Judge Cites ‘Weak’ Privilege Claim, Refuses Stay in Miers Case
Former White House counsel Harriet Miers could be required to appear before the House Judiciary Committee as early as next month under a federal judge’s ruling yesterday.
U.S. District Judge John Bates refused to stay an earlier ruling in which he found that Miers and former White House chief of staff Joshua Bolten did not have absolute immunity in the U.S. attorney firing probe, the Washington Post reports. The earlier ruling required Miers to testify before Congress or assert her privilege claim on a question-by-question basis.
The Bush administration had sought a stay while it pursues an appeal, but Bates said success was unlikely. “Simply calling an issue important—primarily because it involves the relationship of the political branches—does not transform the executive’s weak arguments into a likelihood of success or a substantial appellate issue,” he said.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers Jr., D-Mich., said he is “heartened” by the decision. “Today’s ruling clearly rejects the White House’s efforts to run out the clock on the committee’s investigation,” he said in a statement.
