Siegelman saga continues

By By Bob Martin, The Alabama Scene
Last September, career investigators at the U. S. Office of Special Counsel opened a probe into whether partisan politics was a factor in the Justice Department’s prosecution of former Alabama governor Don Siegelman.
The OSC is an independent federal investigative and prosecutorial agency. Its primary mission is to safeguard the merit system by protecting federal employees and applicants from prohibited personnel practices, especially reprisal for whistle blowing.
The investigation was being conducted by a task force formed at the agency to probe into high-profile political investigations in Washington, including whether the White House had political motives in firing U.S. attorneys. It began gathering information on the Siegelman case in September and was planning to request documents from the Justice Department in October before Special Counsel Scott Bloch ordered the case closed.
Siegelman, who narrowly lost his reelection bid in 2002 and ran again in 2006, has leveled charges that White House advisor Karl Rove and others targeted him for prosecution to cripple him to the point he could not successfully challenge Gov. Bob Riley.
After concerns were expressed that Bloch cannot close a file without conducting an investigation into the allegations Bloch directed the task force looking into the maters to cease the investigation and wait for further instructions from him, the career investigators wrote in a memo recently uncovered and dated Jan. 18.
That episode and others detailed in the 13-page memo illustrate how Bloch, accused by critics on Capitol Hill and elsewhere of political bias and managerial misconduct, frequently has been at odds with top career staffers over matters involving protecting federal whistle-blowers and policing partisan political activities in the federal government.
Bloch, whose office and home were raided by FBI agents last week in connection with a probe of his activities, repeatedly has denied staffers’ requests to investigate cases they believed deserved scrutiny, the memo indicates.
“I’m stunned by all this,” Siegelman’s attorney Vince Kilborn said. “If an ongoing government investigation was shut down, I would say it very likely should be classified as obstruction of justice.” Said Siegelman, as quoted by the AP, “Why would you start an investigation and let it proceed and then shut it down? The logical conclusion is that somebody intervened and told them to shut down the investigation.”
Looking for one more vote”
When state lawmakers convene for the final day of the regular session on May 19, one vote could make the difference in whether state voters will be able to determine the fate of removing the state sales tax on food, which currently is four cents on the dollar.
Last Thursday 20 of the 35 senators voted in favor of bringing the matter up for debate, but 21 votes were necessary to send a constitutional amendment to the voters. All 20 senators voting to fully debate the plan were Democrats. All 11 senators voting no were Republicans. Two Democrats and one Republican abstained and one GOP senator was away from the chamber.
Senate Republican leader Jabo Waggoner has said that Republican senators will use delaying tactics to block a final vote on the last day. That means supporters would need to find at least 21 senators willing to vote for cloture, which would halt debate and force a vote, and then 21 once more to vote for the constitutional amendment.
Legislative number-crunchers say that the abolition of the four-cent state sales tax on food, coupled with the offset of eliminating the federal income tax deduction for state taxpayers would result in a significant tax cut for 80 percent of Alabamians and only a significant increase in taxes for about five percent of the state’s population.
Three state super delegates undecided
Sen. Barack Obama came out of the Alabama presidential primary race leading Sen. Hillary Clinton in elected delegates to the Democratic Convention in Denver 29-28. However, three of the state’s eight super delegates remain undecided. They are party chairman Joe Turnham, U. S. Rep. Bud Cramer of Huntsville and former Secretary of State Nancy Worley.
Three of the super delegates, Joe Reed, State Rep. Yvonne Kennedy and Rev. Randy Keller of Gadsden support Sen. Clinton. Two, U. S. Rep. Artur Davis and labor leader Stewart Burkhalter, support Obama.
So as it stands today, Sen. Obama, who won the state by a convincing margin, could actually be behind in the delegate count. That is because of the super delegates and the fact that how a candidate does in the congressional districts rather than the state as a whole, plays an important role in the apportionment of the elected delegates.