The firing of US Attorneys in 2006 brought to light the unprecedented politicization of the Justice Department under the Bush Administration and their chief strategist, Karl Rove. Why eight federal prosecutors, all appointed by George W. Bush, and with good performance evaluations were fired in the middle of a presidential term has caused a lot of people to wonder what it was that they were or were not doing that the White House didn't like. Perhaps a better question that should be asked is: What were the other 85 prosecutors doing that the White House approved of.
Sunday night, 60 Minutes provided a sad and disturbing glimpse into one possible answer to that question with regard to the federal prosecutors in Alabama. The Prosecution of Don Siegelman tells the story of how a respected and well liked Democratic Governor of Alabama had his political career ended by a politicized indictment, most likely directed from the highest levels of government, and following conviction is now serving a 7 year sentence in prison. This story should be viewed by everyone who cares about the rule of law and justice in America:
Siegelman's attorney has asked for an independent prosecutor to investigate the corruption in this case:
http://www.jacksonville.com/apnews/stories/022508/D8V1JV3O2.shtml
Some are calling on Congress to investigate this abuse of the justice system. If you are as outraged by this story as I was, call your congressman and ask them to push Congressman John Conyors to open a Judiciary Committee investigation into this matter.
An interesting side note, check out Karl Rove's reaction today when he was confronted by a Siegelman supporter:
Free Don Siegelman:
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