May 12 - June 9, 2005: White House Counsels Discuss Not Renewing US Attorney’s Term

Leslie Fahrenkopf, a lawyer in the White House counsel’s office, sends an email to White House counsel Harriet Miers about US Attorney David Iglesias of New Mexico (see October 26, 2004). Fahrenkopf has seen emails from Scott Jennings, an official in the White House Office of Political Affairs, to his boss Timothy Griffin asking that Iglesias be ousted (see May 2 - June 28, 2005). Fahrenkopf writes: “Harriet, per our conversation last week regarding the US Attorney for New Mexico, David Iglesias, I double-checked the dates of Iglesias’s confirmation and appointment. He was confirmed October 11, 2001, and appointed by the president October 16, 2001. You also asked me to remind you to check the chart grading US Attorneys on their performance. Thanks.” Fahrenkopf sends a follow-up email to Miers on June 9, 2005, saying: “Harriet, I just wanted to follow up on this item to see if you wanted to take any action. You will recall that this is the individual who is ruffling some feathers in New Mexico.” Less than an hour after Fahrenkopf sends this email, Miers replies, “I believe the decision is to let his four years run and then appoint someone else, if this is the right case.” Karl Rove, the White House deputy chief of staff and the senior political official in the Bush administration (see Late January 2005), will later testify that he “probably” spoke to Miers about Iglesias before the email exchange involving Miers, Fahrenkopf, Jennings, and Griffin. Miers will testify to having no recollection of the email exchange. She will be asked why, if Iglesias had been ranked so highly just months before (see November 14-18, 2005 and March 2, 2005), he was now being considered for firing. Miers will have no answer. [US House of Representatives, Committee on the Judiciary, 6/15/2009 ; US House of Representatives, Committee on the Judiciary, 6/15/2009 ; US House of Representatives, Committee on the Judiciary, 7/7/2009 ; US House of Representatives, Committee on the Judiciary, 7/30/2009 ; US House of Representatives, Committee on the Judiciary, 8/11/2009]