Subpoenas Issued to White House and VP's Office
Issuing subpoenas for both the White House and Vice President Dick Cheney's office Wednesday, the Senate Judiciary Committee breathed new life into one of the most contentious battles of the Bush presidency. Looking for more information the warrantless spying program, committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) also named the National Security Council and the Department of Justice in his request.
These are the newest subpoenas in the committee's ongoing investigation. "Over the past 18 months, this Committee has made no fewer than nine formal requests to the Department of Justice and to the White House, seeking information and documents about the authorization of and legal justification for this program," Leahy said in letters to Bush administraton officials included in the subpoenas. "All requests have been rebuffed. Our attempts to obtain information through testimony of Administration witnesses have been met with a consistent pattern of evasion and misdirection."
"We're aware of the committee's action and will respond appropriately," White House spokesman Tony Fratto said, but the White House has not given any signal that it will comply with the committee's request.
Leahy — a fierce Bush critic and civil libertarian — was joined in consultation by Ranking Member Arlen Spector (R-PA) in issuing the subpoena. The committee hopes to learn more about the administration's internal debate over the program's legality, a congressional official told the AP. Elucidating the squabbles that surrounded the program inside the ranks, Leahy hopes to clarify how much influence the White House exerts over the Justice Department and Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez.
The committee asked for documents related to authorization of the surveillance program, legal analysis and opinions about it, decisions by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, liability agreements between the Executive Branch and telecommunications companies, and any documents related to shutting down the Department of Justice's Office of Professional Responsibility.
The deadline the committee gave the administration is July 18.
- Raleigh-Elizabeth Smith
