Here’s an interesting question from Dick Durbin to Mukasey. It addresses whom the Administration felt it needed to give buy-in before nominating Judge Mukasey:
11. According to the Washington Post, before you were confirmed you "spent part of the weekend meeting with leading figures in the conservative world, seeking to allay their concerns about [your] philosophy and suitability for running [the] Justice Department."
a. With whom did you meet?
ANSWER: Prior to the announcement of my nomination, I met with former Attorney General Edwin Meese III, Lee Casey, Leonard Leo, David Rivkin, Jay Sekulow, and Edward Whelan.
b. Who asked you to take these meetings?
ANSWER: Officials within the White House. I cannot remember the specific individuals.
So:
- A former Attorney General implicated in Iran-Contra and additional corruption allegations.
- Casey and Rivkin, a one-two team serving as the public intellectuals defending the unitary executive
- Leo, the Executive VP of the Federalist Society alleged to have been involved in the Civil Rights Division politicization
- Sekulow, the Chief Counsel for the American Center for Law and Justice, one of the brains behind the Terry Schiavo circus, and someone with his own ethical challenges
- Ed Whelan, himself a bit of a public intellectual for the right, not to mention a former OLC lawyer when most of the crap was written and–my personal favorite–a former Senior Vice President of Verizon
Mind you, Addington the White House can ask Mukasey to meet with whomever they want–I’m not alleging this is in any way improper. Still, it’s interesting to see who the select few who get to vet an Attorney General candidate are.