Ousted U.S. Attorney: White House Behind Removal
Last updated Wednesday, May 2, 2007 6:18 PM CDT in News
By Aaron Sadler
The Morning News
WASHINGTON -- The former U.S. attorney in Little Rock said he was told by a top Justice Department official that the White House was responsible for his ouster and for a plan to bypass Senate confirmation for his replacement.
In a document made public Wednesday, H.E. "Bud" Cummins III said he suggested the Justice Department "had better gag" his successor, Tim Griffin.
He said Griffin told many people he could stay in the chief prosecutor job without Senate confirmation, even as Attorney General Alberto Gonzales was assuring senators on Capitol Hill that they would have a voice.
Cummins testified at a hearing March 6 before the House Judiciary Committee. Afterward, the committee asked him to answer written follow-up questions. His answers were made public on Wednesday.
The former prosecutor said Justice Department official Michael Battle told him it was the White House's plan to replace him with Griffin, a former aide to presidential adviser Karl Rove.
In his responses, Cummins recounted a conversation with Michael Elston, chief of staff to the deputy attorney general. He said Elston told him the Justice Department had no knowledge of a plan to circumvent the traditional nomination process and "would never go along with" such a plan.
"This indicated to me that my removal had been dictated entirely by the White House," Cummins said.
"Elston ... assured me that every replacement would be confirmed by the Senate," he added. "I told him if that was the case, then he had better gag Tim Griffin because Griffin was telling many people, including me, that officials in Washington had assured him he could stay in as USA pursuant to an interim appointment whether he was ever nominated or not."
Griffin worked as a special assistant in Cummins' office before he took over Dec. 20.
Cummins wrote that during that time Griffin was "obviously in constant communication" with the Justice Department and most likely, the White House.
Griffin did not comment Wednesday. He has said he will not seek the job permanently.
Sens. Mark Pryor and Blanche Lincoln, both D-Ark., oppose Griffin's appointment and have called for Gonzales' resignation for his handling of the firings of eight U.S. attorneys, including Cummins.
Griffin knew of Pryor's concerns well before his appointment, Cummins said.
"My impression was that whoever he was consulting in Washington was committed to his appointment, no matter what," Cummins said.
In early December, Griffin told him of the plan to bypass the Senate, Cummins said.
"He said there was a provision in the Patriot Act that nobody knew about that would enable them to appoint him in a way he could stay in place throughout President Bush's administration with or without Senate confirmation," Cummins stated.
Pryor has accused Gonzales of lying to him about the details of Griffin's appointment in a Dec. 15 telephone call.
Michael Teague, Pryor's spokesman, said Wednesday that Cummins' written statements add credence to the senator's belief Gonzales was aware of the plan.
"Tim knew about it, he told Bud, he told people even outside the office," Teague said. "Again, this is a pretty clear picture."
In his discussion with Elston, Cummins said he was told his forced resignation was "entirely about a desire by the White House to allow another person" to serve.
He said Elston told him that Griffin would either be confirmed by the Senate, or he would have to resign, too.
"I then said to Elston that it looked to me that if Tim Griffin couldn't get confirmed and had to then resign, then I would have resigned for nothing," Cummins said.
He added: "After a brief pause, Elston replied, 'Yes, that's right.'"
Also, Cummins said he refused a request from Elston and the Justice Department's director of public affairs to write a letter to the editor in support of Griffin.
He said the pair asked him to write to a Little Rock newspaper to vouch for Griffin's qualifications, but his wife objected.
His wife, Jodi, "had some fairly strong feelings about Tim Griffin," and blamed problems regarding his firing on Griffin and people associated with him.
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