Schiff Tries the Usual Trap Door
Former Attorney General John Ashcroft testified Thursday during the second day of confirmation hearings for Todd Blanche, President Trump’s nominee for attorney general. Ashcroft, who served as attorney general under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2005, brought a long record in law and Missouri politics to the witness table. Sen. Adam Schiff, Democrat of California, pressed him with a familiar Washington setup. Schiff asked whether Ashcroft agreed with Blanche’s stated view that a president has both the right and duty to use the Justice Department to go after his enemies. In Senate hearing language, this is called a question. In normal language, it is called tossing a rake on the floor and hoping someone steps on it.
Ashcroft Answers With the Part Washington Keeps Forgetting
Ashcroft did not take the bait. He said the attorney general has the right and responsibility to enforce the law uniformly. If someone described as a president’s “enemy” has broken the law, Ashcroft said, that person does not get a free pass because of political opposition. He added that people who violate the law are acting against the public, and noted that such people were once called “public enemies.” His point was plain: support for or opposition to the president should not decide whether a person is prosecuted. The question should be whether the law was violated. That is not a wild theory. It is supposed to be the basic operating manual, though Washington often treats the manual like it was lost in a drawer marked “ethics training.”
The Hearing Shows the Real Fight Over DOJ Power
The exchange came as senators examined Blanche’s nomination and the broader question of how the Justice Department should use its authority. Schiff’s line of questioning tried to frame enforcement against political opponents as political revenge. Ashcroft answered by separating politics from law enforcement, at least in theory, which is where the debate always gets uncomfortable for the professional outrage industry. If the government targets people because of politics, that is abuse. If it refuses to enforce the law because someone has the right political costume, that is also abuse. The hard part is getting officials, pundits, and campaign-funded megaphones to admit both things at the same time.
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