Overlooked in Gonzales Testimony: Voter Fraud Changes in New DoJ Manual

by Jon Greenbaum

Amid all of the hype and attention surrounding Attorney General Alberto Gonzales' testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday, July 24, 2007, one very important issue for voting rights advocates was overlooked. 

In May of this year, the Department of Justice issued a new election crimes manual (view the manual here).  Subtle changes were made with regards to conducting voter fraud investigations close to an election.  As we've highlighted in our coverage of former interim U.S. Attorney in Western Missouri, Bradley Schlozman, some policies within the old election crimes manual caused problems for the administration's plans to play politics with voting rights. 

Here is the video and transcript of the exchange between Senator Diane Feinstein (D-CA) and Attorney General Gonzales.

FEINSTEIN: All right. Let me go to something else. You, of course, recognize these books, "The Federal Prosecution of Election Offenses." In prior hearings, we had the 1995 edition.

FEINSTEIN: Since May of this year, there is now a new edition. I'd like to read to you what has been dropped from the earlier edition.

The first thing that's been removed is this: "The Justice Department generally does not favor prosecution of isolated fraudulent voting transactions. This is based in part on constitutional issues that arise when federal jurisdiction is asserted in matters having only a minimal impact on the integrity of the voting process." This was removed in this new edition.

The second thing: "The Justice Department must refrain from any conduct which has the possibility of affecting the election itself." This is weakened on page 92. This language is removed. "Federal prosecutors and investigators should be extremely careful to not conduct overt investigations during the pre-election period of while the election is under way." Removed.

Then a sentence that's underlined in the '95 edition, which states thus: "Most, if not all, investigations of an alleged election crime must await the end of the election to which the allegation relates." It was removed in this new edition.

Weakened was this language: "It should also be kept in mind that any investigation undertaken during the final stages of a political contest may cause the investigation itself to become a campaign issue."

Why was it necessary to remove this language in this new edition in the Federal Prosecution of Election Offenses rules?

GONZALES: Senator, I don't—sitting here today, I don't know the answer to that question. I would like to find out, because I am certainly committed to ensuring that we're smart in the way that we do investigations and prosecutions and we do in a way that doesn't intimidate voters, that doesn't chill potential voters from coming out and voting on Election Day.  So I would like the opportunity to look into this and respond back to you.

FEINSTEIN: Appreciate it. It becomes more relevant because two and possibly three of the fired U.S. attorneys were fired because they didn't bring those small cases that might affect an election.

And therefore, when one looks at this book now, sees a new book coming out in May '07 that deletes the very things that these U.S. attorneys were told to follow, something's rotten in Denmark.

GONZALES: Thank you for the opportunity for me to look into that.