Attorney General Hits the Murder Boards
Note to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales: Make sure your staff buys the good brand of cookies for this week's "murder boards."
Gonzales is undergoing self-imposed grilling sessions as he prepares for next week's appearance before the Senate Judiciary Committee. (AP)
That's one of the lessons learned by Chief Justice John Roberts, who for several weeks in the summer of 2005 underwent grueling preparation for his nomination hearing, in which aides from the White House and Justice Department pretended to be senators and peppered the nominee with question after question. These sessions are commonly known as murder boards.
Even Roberts, who went on to be considered one of the best performers in modern nomination history, buckled under the pre-hearing stress. As recounted in Ed Gillespie's book, "Winning Right," Rachel Brand, the associate attorney general heading up the Office of Legal Policy, tried to encourage the weary future chief justice by offering cookies she regularly bought for the prep sessions.
"That was great," she assured Roberts on one occasion. "You can have a cookie."
"Why do I feel like a seal that's just been tossed a fish," Roberts dryly retorted.
As Dan Eggen and I reported last week, Gonzales is now undergoing his own version of Sea World-meets-murder boards, as the Attorney General intensley preparing for next week's Senate Judiciary Committee hearing where he will answer questions about the 2006 firings of eight U.S. attorneys.
Capitol Briefing sought out Republicans familiar with previous murder boards and confirmation preparations to explain the highly sensitive process in exchange for anonymity. In addition, we read Gillespie's chapter on the Supreme Court fights in the recently published memoir by the former Republican National Committee chairman.
In the weeks leading up to the hearing, White House aides from the legislative affairs shop and the counsel's office work with Justice Department staff to prepare a briefing book. It contains just about every piece of information on the nominee, from previous work experience to legal writings and essays to financial background. The briefing book goes out to all relevant staff in the White House and Justice Department. According to one Republican familiar with the process, it does not go up to Republicans on the Hill.
With briefing books in hand, a handful of White House and Justice staffers lead the questions of the nominee when the murder boards start. Usually, they begin with half-hour sessions focusing on one topic, then another half hour on another topic, five or six times a day. But as the hearing draws closer, the blocs are stretched out to an hour or longer in order to replicate the hearing process, where questioning sessions last 90 minutes to two hours, or longer, before breaks.
During recent high-profile confirmations -- Gonzales's for AG, as well as Roberts's for chief justice and Samuel Alito's for Supreme Court associate justice -- Senate Republican aides worked very, very closely with administration officials. One of those Senate aides is Michael O'Neill, chief counsel for Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.).
"We had worked closely on strategy for the Roberts hearings and were constantly in touch during the Alito hearings as well," Gillespie wrote of O'Neill in his book.
O'Neill and other senior Specter staff would gather information about what Republicans would want to ask the nominees, relaying that to administration officials. Also, knowing that Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) would ask questions after Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), the top Democrat on the panel, GOP aides would prepare "rehab questions" for Hatch to ask the witness in the event that Leahy's line of questioning was too tough.
On one rare occasion, O'Neil even stopped by a Roberts murder board session, according to a former Republican committee aide. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) was even in attendance to watch Alito during one pre-hearing "moot" session.
But no such coordination is currently happening with Capitol Hill. No White House officials are helping with the prep, either, a stark contrast to Gonzales's confirmation in January 2005, which was managed by White House staff. Gonzales has isolated himself from his closest advisers, including Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty, for fear of appearing to conspire to mislead Congress. Today's New York Times reported that Tuesday's murder-board session lasted five hours.
Gonzales has brought in outside advisers, including Gillespie, who is a lobbyist and now chairs the Virginia Republican Party. Gillespie prepped Gonzales for his lengthy interview late last month with NBC News's Pete Williams and has helped with other strategic media moves. (In last Thursday's print edition of The Post, I incorrectly wrote that Gillespie was helping with murder boards; in fact, Gillespie is vacationing with his family in the Caribbean this week.)
Specter, the former chairman and now ranking member, has counseled Gonzales to consider an apology at the start of Tuesday's hearing.
"I suggested this to him some time ago, that he ought to reexamine the cases of these eight U.S. attorneys, and, if the Department of Justice was wrong, he ought to start out by apologizing to them," Specter said recently on CBS's "Face the Nation."
If he heeds that advice, maybe Specter and the rest of the Judiciary Committee Republicans will give Gonzales a cookie.
By Paul Kane |
April 11, 2007; 3:05 PM ET
Hearing Watch
, Senate
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Posted by: James Hauser | April 11, 2007 3:58 PM
I understand why these 'murder boards' are part of the confirmation process, but why would simple testimony about recent events require so much cramming? How much does one have to practice in order to be able to tell the truth? Boy, its a good thing Gonzales doesn't have a job where personal integrity is an important asset.
Posted by: Patrick Huss | April 11, 2007 6:54 PM
Only an Bush appointee would have to go through intensive coaching on how to tell the truth. Yo, Gonzo, you need to understand something, dude. Your buddy, Mr. Flight Suit, has cut your sorry butt loose. Even he knows that you're toast.
Posted by: mikeasr | April 11, 2007 11:09 PM
Such preparation (good thing he doesn't have a real job) is all very impressive. However, Gonzales is clearly not going to be able to reconcile past misstatements with reality. Strategy: admit that "mistakes were made" (the credo of this Administration) and throw yourself on the mercy of Congress. The only really important queston: will the resulting high dudgeon on the part of D congressman be enough to result in Gonzales' impeachment? How will these hearings provide that outcome? He's not going to resign nor will Bush ask for his resignation. As is true for both Rove and Cheney he'd have to barbecue babies in the Rose Garden before Bush would voluntarily get rid of him.
And what does it take for Congress to come down hard on the RNC for using its servers to act as an unelected/unappointed arm of the Executive branch? If Clinton had done this in 1998, Congress would've had asked for McAuliffe's head on a platter. The 110th's response: nary a peep.
Posted by: Judge C. Crater | April 12, 2007 9:04 AM
Dominos vobiscum et cum spiritu tuo! Adios MF!
Posted by: brautlrl | April 12, 2007 2:49 PM
Why is it taking so long for Gonzo to prepare for the hearings? My guess is that it takes a much better memory to lie consistently than simply tell the truth. In the meantime, Gonazo has abdicated all his functions. Is that why we are paying him for? Memorize his lies? Had this incompetent, pandering, clown have one ounce of dignity and integrity, he would have resigned already.
Posted by: | April 12, 2007 11:09 PM
Senate Republican aides worked very, very closely with administration officials. One of those Senate aides is Michael O'Neill, chief counsel for Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.).
"We had worked closely on strategy for the Roberts hearings and were constantly in touch during the Alito hearings as well," Gillespie wrote of O'Neill in his book.
O'Neill and other senior Specter staff would gather information about what Republicans would want to ask the nominees, relaying that to administration officials ---- Isn't O'Neill Rove's spy on Specter's staff and the guy that enabled the A/G appointment provision in the Patriot Act?
Posted by: smokinmike | April 13, 2007 10:15 AM
Gonzales should be removed from the top job at the Justice dept. Justice ?? I believe he will be or will be forced to step down .
Posted by: la-mute | April 13, 2007 6:09 PM
Gonzales should be removed from the top job at the Justice dept. Justice ?? I believe he will be or will be forced to step down .
Posted by: la-mute | April 13, 2007 6:10 PM
After the first untrue stories to Congress, then the missing emails,I expect more of the same, it is all most like We are in deep trouble, keep it in the same mode, things twice as bad are going to follow this Mess. No doubt there is another Texas smart guy ready to ride out the last Months of this Dream Team.
Posted by: w carter41 | April 15, 2007 3:41 PM
THE UNITED STATES SENATE OF AMERICA AND THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES **THE CONGRESS** AS WELL APROVED SUBPOENAS. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**** LET THE GAMES CONTINUE ****---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------one down **Kyle Sampson** --- two down **MONICA GOODLING** --- three down **Michael J. Elston** --- FOUR down **JUSTICEDEPARTMENT ARCHIEF THOUSANDS OF FIRINGPAPERS AND EMAILS NOT HANDED OVER TO CONGRESS,GONZALES SUBPOENAED TO DELIVER BY MONDAY 2.00 HOURS** --- FIVE DOWN **Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General William Moschella** --- SIX DOWN **White House political aide Scott Jennings _ to reveal their roles in the firings** --- SEVEN DOWN **Rove's deputy, Sara Taylor** --- **GONZALES IS ABOUT TO RESIGN,AND OTHERWISE WILL BE SEND AWAY BEFOR MAY, BY CONGRESS SO WE MAY CONSIDER HIM DOW** --- AND MIERS*S VERTICAL SMILE WILL CHANGE IN A GRIME ONES SHES INDICTED ** OUR COMMANDER IN THEFT AND CHEAT WILL LEAVE US SOON **SOONER** NOW THAT WE HAVE DISCOVERED THE PHONY ANONIMOUS ITALIAN LETTER SPELLED IN FRENCH THAT CHEATED US IN AN UNNECESSARY WAR !! EARLY ELECTIONS ARE ON THE WAY...I.E. BEFORE THIS SUMMER. AND LET US BE CLEAR ALL PERSONS BELONG TO THE GROUP OF EXTREME CHRISTIAN REPUBLICAN TERRORISTS !!!
Posted by: jwh | April 23, 2007 4:53 AM
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It is interesting from an ordinary citizens point of view how these hearings have become less about finding out facts and more about making the other side look bad. I don´t think it is appropriate for a nominee to have members of the Senate from their party helping in the preparation of the hearing, especially confirmation hearings. It turns the hearing into political theater. Using Justice Alito as the example, he probably could have been more candid about the questions he was asked and still have been confirmed. Republicans had a solid majority in the Senate at the time and were on the offensive in pressuring democrats to vote for him. It wasn´t necessary for Republicans to ask him leading questions. Unfortunately because there is so much animosity and mistrust between the parties, each side has to be more concerned about saving face and less about being candid on TV.