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The Gulag Comes to America: The Don Siegelman Case
by Ernest Partridge
 A Political Prisoner: Today, Don Siegelman, former governor of the state of Alabama, sits in a federal prison, sentenced to a seven year term for bribery. Every day that Siegelman remains in prison every American citizen who openly dissents from the policies and protests the criminality of the Bush/Cheney regime is less free and more vulnerable to politically motivated prosecution.
For the plain fact of the matter is:
Don Siegelman is in effect a political prisoner.
The formal charge against him was bribery. But, practically
speaking, his offense was his political success as a Democrat in a
“red” Republican state. When Siegelman indicated an interest in
reviving his political career, one of his accusers was heard to say,
“[We’re] going to take care of Siegelman.” And so they did.
Larisa Alexandrovna, one of the few journalists to investigate this case in depth, writes:
- "For
most Americans, the very concept of political prisoners is remote and
exotic, a practice that is associated with third-world dictatorships
but is foreign to the American tradition. The idea that a prominent
politician – a former state governor – could be tried on charges that
many observers consider to be trumped-up, convicted in a trial that
involved numerous questionable procedures, and then hauled off to
prison in shackles immediately upon sentencing would be almost
unbelievable."
Less "unbelievable," perhaps, if we reflect upon a
dominant Republican mind-set: politics as warfare, the Democrats as
"evil" and "the enemy," and not as "the loyal opposition."
"You are
either with us or with the terrorists," said George Bush -- no
compromise, no alternatives, and no middle ground. Thus the goal of
the GOP warrior is not merely to defeat the Democrats; the goal is to
destroy them.
This was the objective of those who brought
charges against Don Siegelman, in a case that stinks from top to bottom
of political vendetta and manipulation. It’s a rather complicated
story, which I cannot recount in detail here. Those details may be
found in the Raw Story (Alexandrovna et al) series and the DemocracyNow
Scott Horton interview, listed and linked below. However, these are the
essential elements:
The bribery charge rose out of Siegelman’s
appointment of Richard Scrushy to the Alabama hospital regulatory
board, a non-paying position that Scrusky had held under two previous
governors. The appointment followed Scrushy’s donation of a half
million dollars to a Siegelman foundation and gained Siegelman no
financial advantage whatever. Of course, political favors to donors is
routine in both state an federal government, as numerous ambassadorial
appointments will testify. Moreover, clearly illegal campaign
contributions were received by Alabama Republican Senator Jeff Sessions
and Federal Judge William Pryor, who have not been investigated much
less prosecuted.
Siegelman held the distinction of serving all
four elective state offices: Attorney General, Secretary of State,
Lieutenant Governor and Governor. With his prestige, popularity, and
name-recognition, he was a persistent threat to the well-oiled Alabama
GOP political machine. As his daughter, Dana, describes it:
- "The
men and women behind this conspiracy have a lot against my dad. My dad
wanted an education lottery, brought jobs to the state, made big
businesses pay their taxes, sought to completely change Alabama's
constitution, raised teachers' salaries, gave African Americans jobs
that Caucasians had supremacy over for years, helped in fundraisers for
other Democrats, supported the arts, was well-respected on a national
level, etc... It was a battle against a truly liberal leader, not some
moderate Democrat. He held the highest offices in the state and was
Alabama's longest running politician. Republicans wanted their state
back, and they got it."
“They got it” through a stolen election.
In 2002, Siegelman appeared to have won re-election against Republican
challenger Bob Riley. But then, in Baldwin county, Republican election
supervisors (no Democrats allowed), locked the doors and “discovered” a
“computer glitch” that tilted the election to Riley, whereupon the GOP
Attorney General, William Pryor, put the kibosh on Siegelman’s appeal
for a recount by sealing the ballots. ( Siegelman gives his account of
the theft here).
While Siegelman vowed “to come back and fight
another day,” the GOP was determined to see to it that he was at last
down for the count.
Enter Bill Canary, Republican kingmaker,
friend and confidant of Karl Rove, campaign advisor to William Pryor
and Bob Riley, and, not coincidentally, husband of U.S. Attorney, Leura
Canary. It was Mrs. Canary, along with U.S. Attorney Alice Martin, who
brought the case against Siegelman.
Enter next, Dana Jill
Simpson, a rare and endangered political animal: a republican political
operative with a conscience and an allegiance to the rule of law that
trumps partisan loyalty. As Scott Horton reports, in a sworn affidavit
Ms. Simpson, Riley’s campaign attorney,
- "[p]rovide[d] a detailed
specific account of what transpired, starting with [Bill] Canary’s
statement “not to worry about Don Siegelman that ‘his girls would take
care of him.’” Then Riley’s son asked Canary if he was sure that
Siegelman would be “taken care of,” and Canary told him not to worry
that he had already gotten it worked out with Karl and Karl had spoken
with the Department of Justice and the Department of Justice was
already pursuing Don Siegelman.” “His girls” were Canary’s wife Leura
Canary, who as U.S. Attorney in the Middle District of Alabama, did in
fact start the investigation, only dropping off when objections were
raised by Governor Siegelman’s counsel due to her obvious political
bias and the U.S. Attorney in Birmingham, Alice Martin. Ms. Simpson,
who gave the affidavit, is a lifelong Republican and was a worker in
the Riley campaign against Siegelman, and her account has been
contemporaneously corroborated."
While communicating with
Siegelman’s attorney prior to releasing her affidavit, Simpson’s house
was demolished by a mysterious fire, and Simpson herself was forced off
the road. Mere coincidences, of course.
The judge at
Siegelman’s trial, Mark Fuller, a Bush appointee and a former member of
the executive committee of the Alabama Republican party, had a
well-known grudge against Siegelman. Fuller refused to recuse himself
from the case, denied bail, immediately put Siegelman in shackles and
ordered him to the Atlanta federal prison. After seven months Judge
Fuller, in violation of the law, has refused to release the trial
transcript without which the defendant can not appeal his conviction.
Don
Siegelman has since been shuttled back and forth among several federal
prisons out of touch with his attorneys and not allowed access to the
internet or to press interviews. This treatment has prompted an
unprecedented demand by forty-four former state attorneys general for a
Congressional investigation of the Siegelman case.
The Purge in Progress
The
Siegelman Saga puts a human face on a widespread politicization of the
U.S. Department of Justice. In a similar case in Wisconsin, Georgia
Thompson, a purchasing official in the state government, was convicted
of corruption in a case that worked to the advantage of a Republican
candidate for governor. The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals was so
shocked by the injustice of her conviction that they ordered Thompson’s
immediate release, even before issuing a ruling. The evidence against
her, said Judge Diane Wood, was “beyond thin.”
The December,
2006, firings of eight Republican U.S. attorneys, who insisted upon
conducting their offices without partisan bias, has brought national
attention to the political corruption of the Justice Department and has
caused many to wonder about the behavior of the remaining eight-five
U.S. attorneys that Alberto Gonzales saw fit to retain. It is a
troubling question.
A study by Donald Shields and John Cragan,
two professors of communication, may supply an answer: “the offices of
the U.S. Attorneys across the nation investigate seven times as many
Democratic officials as they investigate Republican officials, a number
that exceeds even the racial profiling of African Americans in traffic
stops.” (The numbers: 298 Democrats, 67 Republicans, 10 “Others”).
This
apparent partisan purge of Democrats, combined with amnesty for
Republicans, hits close to home. It is reported that Carol Lam, one of
the eight sacked U.S. Attorneys, was hot on the trail of my Republican
Congressman, Jerry Lewis. I’ve heard nothing more about this
investigation, so it appears that Lewis is off the hook.
So now
we have in place a thoroughgoing corruption of the federal justice
system. The blindfold has been torn off the face of lady justice, as
the Department of Justice becomes, in effect, an extension of the
Republican Party, and possession of a public office by a Democrat
becomes a de facto crime, should the hounds of the Department of
Justice decide to go after said official.
The Democratic
Congress has been remarkably complacent about all this. True, they have
called a few young graduates from Pat Robertson’s Regent U. Law school
to testify, they have heard from the fired U.S. attorneys, and the
Democrats have promised hearings on the Siegelman case. But its all
show – a bark without a bite – as the White House and the Department of
Justice steadfastly refuse to recognize subpoenas or allow the key
players to testify under oath. These offenses, by the way, were
included among the articles of impeachment against Richard Nixon.
Unsurprisingly,
these outrages by the Department of Defense have not excited much
interest in the mainstream media, with the honorable exception of Keith
Olbermann and Dan Abrams of MSNBC. Abrams series, “Bush League
Justice,” which was broadcast last December, was magnificent, and he
promised that “we're not going to let this go away... We are going to
be watching very closely." Six weeks later, we are awaiting the
follow-up. In addition, rumor has it that 60 Minutes is preparing a
segment on the Siegelman case.
Two Roads Diverge
The
fate of Don Siegelman may reflect the fate of our republic. We are at a
crucial crossroads, one road leads to a restoration of the rule of law,
and the other road leads to despotism.
If Don Siegelman's
persecutors have their way and he serves out his term of seven years,
and if the culprits who stole his re-election and railroaded him to
federal lockup enjoy the fruits of their villainy and escape
punishment, then the rule of law is dead in Alabama and in critical
condition in Washington D.C. Then the gangrene of lawlessness in
Alabama may spread until it destroys the entire body politic.
I
seem to recall a comment by some Bushie to the effect that “we’re
pushing the limits until someone or something stops us.” To date, those
limits have extended well beyond the Constitution and the rule of law.
Acts of Congress are nullified by signing statements, Congressional
oversight is blinded by “executive privilege” and a refusal to
recognize subpoenas. Elections have been privatized and are
unverifiable. All that’s left to the Congress to contain this
burgeoning power of “the unitary executive” is impeachment, and
impeachment, as we all know, is “off the table.”
Someone, somehow, must draw a line in the sand and say “no further!” And then, push back – and back -- and back.
“Just
wait,” we hear, “in less than a year there will be a new president and
a new day dawning.” If so, then this new day will require a new leader
with qualities and capacities that are not conspicuous in any of the
present-day contenders for that office.
Perhaps the next
President, once in office, will surprise us with inspired leadership
qualities not now apparent. It has happened before.
But the
restoration of freedom never simply “trickles down” from great leaders.
It must also “percolate up” from the people. And I don’t see much
reason for hope in the American public today. But extraordinary crises
have a way of summoning extraordinary virtues.
If, somehow, we
follow the road to restoration of democracy and the rule of law, we
should see at the beginning of that journey the release and exoneration
of Don Siegelman, the disgrace and punishment of his tormentors, and
the end of political prosecution.
It will be a long and arduous road to follow. But it is the only road worthy of our dedication and effort.
Copyright 2008 by Ernest Partridge
donsiegelman.org
For more Information About the Seigelman Case and the Corruption of
Justice:
“Bush League
Justice:” Dan Abrams, MSNBC.
Scott Horton
interviewed by Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzales on Democracy
Now.
Transcript, Audio,
and Video. (Move ahead, past opening news reports).
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The simple fact is that Siegelman was tried and convicted by a jury of his peers. Siegelman represents a huge disappointment by the people who elected him. He sold his office and he sold out the citizens of Alabama.