November 02, 2007
Mukasey Confirmation Appears Certain
UPDATED.
Following Chairman Patrick Leahy's announcement earlier today that he would vote against confirmation of Michael Mukasey, fellow Democrats Charles Schumer and Dianne Feinstein announced their intention to support the nominee for attorney general. With GOP members of the Senate Judiciary Committee expected to line up behind President Bush's pick to replace Alberto Gonzales, Mukasey is all but guaranteed clearance to the floor, where he is expected to win confirmation by a comfortable margin.
In making his announcement this afternoon, Leahy joined Edward Kennedy, Sheldon Whitehouse, Joseph Biden and Richard Durbin in vowing to oppose Mukasey unless he states clearly that waterboarding is torture.
"There may be interrogation techniques that require close examination and extensive briefings. Waterboarding is not among them. No American should need a classified briefing to determine whether waterboarding is torture," Leahy said from his home state of Vermont.
Feinstein's vote had been thrown into doubt by Leahy's decision. In a statement earlier this week, she said, "The Justice Department is in desperate need of effective leadership.... I believe that Judge Mukasey is the best we will get and voting him down would only perpetuate acting and recess appointments, allowing the administration to avoid the transparency that confirmation hearings provide and diminish effective oversight by Congress."
With Feinstein and Schumer now solidly on board, there is little doubt that Mukasey will be the next attorney general of the United States.
Mukasey's smooth-sailing nomination was nearly thrown off course by allegations that DOJ under Gonzales had issued secret memos allowing the use of waterboarding during prisoner interrogations. In response to committee members' questions, Mukasey stated that torture is unjustifiable and should be outlawed. But he declined to comment on the legality of current U.S. interrogation practices, saying it would be improper to do so before he is fully briefed on them.
As we outlined yesterday, it is common for Judiciary members to demand verdicts on controversial issues and for nominees to beg off on providing them. For those reasons, the Washington Post and Chicago Tribune editorial boards today urged committee members to vote Mukasey to the floor next week.
Because of a confluence of scandals and events, Gonzales was perceived as ineffective well before he left DOJ in mid-September. As an early Mukasey backer, it was unclear how the torture questions would affect Schumer's support. Based on statements he made after meeting with Mukasey today, it appears the New York senator is trying to distance himself from the former federal judge while simultaneously voting yes.
Stating that he "deeply" opposed waterboarding, Schumer added, "Unfortunately, this nominee, indeed any proposed by President Bush, will not agree with this. I am, however, confident that this nominee would enforce a law that bans waterboarding." Mukasey has indicated that waterboarding seems "over the line." It remains to be seen whether he will "not agree" with the assessment that it should be illegal.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, a former JAG and one of three GOP senators who brokered an agreement with the White House on legislation banning torture of detainees, had also criticized Mukasey for not stating outright that waterboarding is torture. "I am convinced... that waterboarding, the technique that was described to Judge Mukasey, does violate the Geneva Conventions, does violate our war-crimes statute, and is clearly illegal under domestic and international law, and I think it would serve [him] well to embrace that concept," the South Carolina lawmaker said last Sunday.
But yesterday, Graham issued a statement with Arizona Republican John McCain, a former POW, announcing their intention to support Mukasey's confirmation.
"We welcome Judge Mukasey's acknowledgement... that the interrogation technique known as waterboarding is 'over the line' and 'repugnant,' and we appreciate his recognition that Congress possesses the authority to ban interrogation techniques," the senators said of Mukasey's written responses to questions from the committee. "We share Judge Mukasey's revulsion at the use of waterboarding and we welcome his commitment to further review its legality once confirmed. We expect that he will reach the same conclusion."
Some Democratic lawmakers will no doubt vote against Mukasey as a warning of what is expected of him once he takes the helm at DOJ. A committee source acknowledged earlier today that there is little realistic expectation among the opposing senators that Mukasey will not be installed at DOJ this month. Rather, the no votes will likely function as pressure on Mukasey to sort out the classified interrogation program sooner rather than later.
Assuming he receives confirmation, Mukasey will be called back before the committee for oversight hearings "in January or February," the source said.
Posted at 5:45 PM
Posted to:
Alberto Gonzales, Arlen Specter, Bush Administration, Charles Schumer, Congress, Michael Mukasey, Patrick Leahy, President Bush, Senate
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