More Subpoenas for Doolittle

The Sacramento Bee and the AP (via TPM) are reporting more subpoenas for CA-R Congressman John Doolittle.

Rep. John Doolittle said Thursday that the Justice Department has issued subpoenas to him and five of his staff members seeking records going back 11 years...

In a release issued by Doolittle's office, it said that the Justice Department has assured the five staff members that they are merely witnesses. Left unanswered is the question of what Doolittle's status in the investigation is, and whether he has become a target in the on-going investigation related to disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff that would mean an indictment is near.

It's bad timing for Doolittle, who just yesterday was complaining when a watchdog group named him to their list of Most Corrupt Members of Congress.

(More...)

It appears Doolittle is going to attempt to make this into a "separation of powers" issue: the mean ol' executive (via the Justice Department) shouldn't have the ability to kick around Congresscritters.

Now, granted, considering the way things have been going, it's not a bad line to take. God help us if the Unitary Executive ever decided to use its powers to go after random Senators the way Rove appears to have gone after the former Governor of Alabama...

"These efforts raise serious constitutional issues going to the very core of our separation of powers created by the Founding Fathers," [Doolittle attorney David] Barger said.

The Constitution prohibits the executive branch from using its law enforcement powers to interfere with legislative business. Barger said he and Doolittle would "be vigilant" to ensure Congress' independence is "vigorously protected." Any court challenge would go before a federal judge, but the documents would be sealed.

It's possible that the subpoenas may be too much of a fishing expedition, reportedly asking for nearly all legislative documents for the past 11 years. The AP notes that,

in the case of LA-D Congressman Jefferson, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit held that FBI agents trampled on congressional independence during the raid. Even though they took only documents relevant to their bribery investigation, agents also reviewed legislative documents, which the court said was unconstitutional.

Ironically, it was just last week that the Sacramento Bee reported on a possible motive for Doolittle sticking it out and going for another term: if he's reelected, it bumps his pension by $16,000 a year.

The Roseville Republican is under pressure to retire from Congress. The pressure is coming from members of his own party who think that his embroilment in the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal has rendered him unelectable in his Republican-dominated district.

Doolittle has responded by branding some of his harshest Republican critics as "weasels." He has said he is not quitting when the current term ends in December.

"I will not step aside," Doolittle said in a defiant telephone news conference earlier this month. "I am running again. Period."

But with Doolittle up to his eyeballs in corruption charges, it's going to be tough for him to beat Charlie Brown this time around...