In Justice: Inside the Scandal That Rocked the Bush Administration - Hardcover

by David Iglesias (Author)

The Bush administration's drive to politicize the Justice Department reached a new low with the wrongful firing of seven U.S. Attorneys in late 2006. Their action has ignited public outrage on a scale that far surpassed the reaction to any of the Bush administration's other political debacles. David Iglesias was one of those federal prosecutors, and now he tells his story.

Iglesias has long served in the Navy as part of the JAG corps. One of his earliest cases, about an assaulted Marine in Guantanamo Bay, became the basis for the movie A Few Good Men. When Bush chose him to become the U.S. Attorney for New Mexico, it was a dream come true. He was a core member of Karl Rove's idealized Republican Party of the future -- handsome, Hispanic, evangelical, and a military veteran. The dream came to an abrupt end when Senator Pete Domenici improperly called Iglesias, wanting him to indict high-level Democrats before the 2006 elections. When Iglesias refused, the line went dead. Iglesias was fired just weeks later. First, he was devastated. Then, he was angry. Now, he is speaking out.

Iglesias recounts his interactions with Bush, Rove, Alberto Gonzales, and other key players as he takes readers into his time at the Justice Department to reveal what top Republican officials said and did, and how they subverted justice.

Front Jacket

David Iglesias's first encounter with Alberto Gonzales was when he was White House counsel in 2001. Something Gonzales said really stuck in his mind. "This is a tough town," Gonzales told him. "They are out to destroy the president, and it is my job to protect him." Who knew he would even break the law to do it?

The Bush administration's drive to politicize the Justice Department reached a new low with the wrongful firing of seven U.S. Attorneys in late 2006. Their action has ignited public outrage on a scale that far surpassed the reaction to any of the Bush administration's other political debacles. David Iglesias was one of those federal prosecutors, and now he tells his story.

Iglesias has long served in the navy as part of the JAG Corps. One of his earliest cases, concerning an assaulted marine in Guantanamo Bay, became the basis for the movie A Few Good Men. When Bush chose Iglesias to become the U.S. Attorney for New Mexico, it was a dream come true. He was a core member of Karl Rove's idealized Republican Party of the future--handsome, Hispanic, evangelical, and a military veteran. The dream came to an abrupt end when Senator Pete Domenici improperly called Iglesias, asking him to indict high-level Democrats before the 2006 elections. When Iglesias refused, the line went dead. Iglesias was fired just weeks later. First he was devastated. Then he was angry. Now he is speaking out.

Packed with previously unrevealed facts, In Justice follows Iglesias and his colleagues, who would soon be known as the Justice League, as they pieced together the sources and purpose of the conspiracy against them. In fascinating detail, it reveals how various members of the group viewed their own dismissals, reacted to threats from Justice Department officials designed to ensure their silence, and struggled to find a way to respond to the growing furor over the case.

Complete with insights into the power and responsibilities of U.S. Attorneys and an impassioned plea for their historic independence, the rule of law, and insulation from politics, In Justice is a compelling, real-life political thriller that takes you deep inside the Bush administration's darkest moment.

Back Jacket

The inside story of the biggestpolitical scandal of the decade

"A year later, the U.S. Attorney scandal still matters--and not simply because it ties Karl Rove and Harriet Miers to brazen efforts to manipulate both laws and legal processes for partisan ends. It also has legs because unlike so many of the Bush administration scandals, the trail neither begins nor ends with top-secret legal memos but with dozens of small e-mails, meetings, threats, and phone calls being investigated at various levels of government. Iglesias's book reminds us that while his former bosses may shred the e-mails, sack the bumblers, obstruct Congress, and--quoting Sampson again--try to gum this scandal to death, the truth will come out, eventually. His book is a good start."
--Dahlia Lithwick, Slate

"For those of us honored to have served as United States Attorneys, In Justice reminds us once again of the importance and sanctity of the responsibility entrusted to us. For future United States Attorneys, it provides a clear example of how one can and should serve with honor and integrity in this powerful post. For those men and women currently serving, it reveals to them how fleeting can be that power if others in positions of power seek to improperly pressure you and you refuse--as did David Iglesias--to accede to their improper entreaties."
-- Bob Barr, former United States Attorney and former member of the U.S. House of Representatives (R-Ga.)

""In Justice" is a chilling tale of the subversion of the Constitution for political purposes. What was done to David Iglesias and his colleagues constitutes complete and utter disregard for the rule of law that underpins our great republic. Americans will rightly be appalled and Republicans ashamed at this abuse of power."
-- Joseph C. Wilson, author of "The Politics of Truth"

"The lasting value of David Iglesias's outstanding book extends far beyond its fascinating, insightful, and candid account of the political firestorm ignited by the simultaneous firings of seven United States Attorneys. Its account of the courageous, principled commitment of these U.S. Attorneys to assess cases according to the facts and the law rather than succumb to political pressure and partisan loyalties reveals how he and his colleagues turned an attempt to corrupt the finest traditions of the Department into a victory for the continued independence of U.S. Attorneys and the rule of law."
--James Eisenstein, Professor of Political Science, Penn State

Author Biography

DAVID IGLESIAS served as United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico from 2001 to 2007. He headed a panel that advised former Attorney General John Ashcroft on border security issues. A former White House Fellow, he is also a captain in the U.S. Navy Reserve.

DAVIN SEAY is the coauthor of numerous books, including "With God on Our Side: One Man's War against an Evangelical Coup in America's Military."