Editorial: U.S. attorney firings

Monday, March 5, 2007 | 7:17 a.m.

Daniel Bogden, the former U.S. attorney for Nevada, said when he was asked last year to step down he was not given a reason, but he said a Justice Department official told him that "my performance, and that of my office, was not the reason."

"I suspected it was political at that point," Bogden said in a story by Sam Skolnik in Friday's Las Vegas Sun.

His suspicion is backed up by a 2003 review by a team from the Justice Department in Washington, which gave Bogden high marks.

The question of politics playing a role in the firings is being investigated by committees in the House and Senate. Along with some of the other recently fired U.S. attorneys, Bogden may very well testify before congressional committees on Tuesday.

Allegations that these were political firings have met with strong denials from the Justice Department, but those have been hollow considering the circumstances. The former U.S. attorney in eastern Arkansas was pushed out to make way for a one-time aide to White House political strategist Karl Rove. Carol Lam of San Diego was replaced after her office's successful prosecution of former Republican Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham on bribery charges.

While U.S. attorneys, who are the top federal law enforcement official in a jurisdiction, are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate, they should be insulated from politics because of the power their office holds.

Congress should not accept stonewalling from this White House when it comes to the reasons for the firings. The administration must be held accountable and explain its actions.