A BUZZFLASH NEWS ALERT
by Meg White

A subcommittee of the House Judiciary approved a resolution [1] to allow Chairman John Conyers (D-MI) the power to issue a subpoena to compel former Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Douglas Feith to testify before the committee.

The Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties voted 10-3 in favor of the resolution.

Feith had voluntarily agreed to come before the Judiciary Committee last Wednesday. The former number three official at the Pentagon was due to testify about harsh interrogation techniques and the role the Bush Administration had in policies that may have allowed the abuse of U.S. detainees.

Only hours before his scheduled appearance, Feith's attorney sent a letter to the committee saying he would not testify [2]. The letter said Feith objected to testifying at the same hearing in which former State Department Chief of Staff Lawrence Wilkerson would testify.

At today's hearing, Rep. Trent Franks (R-AZ) called Wilkerson's testimony [3] last week "asinine," Feith's concerns understandable, and a subpoena "unnecessary." Franks and two other Republicans voted against the measure.

While Wilkerson has been an outspoken opponent of the Bush Administration since resigning from his State Department post, his testimony was not a personal attack on Feith. However, Wilkerson is associated with some harsh words about Feith originally spoken by General Tommy Franks. He repeated and bolstered Franks' comment that referred to Feith as "the f***ing stupidest guy on the face of the earth."

Rep. Steve King (R-IA), one of the three "nay" votes, expressed a concern that the subpoena powers of the committee were at risk of being overused, and said that it's possible Feith may once again agree to testify voluntarily.

Conyers said he would not abuse the power the resolution gives him.

"I will be as discreet and as careful as I always am in the issuance of subpoenas," he said. "This is really quite routine, in fact."

Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) voted in favor of the resolution, though he expressed some displeasure before the vote:

"I regrettably support the subpoena."

A BUZZFLASH NEWS ALERT

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