House Judiciary Probing White House Crimes, and Impeachable Offenses, around Illegal NSA Wiretapping

Washington, June 7, 2007 (LPAC)--The House Judiciary Committee is preparing to subpoena Justice Department documents concerning the Bush-Cheney Administration's domestic wiretapping program -- a program which was run directly by Vice President Dick Cheney.

At a hearing today held by a House Judiciary subcommittee -- the first of a series on "The Constitution in Crisis" -- subcommittee chairman Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), as well as the chairman of the full committee, Rep. John Conyers (D-MI), indicated their intention to subpoena the documents which the White House and the Justice Department have refused to hand over, without giving the committee any reason for their refusal.

Both Conyers and Nadler made it clear that they are investigating potential criminality by the Administration in deliberately and intentionally violating the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which requires court approval for any domestic electronic surveillance. Nadler declared that he is concerned that, by withholding relevant documents, the Administration "is covering up crimes they are committing in our name."

Conyers pointed out that he and Nadler had sent a letter to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales on May 17, shortly after the explosive testimony by former Deputy Attorney General James Comey, asking Gonzales about the program which Comey had declared to have no legal basis, and asking what changes had been made in that program. Conyers warned he would give Gonzales only two more weeks to respond.

After the hearing, when Nadler was talking to reporters about potential crimes committed by Administration officials, EIR asked him if these are not also impeachable offenses. Nadler said they are impeachable, but then hastened to clarify that he is not seeking the impeachment of either Cheney or President Bush.