Conyers, Leahy Press Mukasey for Details of Gonzales Legal Fees

WASHINGTON (Monday, Nov. 24, 2008) – Congressman John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI) and Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT), chairs of the House and Senate Judiciary Committees, sent a letter Monday to Attorney General Michael Mukasey urging him to disclose the details of a Department of Justice agreement to pay a private attorney to represent former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales in connection with his involvement in the politicized hiring practices of the Justice Department during his tenure from 2005 to 2007.

A report released in June by the Justice Department's Inspector General and Office of Professional Responsibility concluded that Gonzales and others in the Department engaged in improper hiring practices that "constituted misconduct and also violated the Department's polices and civil service law." Recent press reports reveal that the Department of Justice has decided to pay up to $24,000 a month for private counsel to represent Gonzales in lawsuits filed by individuals whose applications for employment at the Department were turned down while Gonzales was serving as Attorney General.

Conyers and Leahy pressed Mukasey to publicly disclose the specifics of this agreement, including how the decision to pay Gonzales's private legal expenses was made, by whom, and whether the department has decided to pay the legal fees for other current or former department officials in connection with the hiring scandal.

Since January 2007, Conyers and Leahy have led congressional investigations into politicized hiring practices at the department. The investigations led to the resignation of the senior leadership of the Justice Department, including Gonzales and several senior White House officials. On November 19, the Senate Judiciary Committee filed a report detailing its investigation. The report accompanied resolutions of contempt for former White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove and White House Chief of Staff Joshua Bolten, who have refused to cooperate with the investigations. On February 14, the House of Representatives voted to hold Bolten and former White House Counsel Harriet Miers in contempt of Congress and subsequently filed suit in federal court against the two for their failure to cooperate.

The text of the Leahy-Conyers letter to Mukasey is linked here.