Ellison, Conyers Demand Documents About Paulose and Heffelfinger

Eric Black:

U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison of Minneapolis and House Judiciary Chair John Conyers have moments ago sent a letter to the acting U.S. attorney general demanding all communications from the staff of the Minnesota U.S. attorneys office to the Justice Department about Rachel Paulose’s management of the office, documents relating to the evaluations of her predecessor, Tom Heffelfinger that might shed light on why he was on a list of U.S. attorneys to be fired, and all documents reflecting the search for Heffelfinger’s replacement, which led to the appointment of Paulose.

Goodling gone... Gonzo gone... Paulose going soon?

Erase All Doubts, Release Zimmermann Tapes

Star Tribune LTE:

Nearly a year ago, former Minneapolis Councilmember Dean Zimmermann was convicted on three counts of bribery. To this day, many of Zimmermann's supporters claim he is innocent, even though audio and videotapes presented at the trial clearly showed him soliciting and accepting large amounts of cash.

The U.S. Department of Justice did not release those tapes to the media at the conclusion of the trial. The tapes were shown in open court and are part of the public record. Similar FBI tapes showing public officials accepting bribes have been released to the media.

Zimmermann's supporters have said that then-U.S. Attorney Tom Heffelfinger, Assistant U.S. Attorney John Docherty, the FBI, the judge and jury were part of a conspiracy to "frame" Zimmermann. Some supporters have even conjured a conspiracy that involved Zimmermann's opponent in the last election and even DFL Party officials.

Recent allegations that other federal investigations and prosecutions may have been politically motivated lend credence to those claims. Those allegations have eroded public confidence in the fairness and impartiality of the U.S. Department of Justice.

I believe allowing citizens to view the evidence that convicted Zimmermann would help restore some of that lost confidence. The anniversary of Zimmermann's conviction would be an opportune moment for the government to release those tapes.

KEN AVIDOR, MINNEAPOLIS

David Strom and Katherine Kersten Whine About Rachel Paulose

Katherine Kersten was invited on David Strom's Taxpayer League radio show Tuesday, May 29th to talk about Rachel Paulose and the U.S. Attorney scandal.

There's no mention of the AUSA's at the Minnesota U.S. Attorney's office who demoted themselves in protest of Paulose's lack of management skills.

Here's an excerpt of the interview:



Hear the entire podcast HERE.

Timeline Update--Heffelfinger Cancelled Press Conference on Zimmermann

According to then Fifth Congressional District Green Party chair Steven Eisenmenger:

Eisenmenger said two members of the Zimmermann campaign were subpoenaed to testify Monday before a Hennepin County grand jury, but were told Friday their appearances had been cancelled. He also questioned why U.S. Attorney Tom Heffelfinger cancelled a Friday press conference where he was to release a statement on the case. “He should hand down an indictment or close the investigation,” Eisenmenger said. “It’s well within a citizen’s right to make this reasonable request in asking for that.”

Why did Heffelfinger cancel his press conference?

Did the raid on Zimmermann's house yield information that complicated the investigation?

Were there any e-mails to prominent Republicans on Zimmermann's hard drive that could have gotten Heffelfinger into trouble with loyal Bushie Monica "Buzzsaw" Goodling?

Did Republicans Fund MN Green Party Senate Candidate in 2002?

From a comment on TPM Muckraker:

The third issue is much less direct -- it was about Rove pushing money through Norm Coleman's campaign in 2002 to support the Green Party Native American Candidate in the Wellstone-Coleman race in 2002. (The Greens ultimately settled this by defeating their own candidate in the September 2002 primary). But it was hot news in the summer of 2002 that Rove was spending money through Coleman to support someone who might fool progressives, and take votes away from Wellstone. At the time it was a big issue, Heffelfinger did comment that he might investigate the matter of Coleman's campaign funds being used for two candidates and two parties -- but it never went beyond that. Again, that probably alienated Rove who was shoveling in the campaign cash.

Really!!!???!!!

I never heard that Republicans were funding Ed "Eagle Man" McGaa or that Tom Heffelfinger said anything about it... but, it would make sense in light of what was revealed during the Zimmermann trial.

For me and other former Greens, Ed McGaa's endorsement was when we realized that something was terribly wrong with the MN Green Party:

But my dissatisfaction with the Greens grew. The watershed moment, in retrospect, was the Green Party convention in 2002 where the party nominated Ed McGaa when clearly he had no credentials as a Green Party member or a Senate candidate. We know how that story turned out. The Green's gubernatorial candidate, Ken Pentel, had to publicly pull his support from McGaa when the truth came out about McGaa's "green" philosophy, which included burying toxic sludge on his home reservation for a price.

... and Zimmermann supported McGaa...

But Dean Zimmermann, 6th Ward Minneapolis City Council member and a Green Party member, said that Wellstone is responsible for collecting his votes, not the Green Party.

"They can't take votes away from (Wellstone) ... They're not his votes," Zimmermann said.

So, were the Republicans paying MN Green Party candidates back in 2002? It wouldn't surprise me... here's a few examples from that era of Republicans shoveling money at Green Party candidates:

Republican Offers $100K Bribe to NM Greens - Was It Tom Delay?

Green Party Candidate Finds He's a Republican Pawn