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Saturday, January 13, 2007

This is why the fact that Republican are breaking with the Bush Administration over Iraq is so extraordinary
Posted by Jill | 8:33 AM
Because usually when you dare to cross the Bush Reich, this is what happens:

The Bush administration has quietly asked San Diego U.S. Attorney Carol Lam, best known for her high-profile prosecutions of politicians and corporate executives, to resign her post, a law enforcement official said.

Lam, a Bush appointee who took the helm in 2002, was targeted because of job performance issues – in particular that she failed to make smuggling and gun cases a top priority, said the official, who declined to be identified because Lam has yet to step down.

Lam has had high-profile successes during her tenure, such as the Randy “Duke” Cunningham bribery case – but she alienated herself from bosses at the Justice Department because she is outspoken and independent, said local lawyers familiar with her policies.

When she took over, Lam made it clear that she planned to focus less on low-level smuggling cases in favor of public corruption and white collar crime, which would mean fewer but more significant prosecutions.

Lam declined to comment yesterday.

Several prosecutors in Lam's office and many defense lawyers said yesterday that they were unaware of her impending dismissal, and were universally shocked by it.

“It's virtually unprecedented to fire a U.S. Attorney absent some misconduct in office,” said criminal defense attorney Michael Attanasio, a former federal prosecutor.
“This office has clearly made a priority of investigating and prosecuting white collar offenses and has had occasional success doing so,” he said. “One would think that would be valued by any administration, even if it meant fewer resources were devoted to routine and repetitive border crimes.”

Lam, 47, has been criticized by members of the Border Patrol agents union and by members of Congress, including Vista Republican Darrell Issa, who accused her office of “an appalling record of refusal to prosecute even the worst criminal alien offenders.”

But even some of Lam's legal opponents said the supposed reasons she is being forced out are perplexing.

“What do they want her to do, lock up Mexico?” said Mario Conte, former chief of Federal Defenders of San Diego Inc. Conte, now a professor at California Western School of Law in downtown San Diego, said every prosecutor walks a tightrope.

“I'm sure that Carol, in her role, is simply not able to accommodate everybody's desires of what they think the U.S. Attorney should be doing in this district.”

Her most prominent case involved Cunningham. The former Rancho Santa Fe congressman is in federal prison, and indictments of others connected to the case may be forthcoming.


Obviously there's supposed to be a quid pro quo that if you are a prosecutor appointed by a Republican, you are supposed to look the other way when presented with Republican misdeeds.
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