‘Outstanding work’ in 2005, fired in 2006

By Lisa Mascaro

Thursday, April 19, 2007 | 6:54 a.m.

WASHINGTON - A Justice Department official involved in discussions about replacing U.S. attorneys sent a letter praising Nevada's top prosecutor, Daniel Bogden, for "outstanding work" 18 months before he was fired.

The letter from Mary Beth Buchanan, former director of the Executive Office of U.S. Attorneys, provides further evidence that Bogden was replaced for political reasons and not for his performance.

His firing Dec. 7 and the dismissals of seven other U.S. attorneys last year is to be the subject today when Attorney General Alberto Gonzales appears before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Congressional Democrats and some Republicans say prosecutors were dismissed because they were not taking cases favorable to Republican interests or to make room for appointees more loyal to the White House.

Conflicting accounts of the events surrounding the firings led Congress to insist on Gonzales' appearance, which is considered crucial to his future with Justice Department.

Buchanan's letter, one of two letters from Justice officials obtained by the Sun on Wednesday, noted Bogden's "significant white collar prosecutions," "serious approach to gun violence reduction" and "zero tolerance of official corruption."

Bogden's narcotics prosecution strategy had been outstanding and he met complex issues arising from Indian lands "with vigor," Buchanan wrote in the June 2005 letter. She commended his hiring and managerial procedures.

Buchanan also thanked Bogden for his annual report, saying the information he had provided would help Justice "in assessing the outstanding work that you and the other United States Attorneys Offices are doing."

The praise stemmed from Bogden's 2003 performance appraisal and was consistent with another broad review the department conducted that year.

Buchanan's possible role in the dismissals became an issue Sunday when Gonzales' former top aide, Kyle Sampson, testified in a closed-door session with congressional investigators that he had sought Buchanan's opinion while drawing up lists of possible candidates for firing, according to a Judiciary Committee source.

Buchanan served in Justice Department's executive office from June 2004 to June 2005. She simultaneously served as the U.S. attorney for western Pennsylvania, the position she now holds.

A second letter obtained Wednesday was written by Buchanan's replacement in the executive office, Michael Battle. It thanked Bogden and his staff for eliminating a projected budget shortfall for fiscal 2006 and for creating a $100,000 carry-over balance.

That carry-over is noteworthy because Nevada Sen. John Ensign has complained since Bogden's firing that his office was badly understaffed.

"I feel it is important that we applaud those offices who implemented cost savings measures that allowed us to achieve this success," Battle wrote in the letter dated Feb. 6, two months after Bogden was told of his dismissal, which took effect at the end of February.

Neither of the letters appear to be among the thousands of pages of documents the Justice Department has turned over to the House Judiciary Committee over the past several weeks as part of the investigation.

Because of a number of missing and redacted documents, the committee issued a subpoena April 10 requiring the department to turn over additional documents regarding the dismissals.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada expects answers from the attorney general as to why the career prosecutor was fired at age 50.

"As more evidence comes out, it becomes clearer and clearer Dan Bogden's termination was done for political reasons and not for performance," Reid spokesman Jon Summers said.

Bogden declined to comment Wednesday.

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