Well it's official Pete Domenici admits calling David Iglesias, and apologizes. Senator Dominici says in a written statement published in a TPMmuckraker article
I called Mr. Iglesias late last year. My call had been preceded by months of extensive media reports about acknowledged investigations into courthouse construction, including public comments from the FBI that it had completed its work months earlier, and a growing number of inquiries from constituents. I asked Mr. Iglesias if he could tell me what was going on in that investigation and give me an idea of what timeframe we were looking at. It was a very brief conversation, which concluded when I was told that the courthouse investigation would be continuing for a lengthy period.
Domenici denies asking Iglesias to do anything untoward and admits that he knew Iglesias's office was understaffed given its extensive caseload. New Mexico is a favorite border crossing for illegal immigrants and drug smugglers. He claims that Iglesias repeatedly requested and he worked hard to obtain additional funding for the New Mexico office.
My conversations with Mr. Iglesias over the years have been almost exclusively about this resource problem and complaints by constituents. He consistently told me that he needed more help, as have many other New Mexicans within the legal community.
My frustration with the U.S. Attorney’s office mounted as we tried to get more resources for it, but public accounts indicated an inability within the office to move more quickly on cases. Indeed, in 2004 and 2005 my staff and I expressed my frustration with the U.S. Attorney’s office to the Justice Department and asked the Department to see if the New Mexico U.S. Attorney’s office needed more help, including perhaps an infusion of professionals from other districts
According to Domenici based on Domenici's inability to secure additional resources for Iglesias' office he concluded Iglesias needed to be replaced.
If you can explain to me how Domenici's failure to secure additional funding from Congress or additional help from the DOJ justifies firing Iglesias, I'll throw in with you.
Here is a Washhington Post article with some additional insights into the Iglesias firing mostly from the
DOJ point of view.
The article contains some interesting discussion of the ethics rules concerning contacts by congressmembers (both senators and congresscritters) with US Attorneys actively engaged in a prosecution.
The Senate Ethics Manual advises senators that contact with prosecutors and regulatory agency officials is "generally permitted, where the communication is with the agency and not directed at the court, where the agency is not engaged in an ongoing enforcement, investigative or other quasi-judicial proceeding."Essentially Domenici's published statement admits he violated Senate Ethics Rules.
Stanley Brand, an ethics lawyer who served as House counsel in the 1980s, said a senator should contact a federal prosecutor about an ongoing investigation only if he or she has evidence or information related to the probe.
"It's going to precipitate a huge problem," Brand said, warning of a potential review by the Justice Department.
