Message from Senator Leahy; Responses of Schumer and Feinstein.

Received this email from Senator Leahy. Leahy wrote:

Next Tuesday, the Senate Judiciary Committee will vote on Michael Mukasey's nomination to be the next U.S. Attorney General.

Our country was founded on democratic principles that reject torture, and no one in our country is above the law -- not even the President. We have seen the Bush Administration repeatedly undermine our democratic values by dodging accountability, hiding its practices from congressional oversight, and prioritizing unilateral presidential power.

President Bush has kept the courts, Congress, and the American people in the dark about activities in the White House for nearly eight years. Our democracy cannot afford to have another Attorney General who has little regard for the law -- we need an Attorney General who will uphold the Constitution and not bend it to fit the President's agenda.

This administration's view that the President is above the law not only threatens our fundamental civil liberties, but our position as a world leader as well. I grew up during a time when the world looked to the United States as a beacon of freedom that rejected tyrannical principles. Unfortunately, our leadership is quickly eroding.

I'm proud that Congress passed the Leahy Law, which requires our government to cut off assistance to any foreign security force unit that has committed gross human rights violations. If our own Attorney General, whose role it is to uphold the law, cannot bring himself to denounce waterboarding, how will other nations view such a double standard?

Some issues are so critical, so fundamental to who and what we are as a nation, that we must act on our convictions -- and this is one of them. America does not torture.

We do not inflict cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment. Certainly, we must do everything we can to prevent attacks on our nation, using appropriate interrogation techniques that require extensive questioning and thorough investigation. Waterboarding, however, is not one of these techniques.

In his confirmation hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Michael Mukasey was simply asked if waterboarding is illegal. The fact that he could not provide a simple "Yes" to this question raises serious doubts about his ability to protect our basic rights.

My number one priority is to restore strong leadership and independence to an agency whose morale and image have been severely tainted. I wish that I could support Mr. Mukasey's nomination, but I cannot.

Accordingly, when Michael Mukasey's nomination comes to a vote before the Judiciary Committee on Tuesday, I will vote against it.

Sincerely,


















Patrick Leahy
U.S. Senator

Update: Here are the responses of Feinstein and Schumer:

TPM:
Here's Schumer's explanation, via Roll Call (sub. req.):

“I deeply esteem those who believe the issue of torture is so paramount that Judge Mukasey’s views on it should be the sole determinant of our vote,” Schumer said in a statement. “But I must respectfully disagree.
“The Justice Department is a shambles: politicized and demoralized. The belief and hope [is] that Justice Mukasey, with his experience, independence and integrity, can restore the department motivates my vote.”

And here's Feinstein, in a release just out:

"I believe that Judge Mukasey is the best we will get and voting him down would only perpetuate acting and recess appointments, allowing the Administration to avoid the transparency that confirmation hearings provide and diminish effective oversight by Congress."

What I like to know is what was promised to Feinstein and Schumer by Bush or Cheney in political favors for them to cave in?

Well, here is an interesting article that connects why Feinstein caved into Bush. This article was when Bush was in San Diego to see the California fires :

Dianne Feinstein dared to say something nice about President George Bush.

Bush invited Sen. Dianne Feinstein to join him on Air Force One during his trip. It may not have been coincidence that less than 24 hours earlier, Feinstein played a pivotal role in allowing Judge Leslie Southwick, a target of liberal groups, to be confirmed to an appeals court when she voted to block a filibuster and support the president’s nomination.

With a 7:40 a.m. Thursday departure from Andrews Air Force Base, Feinstein found herself seated in the rear of the plane with a handful of Southern California congressional representatives.

After a breakfast of scrambled eggs, sausage and French toast, Bush popped back for what the senator described as a frank two-hour conversation, mostly about foreign policy.

“I found the discussion extraordinarily positive,” Feinstein said. “I came away with a very different view about him.”
As for the president’s performance on the ground?

“It was a wonderful thing to see, to be candid,” Feinstein said. “I saw a warm, caring human being.”

Enough said...