|
By Michael Coleman
|
|
Wednesday, 04 February 2009 17:51 |
 A national investigative blog is reporting that Sen. Pete Domenici is under a federal grand jury investigation for his role in the firing of former U.S. Attorney David Iglesias.
The Talking Points Memo report comes on the heels of a Sept. 2008 Justice Department report that concluded Domenici was the "primary factor" in the firing of Iglesias, and that Iglesias was not dismissed for poor job performance as some top department officials claimed.
U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey at the time announced the hiring of a special prosecutor Nora Dannehy of Connecticut to pursue potential charges against former Justice Department officials and others involved in the firing of Iglesias and eight other U.S. attorneys.
The Justice Department reported indicated that Dannehy might also seek to determine whether Domenici or Rep. Heather Wilson, both New Mexico Republicans, illegally pressured Iglesias to bring indictments against New Mexico Democrats before the 2006 general election.
"It is possible that those seeking Iglesias' removal did so simply because they believed he was not competently prosecuting worthwhile cases," the Justice Department report says. "However, if they attempted to pressure Iglesias to accelerate his charging decision in the (Metropolitan) courthouse case or to initiate voter fraud investigations to affect the outcome of the upcoming election, their conduct may have been criminal."
Lee Blalack, an attorney for Domenici in Washington, issued a statement in September that described the Justice Department report as "replete with inuendoes that pass as findings." He could not immediately be reached for comment late Wednesday.
Earlier report: Domenici Key in Firing of Iglesias, Report Says (Tuesday, September 30, 2008 )
|
|
Last Updated ( Wednesday, 04 February 2009 18:29 )
|
View Comments
