Using the apparatus of state to target your political enemies. One might even call it un-American:
The dismissal of U.S. Attorney David C. Iglesias of New Mexico in December 2006 followed extensive communication among lawyers and political aides in the White House who hashed over complaints about his work on public corruption cases against Democrats, according to newly released e-mails and transcripts of closed-door House testimony by former Bush counsel Harriet Miers and political chief Karl Rove.Using the apparatus of state to help your political allies -- even if it breaks the rules. Might be called unethical and un-American:
A campaign to oust Iglesias intensified after state GOP officials and Republican members of the congressional delegation apparently concluded that he was not pursuing the cases against Democrats in a way that could help then-Rep. Heather A. Wilson (R) in a tight reelection race in New Mexico, according to interviews and Bush White House e-mails released Tuesday by congressional investigators. The documents place the genesis of Iglesias's dismissal earlier than previously known.
A phone call from the top lawyer in President George W. Bush's White House may have prompted the Department of Justice to violate its own policy of silence and speak out about a criminal investigation targeting then-Congressman Rick Renzi, R-Ariz., according to deposition transcripts released Tuesday.
