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Former U.S. Justice Department officials who improperly used political criteria in hiring decisions for career lawyers and immigration judges will not be prosecuted, says Attorney General Michael Mukasey.
“Where there is enough evidence to charge someone with a crime, we vigorously prosecute,” he told the American Bar Association annual meeting in New York. “But not every wrong, or even every violation of the law, is a crime. In this instance, the two joint reports found only violations of the civil service laws.”
The Justice Department’s internal investigation concluded that high-ranking officials injected politics into what should have been nonpartisan hiring decisions. Both department policy and federal law bar the use of politics in making decisions on hiring for career jobs.Mukasey also said on Tuesday he disagreed with critics who have suggested that people hired through the flawed process should be fired or moved to different jobs.
“Two wrongs do not make a right,” he said. He said it would be “unfair, and quite possibly illegal given their civil service protections, to fire them or to reassign them without individual cause.”
This jerk knows all the logical fallacies for ignoring ethical standards. A perfect fit to end eight years of incompetence, corruption and cronyism.
oh, well, that explains that.
Setting the groundwork for the post-Dubya era … this should surprise no one, really.
“Attorney General says breaking civil service law isn’t a crime. Wha?”
Well, overtime wage regulations are ensconced in laws passed by the legislature. Breaking them isn’t a misdemeanor nor a felony and can’t be prosecuted as a “crime”. Most work place laws aren’t punishable by criminal prosecution if broken. I believe they are handled under administrative legal procedures by ALJ’s (Administrative law judges).
Understand?
I’ll be sure to use the some crimes aren’t crimes defense the next time I get pulled over for speeding.
Any takers as to how well I’ll faire?
#4 Zeb – Are you an attorney general? I thought not. Pay the cashier on your way out. Next?
#4 “I’ll be sure to use the some crimes aren’t crimes defense the next time I get pulled over for speeding.
Any takers as to how well I’ll faire?”
In CA simple speeding isn’t a crime. You can’t see a judge or jury. So, you would do very well with that argument.
Of course they aren’t crimes, they were done by Bush Republicans.
I am not a crook!
well, good, then i speed, do drugs, whatever the hell i want!
sweeeeeeeeet.
#9 “do drugs, whatever the hell i want!”
L.A. has marijuana public vending machines…
Mukasey: “It was the system! The SYSTEM broke down”.
No, it wasn’t top-down malfeasance. How could that be? It was the SYSTEM!
#6 – O’Furniture
>>In CA simple speeding isn’t a crime. You
>>can’t see a judge or jury.
So what do you do if you want to contest the ticket? Mixed martial arts in the county lockup with the cop who wrote you the ticket, if you win you don’t have to pay the fine? Rock paper scissors to see if you have to pay?
I knew California was kooky, but jeez. I’m just saying.
I was wondering about this the other day. If the President is the head of the executive branch, how can Congress pass a civil service system limiting his authority on that?
Sometimes breaking the law is NOT a crime — it is a tort, and the remedy is to sue for damages in civil court. This particular tort sounds like potential class action territory. I doubt the government would be able to pay legal fees for the defendants since they were not required to do this in the execution of their duties.
But guys! Breaking civil law is not a crime. You don’t go to jail for encroaching on your neighbor’s property, or knowingly selling a house with a bad foundation, or marketing a new GPS and shipping a refurb. This are things you can be SUED for, not go to jail for.
The word “sanction” has two completely opposite meanings. Here we have an example of “we sanctioned them for violating the law.”
Sadly, this is yet another of American jurisprudence’s less than shining moments. Couldn’t he at least have said something like “we will review all the incumbents to verify their qualifications for the positions”? People hired through a flawed process should not expect full civil service protections.
Mukasey was supposed to be a straighter shooter than his predecessor, but he’s refused to commit on the “is waterboarding torture” question, too. Maybe there was a reason his was the narrowest margin (53–40) to confirm an attorney general in more than 50 years?
If there is anyone here who thinks civil servants are not hired and fired because of their politics you are very naiveté. Both sides do it always have, always will.
16,
Nice try, no banana. These laying sacks of shit got caught breaking the law. “They do it too” is the most pathetic argument in existence. You aren’t even a good shill.
#16 – Mr. Haskell
>>you are very naiveté.
And you, sir, are the reason why Eddie Haskell should have stayed on Leave it to Beaver.
Nice use of the high ASCII character set though, no matter how misplaced.
Just more DESTRUCTION OF THE CONSTITUTION BY THE REPUKES !!! “Rule of Law” ??? They never heard of it !!! And so much for the “Quality” of Bush/Cheney Cabal appointees !!!