US Attorney General Eric Holder has an interesting standard for
clemency. Last week Holder said he was open to having a discussion on
giving the whistleblower Edward Snowden a reduced sentence but that full clemency was “going too far.”
And to some degree it would be inconsistent given the Obama
Administration’s wild and outrageous attack on whistleblowers and
journalists for Holder to say anything different.
But while Holder has become notorious for going soft on Wall Street
as Attorney General, as Deputy Attorney General in the Clinton
Administration he was part of one of the most controversial pardons in American history. A pardon so odious many thought it would disqualify Holder from becoming AG in the first place.
Read on...
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Showing posts with label Eric Holder. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Eric Holder. Show all posts
Justice to sue North Carolina over voting law
Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. announced Monday that the Justice
Department would sue North Carolina over its controversial new voting
law, saying electoral measures approved by the state would discriminate
against minorities and “break a system that was working.”
At a news conference, Holder alleged that the electoral law in North Carolina, as well as similar measures that the Justice Department is challenging in Texas, represent a broad threat to the democratic process. In North Carolina, he said, the law would “shrink, rather than expand, access to the franchise.”
“Today’s action is about far more than unwarranted voter restrictions. It is about our democracy, and who we are as a nation,” Holder said. “I stand here to announce this lawsuit more in sorrow than in anger. It pains me to see the voting rights of my fellow citizens negatively impacted by actions predicated on a rationale that is tenuous at best — and on concerns that we all know are not, in fact, real.”
Read on...
At a news conference, Holder alleged that the electoral law in North Carolina, as well as similar measures that the Justice Department is challenging in Texas, represent a broad threat to the democratic process. In North Carolina, he said, the law would “shrink, rather than expand, access to the franchise.”
“Today’s action is about far more than unwarranted voter restrictions. It is about our democracy, and who we are as a nation,” Holder said. “I stand here to announce this lawsuit more in sorrow than in anger. It pains me to see the voting rights of my fellow citizens negatively impacted by actions predicated on a rationale that is tenuous at best — and on concerns that we all know are not, in fact, real.”
Read on...
These States Are Most Likely To Legalize Pot Next
Attorney General Eric Holder gave a green light
on Thursday to two states whose efforts to legalize marijuana had been
locked in by legal uncertainty for more than nine months. With that
announcement, Colorado and Washington -- both of which passed pro-pot
initiatives at the polls last November -- can now proceed with
establishing a framework for the taxation and regulation of legal weed
for adults.
The administration's decision holds clear and immediate implications for the two states, both of which had been hesitant to act too quickly over concerns that the government might decide to enforce federal law, which still considers marijuana an illegal substance.
But the move also, and perhaps more importantly, throws open the gates for other states to pursue similar pot legalization efforts, so long as they include "strong and effective regulatory and enforcement systems." Experts on both sides of the issue have already said they expect to see movement come quickly.
Read on...
The administration's decision holds clear and immediate implications for the two states, both of which had been hesitant to act too quickly over concerns that the government might decide to enforce federal law, which still considers marijuana an illegal substance.
But the move also, and perhaps more importantly, throws open the gates for other states to pursue similar pot legalization efforts, so long as they include "strong and effective regulatory and enforcement systems." Experts on both sides of the issue have already said they expect to see movement come quickly.
Read on...
Can the Obama Admin Actually Fix Our Broken Criminal Justice System?
On Monday, August 12, the day Attorney General Eric Holder announced “a
fundamentally new approach” to the criminal justice system in his speech
before the American Bar Association in San Francisco, US District Court
Judge Mark W. Bennett was in his office in Sioux City, Iowa, drafting a
sentencing opinion in a drug case. An outspoken critic of mandatory
minimums [see “ Imposing Injustice,”
November 12, 2012], Bennett is known for writing unusual opinions that
criticize the sentences he must often hand down. “It’s about trying to
make the system fairer,” he says, “not just for the defendant in front
of you, but for others.”
The defendant in this case, a 37-year-old black man named Douglas Young, had caught a rare break. He’d pleaded guilty to two charges involving twenty-eight grams of crack cocaine—an amount sufficient to trigger two five-year mandatory minimum sentences. But he had previously been convicted on another crack charge, in Chicago, when he was just 20 years old. This single offense, seventeen years ago, meant not only that prosecutors could have doubled Young’s mandatory minimum sentence, but also that he could have received a maximum sentence of life without parole.
Read on...
The defendant in this case, a 37-year-old black man named Douglas Young, had caught a rare break. He’d pleaded guilty to two charges involving twenty-eight grams of crack cocaine—an amount sufficient to trigger two five-year mandatory minimum sentences. But he had previously been convicted on another crack charge, in Chicago, when he was just 20 years old. This single offense, seventeen years ago, meant not only that prosecutors could have doubled Young’s mandatory minimum sentence, but also that he could have received a maximum sentence of life without parole.
Read on...
2.7 Million Children Under the Age of 18 Have a Parent in Prison or Jail - We Need Criminal Justice Reform Now
Reform criminal justice now. That was the core message US Attorney General Eric Holder delivered recently to the American Bar Associationand
our nation. He declared that "too many Americans go to too many prisons
for far too long, and for no truly good law enforcement reason" and at
great public expense.
Seeking to cut imprisonment rates and spending while protecting the public, Holder has directed the Justice Department to charge non-violent drug offenders with less severe federal crimes. Beyond reducing the use of mandatory minimum sentences and shortening prison times for lower-level drug felons, while reserving more serious charges and longer sentences for violent and higher-ranking drug traffickers, the Justice Department supports sentencing more people to rehab than (re-)imprisonment for crimes rooted in drug abuse and addiction.
Those reforms, among others, according to Holder, will do more for "the lives being harmed, not helped, by a criminal justice system that doesn't serve the American people as well as it should". There is one group of Americans that couldn't agree more – the children of the imprisoned.
Read on...
Seeking to cut imprisonment rates and spending while protecting the public, Holder has directed the Justice Department to charge non-violent drug offenders with less severe federal crimes. Beyond reducing the use of mandatory minimum sentences and shortening prison times for lower-level drug felons, while reserving more serious charges and longer sentences for violent and higher-ranking drug traffickers, the Justice Department supports sentencing more people to rehab than (re-)imprisonment for crimes rooted in drug abuse and addiction.
Those reforms, among others, according to Holder, will do more for "the lives being harmed, not helped, by a criminal justice system that doesn't serve the American people as well as it should". There is one group of Americans that couldn't agree more – the children of the imprisoned.
Read on...
The Justice Dept. and a free press
The Obama administration stumbled badly in recent months as it
repeatedly overstepped its authority in seeking information from news
organizations. Prosecutors swept up phone records tracking calls by
reporters and editors of the Associated Press, suggested that a Fox News
reporter might be criminally prosecuted and continued their vigorous
pursuit of information held by reporters in ferreting out alleged leaks.
For that, the administration has been properly excoriated.
On Friday, however, Atty. Gen Eric H. Holder Jr. unveiled new guidelines to govern the department's behavior in cases involving news organizations. Those guidelines represent a historic step toward restraining the reach of government and affirming the rights of a free press. The administration got to this place only because of the outrage it brought on itself, but it got to the right place anyway.
Most important, the new guidelines ensure that news organizations, in almost all instances, are given notice when prosecutors seek records related to news gathering. Notice, which was not given to the Associated Press, allows organizations to discuss the request with the Justice Department and, if necessary, to contest it in court.
Read on...
On Friday, however, Atty. Gen Eric H. Holder Jr. unveiled new guidelines to govern the department's behavior in cases involving news organizations. Those guidelines represent a historic step toward restraining the reach of government and affirming the rights of a free press. The administration got to this place only because of the outrage it brought on itself, but it got to the right place anyway.
Most important, the new guidelines ensure that news organizations, in almost all instances, are given notice when prosecutors seek records related to news gathering. Notice, which was not given to the Associated Press, allows organizations to discuss the request with the Justice Department and, if necessary, to contest it in court.
Read on...
The Justice Department’s White Paper on Targeted Killing
Michael Isikoff at NBC News has obtained a
Justice Department white paper that purports to explain when it would
be lawful for the government to carry out the extrajudicial killing of
an American citizen believed to be affiliated with a terrorist
organization. Many of the white paper's arguments are familiar because
Attorney General Eric Holder set them out in a speech at Northwestern University in
March of last year. But the white paper offers more detail, and in
doing so it manages to underscore both the recklessness of the
government's central claim and the deficiencies in the government's
defense of it.
The 16-page white paper (read it here) is said to summarize a 50-odd page legal memo written in 2010 by the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel to justify the addition of U.S. citizen Anwar Al-Aulaqi to the government's "kill lists." That legal memo is one of the documents the ACLU is seeking in an ongoing Freedom of Information Act lawsuit. Needless to say, the white paper is not a substitute for the legal memo. But it's a pretty remarkable document.
Read on...
The 16-page white paper (read it here) is said to summarize a 50-odd page legal memo written in 2010 by the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel to justify the addition of U.S. citizen Anwar Al-Aulaqi to the government's "kill lists." That legal memo is one of the documents the ACLU is seeking in an ongoing Freedom of Information Act lawsuit. Needless to say, the white paper is not a substitute for the legal memo. But it's a pretty remarkable document.
Read on...
Justice Department Closes the Book on CIA Torture and Deaths in Custody
The Justice Department has closed a probe on Bush-era torture and killings by CIA agents, and has decided against prosecuting anyone.
Attorney General Eric Holder said in a statement that the Justice Department “declined prosecution because the admissible evidence would not be sufficient to obtain and sustain a conviction beyond a reasonable doubt.”
The probe was opened in 2009, and looked at the cases of about 100 prisoners. The last two cases looked at are now officially closed, with no charges coming.
The probe of the CIA was the Obama administration’s only effort to look at prosecuting those who implemented the Bush regime of torture on alleged militants and terrorists captured in Iraq and Afghanistan. But the administration never considered going after those top-level administration officials who crafted the rationale behind the torture of prisoners, which violated US and international law.
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Seems the only people getting prosecuted in the U.S. these days are protestors, and demonstrators. Tom
Attorney General Eric Holder said in a statement that the Justice Department “declined prosecution because the admissible evidence would not be sufficient to obtain and sustain a conviction beyond a reasonable doubt.”
The probe was opened in 2009, and looked at the cases of about 100 prisoners. The last two cases looked at are now officially closed, with no charges coming.
The probe of the CIA was the Obama administration’s only effort to look at prosecuting those who implemented the Bush regime of torture on alleged militants and terrorists captured in Iraq and Afghanistan. But the administration never considered going after those top-level administration officials who crafted the rationale behind the torture of prisoners, which violated US and international law.
Read on...
Seems the only people getting prosecuted in the U.S. these days are protestors, and demonstrators. Tom
Obama Reneges on Justice for Torture Victims, Embraces Bush Secrecy Doctrine
by Valtin Mon Feb 09, 2009 at 10:29:56 PM PST
Today, new Attorney General Eric Holder's Justice Department embraced Bush administration claims of "state secrets" in the ACLU lawsuit against Boeing subsidiary Jeppesen DataPlan for its role in Bush's extraordinary rendition program. Jeppesen's involvement in the "torture flights" of an undetermined number of terror suspect abductees, making a tidy profit for themselves in the meantime.
The New York Times reported on how the deal went down in San Francisco earlier today:
Valtin's diary
During the campaign, Mr. Obama harshly criticized the Bush administration’s treatment of detainees, and he has broken with that administration on questions like whether to keep open the prison camp at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. But a government lawyer, Douglas N. Letter, made the same state-secrets argument on Monday, startling several judges on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
Read on...
I have two Obama t-shirts. A couple of more stories like this one, and I'll be burning one of them. And unfortunately a couple of days ago Crimbrary posted a story that praised Leon Panetta for rejecting "extraordinary rendition" Crimbray should have waited a day. The next day the wingnuts on the confirmation panel made Panetta eat most of his words. Which he did willingly. Tom
Today, new Attorney General Eric Holder's Justice Department embraced Bush administration claims of "state secrets" in the ACLU lawsuit against Boeing subsidiary Jeppesen DataPlan for its role in Bush's extraordinary rendition program. Jeppesen's involvement in the "torture flights" of an undetermined number of terror suspect abductees, making a tidy profit for themselves in the meantime.
The New York Times reported on how the deal went down in San Francisco earlier today:
Valtin's diary
During the campaign, Mr. Obama harshly criticized the Bush administration’s treatment of detainees, and he has broken with that administration on questions like whether to keep open the prison camp at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. But a government lawyer, Douglas N. Letter, made the same state-secrets argument on Monday, startling several judges on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
Read on...
I have two Obama t-shirts. A couple of more stories like this one, and I'll be burning one of them. And unfortunately a couple of days ago Crimbrary posted a story that praised Leon Panetta for rejecting "extraordinary rendition" Crimbray should have waited a day. The next day the wingnuts on the confirmation panel made Panetta eat most of his words. Which he did willingly. Tom
Holder: Waterboarding Is Torture
Attorney General-nominee Eric Holder faced often aggressive grilling from members of the Senate Judiciary Committee Thursday. But one of the first statements made by President-elect Barack Obama's designee to head the Department of Justice during the confirmation hearing was perhaps the most important.
Under oath, with not just senators but the world watching, Holder declared that "waterboarding is torture."
Judiciary Committee chair Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont, referred to waterboarding -- which is broadly recognized as torture but which President Bush, Vice President Cheney and their legal aides defended, at times obliquely, at times overtly -- in his opening round of questions for Holder.
Read on...
Wow. That this is considered news shows how depraved the U.S. justice system has become. Will anything change? Will anyone be prosecuted? Tom
Under oath, with not just senators but the world watching, Holder declared that "waterboarding is torture."
Judiciary Committee chair Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont, referred to waterboarding -- which is broadly recognized as torture but which President Bush, Vice President Cheney and their legal aides defended, at times obliquely, at times overtly -- in his opening round of questions for Holder.
Read on...
Wow. That this is considered news shows how depraved the U.S. justice system has become. Will anything change? Will anyone be prosecuted? Tom
Questions of Justice
Eric Holder, President-elect Barack Obama’s nominee for attorney general, is scheduled to appear today at a confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee. The Op-Ed page asked five legal experts to pose the questions they would like to hear the nominee answer.
1. Do you believe the president has authorities under the Constitution’s executive power and commander in chief clauses on which Congress cannot impinge? What are they?
2. Will you give legal approval to covert counterterrorism actions that you believe are lawful but which you know will engender legal and political controversy if made public? What factors other than your best legal judgment will you consider?
Read on...
The New York Times has 5 questions for Obama's nominee for attorney general. Tom
1. Do you believe the president has authorities under the Constitution’s executive power and commander in chief clauses on which Congress cannot impinge? What are they?
2. Will you give legal approval to covert counterterrorism actions that you believe are lawful but which you know will engender legal and political controversy if made public? What factors other than your best legal judgment will you consider?
Read on...
The New York Times has 5 questions for Obama's nominee for attorney general. Tom
The Next Attorney General
Published: December 2, 2008
If he is confirmed by the Senate as attorney general, Eric Holder, President-elect Barack Obama’s choice for the job, will inherit a Justice Department that has been mired in scandal and that has seriously lost its way in critical areas. Under President Bush, the department has been used to defend the indefensible, like indefinite detention and torture of prisoners, and to undermine rather than protect Americans’ cherished rights. Mr. Holder could be an exemplary choice to face this daunting agenda, but he must answer serious questions before the Senate votes on his confirmation.
Mr. Holder, who would be the first African-American attorney general, has a particularly good record of public service for this job. He has been a United States attorney for the District of Columbia, a prosecutor in the Justice Department’s public integrity section and a deputy attorney general under President Bill Clinton.
Read on...
Holder has baggage, but is it too much baggage to undo the damage Bush has done to the Justice Department? Tom
If he is confirmed by the Senate as attorney general, Eric Holder, President-elect Barack Obama’s choice for the job, will inherit a Justice Department that has been mired in scandal and that has seriously lost its way in critical areas. Under President Bush, the department has been used to defend the indefensible, like indefinite detention and torture of prisoners, and to undermine rather than protect Americans’ cherished rights. Mr. Holder could be an exemplary choice to face this daunting agenda, but he must answer serious questions before the Senate votes on his confirmation.
Mr. Holder, who would be the first African-American attorney general, has a particularly good record of public service for this job. He has been a United States attorney for the District of Columbia, a prosecutor in the Justice Department’s public integrity section and a deputy attorney general under President Bill Clinton.
Read on...
Holder has baggage, but is it too much baggage to undo the damage Bush has done to the Justice Department? Tom
Obama's Attorney General
Michael Isikoff
President-elect Obama has decided to tap Eric Holder as his attorney general, putting the veteran Washington lawyer in place to become the first African-American to head the Justice Department, according to two legal sources close to the presidential transition.
Holder, who served as deputy attorney general during the Clinton administration, still has to undergo a formal “vetting” review by the Obama transition team before the selection is final and is publicly announced, said one of the sources, who asked not to be identified talking about the transition process. But in the discussions over the past few days, Obama offered Holder the job and he accepted, the source said. The announcement is not likely until after Obama announces his choices to lead the Treasury and State departments.
Read on...
I can't say I'm thrilled with all the Clintonites rumoured to be in Obama's cabinet. I've read that Holder is a political hack, but like all of Obama's choices I guess we'll have to wait and see. Will the rule of law return to the U.S? Tom
President-elect Obama has decided to tap Eric Holder as his attorney general, putting the veteran Washington lawyer in place to become the first African-American to head the Justice Department, according to two legal sources close to the presidential transition.
Holder, who served as deputy attorney general during the Clinton administration, still has to undergo a formal “vetting” review by the Obama transition team before the selection is final and is publicly announced, said one of the sources, who asked not to be identified talking about the transition process. But in the discussions over the past few days, Obama offered Holder the job and he accepted, the source said. The announcement is not likely until after Obama announces his choices to lead the Treasury and State departments.
Read on...
I can't say I'm thrilled with all the Clintonites rumoured to be in Obama's cabinet. I've read that Holder is a political hack, but like all of Obama's choices I guess we'll have to wait and see. Will the rule of law return to the U.S? Tom
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