Constitutional Law

CapHill Round-Up

Despite being in recess this week, the Hill continues buzzing with news. Congress will return to normal business on Monday, Feb. 23.

Senators Demand More on Ethics Probe

Reported here yesterday, the Justice Department’s Office of Professional Responsibility is looking into whether attorneys justifying Bush administration policies did so unethically. Berkeley Law Prof. John Yoo and 9th U.S. Circuit Judge Jay Bybee, then serving in the Justice Department, sparked widespread controversy for drafting the “torture memo”: the Bush administration’s legal defense of waterboarding and other harsh interrogation techniques. Sens. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) are now calling for updates on the investigation, which has been ongoing for over a year.

H/T: How Appealing.

White House Entering House, Rove Dispute

An ongoing battle between Karl Rove and Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), chair of the House Judiciary Committee who has twice subpoenaed Rove, may now be in the hands of President Obama. After Rove’s attorney requested the president to referee his dispute with the House, the Obama administration has requested two more weeks to consider the issue. The most recent subpoena demanded Rove’s testimony before the Judiciary Committee on Monday, Feb. 23. Rove’s refusal to testify as to the firings of nine U.S. attorneys is premised in President Bush’s executive privilege.

Full post as published by ACS Blog on February 17, 2009 (boomark / email).