At a hastily called news conference on March 20, President Bush announced that he would fight any attempt by Congress to issue subpoenas regarding his staff testifying about the firing of eight federal prosecutors.
I recall that a reporter was jailed for her refusal to testify under oath about the Scooter Libby leak case regarding CIA agent Valerie Plame. It is an everyday occurrence in our court system for people to be subpoenaed to testify under oath regarding their knowledge of pertinent events in legal matters. This is an integral part of our court system to get at the truth.
A defendant’s mother was forced to testify against her son in the recent murder case in Portland of Amy Lapierre. Should not all of our elected officials be held to this, and perhaps even to a higher level of accountability?
The very thought any elected official could take official action and then refuse to testify under oath about what they have done is unconscionable. That the president would back, even encourage their refusal, shows a blatant disregard for the rule of law, and more important, to his obligation to represent the people of this country.
Enough is enough. We must demand that our legislators pursue the truth.
Pete Alberda, Lewiston
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