Larisa Alexandrovna @ Raw Story: QUESTIONS Prosecutor Dannehy Should Be Asking Mr. ROVE

Mods: Reproduced in entirety with permission.

http://rawstory.com/blog/2009/05/questions-ms-dannehy-should-be-asking-mr-rove

Questions Ms. Dannehy should be asking Mr. Rove

by Larisa Alexandrovna

Former White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove is being interviewed today by federal prosecutors about his alleged role in the US Attorney Scandal, which includes the unprecedented firing of several US Attorneys during Bush’s second term and allegations of Bush White House involvement – via Rove – in political prosecutions. One of the most visible targets of the alleged political prosecutions is former Alabama Governor Don Siegelman, a Democrat.

It is unclear if prosecutors will be asking Rove about his alleged involvement in other political prosecutions, including Mississippi judges John Whitfield, Wes Teel, Oliver Diaz Jr., and attorney Paul Minor, to name just one set of cases.

The special prosecutor appointed by former Bush Attorney General Michael Mukasey to investigate these allegations is Nora Dannehy. I understand Dannehy and her staff are meeting today with Rove in DC, rather than on her home turf in Connecticut, where she is serving as the Acting United States Attorney.

Rove is not under oath, but it is a crime to lie to federal investigators regardless.

Although we don’t know what is being asked, and even though the interview has started, here is a list of some questions I would like to see answered. Because many people are new to this complex case, I have provided some overview.

Overview:

Dana Jill Simpson, a Republican attorney from Alabama and a whistle-blower in the Don Siegelman case has testified under oath that Karl Rove was directly involved in the prosecution of the former Alabama governor. According to Ms. Simpson’s testimony, Rove’s longtime friend and business partner, William Canary, was the conduit through whom Rove communicated about the case. The US Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama, Leura Canary, was appointed by President Bush.

As her last name indicates, she is the wife of William Canary. Moreover, she is the prosecutor in the Don Siegelman case. It should also be noted that during the 2002 gubernatorial election, Siegelman’s opponent – Bob Riley – was William Canary’s client, at the same time his wife, the US Attorney, was investigating Siegelman.

I would like to point-out too that in our award nominated series into this case, we learned that Rove was working as an unofficial advisor to William Canary on Riley’s campaign against Siegelman and meeting with Riley operatives on street corners (you read that right) all over DC.

Questions:

Was Karl Rove directly involved in the selection of Leura Canary as US Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama?

During the 2002 election cycle and during 2004, did Karl Rove communicate about Siegelman with either Leura Canary or her husband, William Canary?

At any point during the 2002 election cycle and during 2004, did Karl Rove discuss Siegelman’s prosecution with anyone at the DOJ?

At any point during the 2002 election cycle and during 2004, did Karl Rove discuss Siegelman’s prosecution with President Bush?

Was Karl Rove aware of a November 18, 2002 conversation in which William Canary allegedly told others in a phone discussion that "his girls" (in reference to his wife, US Attorney Leura Canary, and their friend, US Attorney Alice Martin) would "take care of" Mr. Siegelman and that he had gotten assurances from “Karl” that Siegelman would be taken care of?

Was Karl Rove helping William Canary run the Alabama gubernatorial election using White House resources? If so, what resources were used and for what purpose?

Did Mr. Rove ever provide any money to Mr. Canary or use any third party through which to provide money to Mr. Canary during the 2002 election cycle and/or during the 2004? Third-party does not include GOP contributions to campaigns.

Did Mr. Rove push anyone at the Department of Justice to pursue the case against Siegelman at any point?

Overview II:

Judge Mark Fuller, who got the Siegelman case the second time around, was – according to whistle-blower Jill Simpson – handpicked to “hang Siegelman.”

Questions:

Did Mr. Rove have any direct involvement in the selection of Mark Fuller for the Middle District bench?

Did Mr. Rove ever discuss the Siegelman case with Mark Fuller? If so, when?

Did Mr. Rove make any arrangements or provide a promise of a judgeship to Mr. Fuller in exchange for Mr. Fuller’s help in the Siegelman case?

Overview III:

We reported that in two cases where there are serious allegations of political prosecutions (Alabama with Siegelman and Mississippi with Minor, Diaz, et al), there were 10 suspicious crimes that plagued the targets of the government investigations, including 8 break-ins, 2 cases of arson and an extra strange occurrence when Simpson was run off the road by a former police officer.

Questions:

Did Mr. Rove have anything to do with the carrying out of any of these break-ins, cases of arson, and the car accident involving Simpson?

Did Mr. Rove have any knowledge of these crimes prior to them becoming public in the press?

Did Mr. Rove communicate with anyone about Siegelman, Minor, Diaz, etc., and suggest that he would like to have something done to address these people? In other words, did Mr. Rove imply through conversation or act that these individuals were a problem that he wished someone would take care of?

Your Thoughts:

I will continue to cover this throughout today. I will also take your questions. Please post them in the comments and I will put them here, along with my answer. There may be a delay, depending on what else is going on. I also urge you to keep your questions short and to understand that stating your opinion is not asking a question. While you may state your opinion, obviously, please don't expect me to respond as I would to a question.

QUESTIONS FROM READERS:

Q: Matt Janovic

My question is this: when were the alleged break-ins, and where did they occur? In 2007, there was a string of campaign HQ break-ins--you think operatives doing black bag jobs aren't going to be used in multiple-operations? An observation. My feeling is that there will be no questions over Siegelman.

LA: The break-ins happened at different times, but all during the trial and sentencing of the targets in each case. In addition, the break-ins happened multiple times to the same person. For example, Siegelman's attorney had her office broken into several times. On one of these occasions, the attorney came into her office to find a file drawer marked S (for clients whose names begin with the letter S) left open, documents taken, and the blinds closed. This particular break-in happened during Siegelman's sentencing phase in June 2007. You can read about each of these crimes here. As for your question about "black-bag jobs" I honestly don't know. We do not know for sure that these were Watergate type break-ins to begin with, although the frequency and targets of the crimes makes that a serious questions to consider. During the Watergate crimes, the "plumbers" were used in multiple-black bag jobs and in many locations: from Miami, to DC and so forth. But I honestly do not have an answer to your question.

MORE READER QUESTIONS AT LINK