Ghost of Rich Pardon

AG pick played key—if inadvertent—role in clearing fugitive

(Newser) - Eric Holder has earned a lot of praise in his career, but there’s one glaring blemish on his resume: the pardon of Marc Rich. Critics say Barack Obama’s attorney general pick was the driving force behind the fugitive’s backdoor pardon, while supporters say he’s an innocent...

Execs Cashed Out as Subprime Giant Staggered

Irregular trades by execs at doomed subprime firm raise questions

(Newser) - Bosses at one of the country's biggest subprime lenders made some suspicious stock sales as the firm's mortgages soured, a Los Angeles Times investigation reveals. Records show that executives at now-bankrupt New Century Financial sold nearly $20 million in company shares shortly after setting up new trading plans, often within...

NYPD Clashes With Justice on Surveillance

Cops say feds blunt anti-terror efforts; AG testy in series of letters

(Newser) - The Department of Justice has firmly rejected efforts by the New York Police Department to relax restrictions on eavesdropping, triggering a war of words between the agencies’ heads, the New York Times reports. The NYPD wants broader latitude for electronic surveillance, and less red tape for its requests, but Justice...

Holder Is 'Sept. 10' Pick for AG
 Holder Is 'Sept. 10' Pick for AG 
OPINION
Nov 19, 2008 4:03 PM CST

Holder Is 'Sept. 10' Pick for AG

Conservative mag urges GOP to vote against Obama's Justice nominee

(Newser) - Eric Holder is “a conventional, check-the-boxes creature of the Left,” the editors of the National Review write of Barack Obama’s reported choice for Attorney General, and his selection reveals a “September 10 mentality” and a “lack of seriousness about the terrorist threat.” They add,...

Proof Mounts of Impropriety by Feds in Siegelman Case

US Attorney continued to guide case after recusing herself over GOP ties

(Newser) - New court documents call further into question the actions of Justice Department officials in their prosecution of former Alabama governor Don Siegelman on corruption charges, Time reports. With the Democrat’s appeal scheduled for next month, the House Judiciary Committee disclosed violations by the Bush-appointed US Attorney, Leura Canary, who...

Justice Dept. Math: Subtract Politics, Add Confidence

Obama needs to tread careful bipartisan line in cleaning up after Bush

(Newser) - Repairing a Justice Department heavily politicized by the Bush administration’s ideologically motivated hiring practices and controversial counterterrorism measures will be one of Barack Obama’s most daunting challenges, Carrie Johnson writes in the Washington Post. One key area is the secretive Office of Legal Counsel, which advises the government...

Feds Indict UBS Exec on Tax Evasion Charges

Raoul Weil has headed wealth management division since 2002

(Newser) - The US Department of Justice indicted UBS’ head of global wealth management for enabling the Swiss bank’s American clients to avoid taxes, the Financial Times reports. Although authorities are only specifically pursuing Raoul Weil at this time, they hold that several senior UBS executives are “unindicted co-conspirators.”...

Google Scraps Partnership With Yahoo

Search giant proves unwilling to fight antitrust regulators over deal

(Newser) - Google canceled its search-advertising partnership with Yahoo rather than fight a Department of Justice lawsuit over antitrust concerns, CNET reports. The company gave up on the deal after Justice said it was not satisfied with the companies’ revisions to the deal and would sue to block it.

FBI Corruption Probe Clears Nevada Gov.

No charges after investigation into defense contractor ties

(Newser) - No charges will be filed against Nevada's governor after an 18-month FBI investigation into his ties with defense contractors, reports the Washington Post. Jim Gibbons, a former Vietnam fighter pilot, was suspected of helping to engineer federal contracts for defense firms in exchange for gifts while he was a member...

Judge Demands White House Turn Over Wiretap Memos

He'll determine if their public release would jeopardize national security

(Newser) - A federal judge has ordered the Justice Department to turn over legal memos related to the government's policy allowing warrantless wiretapping, reports the Los Angeles Times. The memos must be turned over by Nov. 17 for review by US District Judge Henry Kennedy, who will determine if releasing them would...

US Appeals Ruling to Free Chinese From Gitmo

US appeal of ruling strands 17, held since 2001 without charge

(Newser) - 17 Chinese prisoners held at Guantanamo Bay will stay there indefinitely pending an appeal of a judge’s decision that they be released, the Guardian reports. “They were on freedom's doorstep," their frustrated lawyer said. “The plane was at Gitmo.” Refugee and religious organizations in the...

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