In a 329-78 vote last night, the House of Representatives followed the Senate and stripped President George W. Bush of the authority to appoint United States Attorneys on an interim basis, ending the ability of the Bush administration to do an end run around the Senate in putting controversial US Attorneys in office.
The bill sponsored by Rep. Howard Berman (D-CA) places a 120-day limit to the term of a United States Attorney appointed on an interim basis. Democrats allege that the previous authority to appoint interim US Attorneys on an unlimited basis, inserted stealthily into the 2006 reauthorization of the USA Patriot Act, was used as a 'loophole' to insert Bush administration political loyalists into office.
The congress is finally coming to life and voting to keep their constitutional power.
Rep. Berman pointed to an e-mail from Kyle Sampson, the former chief of staff to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, who said "We should gum this to death. Our guy is in there so the status quo is good for us. Pledge a desire for a Senate-confirmed U.S. Attorney and otherwise hunker down."
"They quickly figured out that the provision created the possibility to circumvent the Senate and decided to exploit that power," Berman added.
House Republicans offered thin opposition on the House floor. Rep. Lamar Smith, the Ranking Republican on the Judiciary Committee, described his objection as primarily procedural, and voted to support the bill.
And now to the president:
The Senate measure passed on a 94-2. The measure will proceed to the White House for approval after being considered in a House-Senate conference.
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