Template:US attorneys timeline

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Timeline:
Bush administration U.S. attorney firings controversy
  • Mar. 30, 2006: PATRIOT Act reauthorization passes with provision allowing appointment of US attorneys without Senate confirmation.
  • Dec. 7, 2006: U.S. attorneys were fired.
  • Jan. 9, 2007: Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) introduced the Preserving United States Attorney Independence Act of 2007, which would repeal related provisions granted in the 2006 PATRIOT Act.
  • Jan. 18, 2007: Alberto Gonzales acknowledged the firings.
  • Feb. 20, 2007: Department of Justice officials allegedly contacted the fired attorneys warning them to "remain quiet about their dismissals."
  • Mar. 1, 2007: The House Judiciary Committee issued subpoenas to four of the fired prosecutors.
  • Mar. 5, 2007: Michael Battle, who had personally made the calls firing the attorneys, resigned. The House Judiciary Committee issued additional subpoenas to two other fired attorneys.
  • Mar. 6, 2007: Hearings were held in which the fired attorneys testified.
  • Mar. 12, 2007: Kyle Sampson, Gonzales' chief of staff, resigned after he acknowledged that he withheld information from Congress. Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) states that he would block the passage of the Preserving United States Attorney Independence Act of 2007.
  • Mar. 14, 2007: The White House responded with additional reasons why the attorneys were fired besides being "performance related." Reasons included "lax voter-fraud investigations".
  • Mar. 15, 2007: The Senate Judiciary Committee widened the number of approved subpoenas to include several Department of Justice and White House officials. Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) relented his threat to block the passage of the Preserving United States Attorney Independence Act of 2007.
  • Mar. 18, 2007: Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), the Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, stated that he was "sick and tired of getting half-truths" from the White House on this issue.
  • Mar. 19, 2007: The White House released 3,000 documents of correspondence with an eighteen-day lull between November 15 and December 4, 2006.
  • Mar. 20, 2007: The White House offered to grant members of Congress private interviews with administration officials without oaths or transcripts. Democrats rejected the offer. President Bush vowed to oppose any efforts to subpoena White House staff members. The Preserving United States Attorney Independence Act of 2007 passed the Senate.
  • Mar. 21, 2007: The House Judiciary Committee approved subpoenas for top-level White House staff members.
  • Mar. 22, 2007: The Senate Judiciary Committee approved subpoenas for top-level White House staff members.
  • Mar. 23, 2007: The Department of Justice released copies of emails regarding a November 27, 2006 meeting between Gonzales and senior aides to discuss the then planned firings of the U.S. attorneys.
  • Mar. 26, 2007: Monica Goodling, the senior counselor to Gonzales and the Department of Justice's liaison to the White House, threatened to plead the Fifth if subpoenaed to testify before Congress.
  • Mar. 28, 2007: The chairmen of the House and Senate Judiciary committees urged the White House to turn over all relevant e-mails to the committees for their investigations.
  • Mar. 29, 2007: Kyle Sampson testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee, refuting claims that Gonzales was unaware of the planned firings before they took place.
  • Mar. 30, 2007: The House Judiciary Committee and the Department of Justice reached an agreement to conduct private transcribed interviews with former and current DOJ employees. Monica Goodling reiterates her plans to plead the Fifth to the House Judiciary Committee.
  • April 6, 2007: Monica Goodling resigned from her position at the Department of Justice.
  • April 10, 2007: The House Judiciary Committee served Gonzales with a subpoena to release previously redacted documents.
  • April 12, 2007: The Senate Judiciary Committee authorized subpoenas for White House documents and threatened to use them pending Gonzales' testimony on April 17 (postponed).
  • April 19, 2007: Attorney General Alberto Gonzales testified before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary.
  • April 25, 2007: The House Judiciary Committee authorized a subpoena for Monica Goodling with immunity.
  • May 1, 2007: The House Judiciary Committee issued a subpoena to former Deputy Attorney General James Comey.
  • May 14, 2007: Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty submits his letter of resignation.

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