JURIST - Paper Chase: Miers repeats refusal to testify before House panel as other subpoenas granted delays

[JURIST] Former White House Counsel Harriet Miers [official profile] again refused Tuesday to testify in front of the US House Judiciary Committee [official website] regarding the allegedly political firings of eight US attorneys [JURIST news archive]. In a letter to the committee, Miers' lawyer repeated previous assertions [JURIST report] that President George W. Bush has ordered Miers not to cooperate with the investigation, citing executive privilege. Democratic members of the House have argued that Miers' claim of immunity to subpoenas ended when she stopped working for the White House. The Republican National Committee (RNC) [party website] also informed the Judiciary Committee that it would not comply [letter, PDF] with the subpoena [JURIST report] for e-mails related to the firings while the constitutional questions of executive privilege remain unresolved. House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers (D-MI) allowed the group until July 31 to turn over the requested documents [letter, PDF; press release] or explain its lack of cooperation.

The Senate Judiciary Committee [official website], meanwhile, has also granted an extension for responding to a subpoena; the Committee is seeking documents from the White House related to the controversial warrantless wiretapping program. White House counsel Fred Fielding notified the committee that it needed additional time to review the documents [letter, PDF]. In granting the request, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) [official website] expressed hope that the White House would use the additional time constructively [press release]. AP has more.

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