Fired U.S. attorney on Rove, Gonzales

MATTHEWS:  Do you feel that you are a poster boy for misuse of political authority in the Justice Department?

IGLESIAS:  I think I was one of seven poster children. 

MATTHEWS:  OK, it’s great having you on.  Thanks for calling in.  We like people to call in with the news.  And you have a firsthand account of your side of this.  You’re going to stay with us.  When we return, we’re going to talk more about this, reaction from the HARDBALLers, Blankley, Lynn Sweet and Clarence Page.  This is HARDBALL, only on MSNBC. 

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MATTHEWS: We are back with former U.S. Attorney David Iglesias, who was luckily enough, in fact, nice enough for us to call in tonight in the wake of the news that the U.S. Office of Special Counsel of the Justice Department is probing Karl Rove for possible political misuse of his office.  So we want to bring in Tony Blankley of the “Washington Times,” Lynn Sweet of the “Chicago Sun Times,” and Clarence Page of the “Chicago Tribune.”  In that order, your witness, Tony?  Ask David what you want. 

BLANKLEY:  You have a reputation for being a smart lawyer and having been a loyal Republican activist.  If you are still applying that good judgment, what you have said is quite damning.  Are you confident that you haven’t let any bitterness over these events distort your judgment?  Because I’m impressed by what you said and the firmness with which you said it. 

IGLESIAS:  Thank you.  Bitterness?  No, I really try not to do bitterness.  It ends up hurting the person more than the target.  I just want to get down to the truth.  I mean, I want to find out why I got fired and why my colleagues got fired, who were all doing good jobs.  The answers that the attorney general gave last week were just totally insufficient. 

MATTHEWS:  Lynn Sweet?

SWEET:  When you talk about how you wanted to know the link between e- mails and the memos, sometimes a good lawyer knows the answer to the question before they ask it.  Do you know what are in some of those memos and emails? 

IGLESIAS:  No, I sure don’t.  But I do know that the Justice Department papers everything.  I mean, the most minute issue has an incredible, you know, researched and memo product.  There has to be a paper trail.  I haven’t seen it yet.  If it’s not at the Justice Department, it has got to be at the White House. 

PAGE:  Yes, you mentioned that you don’t know why these firings took place.  I was wondering what is your best guess, in your heart of hearts?  What is your feeling about why the firings of the U.S. attorneys took place?

IGLESIAS:  You know, I—I know Lindsey Graham said, when he questioned the A.G., something to the effect of, you know, there were personality conflicts between your staff members and some of the U.S. attorneys.  I think that is true as to some of my colleagues.  That’s not true as to all of them.

In my case, I didn’t authorize authorization prosecutions involving voter fraud and I didn’t hurry up political corruption prosecutions, which got the local Republicans so angry they took their complaints to the White House. 

I believe that’s what got me fired. 

MATTHEWS:  Do you have a political future, sir?

IGLESIAS:  No, sir, zero. 

MATTHEWS:  You’re not going to run for political office on the Republican side again?

IGLESIAS:  No, I think I am persona non grata. 

MATTHEWS: Well, you never know.  Times change.  We will be back with you, David Iglesias.  Stay here as our star witness, Tony Blankley, Lynn Sweet and Clarence Page.  You are watching HARDBALL on MSNBC. 

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MATTHEWS:  We are back with former U.S. Attorney David Iglesias, Tony Blankley of the “Washington Times,” Lynn Sweet of the “Chicago Sun Times,” and Clarence Page of the “Chicago Tribune.” 

Mr. Iglesias, let me ask you about how you foresee this probe by the Office of Special Counsel into Karl Rove proceeding.  You pointed out they have the power of subpoena.  Who would you like to see questioned under oath?  Would you like to see the attorney general, Mr. Gonzales, questioned under oath on the manner and the information he has about how you were fired? 

IGLESIAS:  No, I mean, that has been tried.  I watched the five hours of testimony.  That was fruitless.  I think Monica Goodling holds the keys to the kingdom.  I think if they get her to testify under oath, with a transcript, and have her describe the process between the information flow between the White House counsel, the White House and the Justice Department, I believe the picture becomes a lot clearer. 

MATTHEWS:  So if Karl Rove or one of his deputies wanted to influence something in your department, they would work through her, through Monica Goodling? 

IGLESIAS: Yes, she wore two hats.  She was counselor to the attorney general.  She was also the White House liaison.  So her job was to serve as a conduit for information between the Justice Department and the White House. 

MATTHEWS:  Do you know if Karl Rove’s communications with her were through the White House e-mail system or through something else, through a private one, the Republican National Committee, for example? 

IGLESIAS: I really don’t have any knowledge as to that.  But normally I would think that they would use the .gov email system.

MATTHEWS:  OK, let me ask you why that is important.  If one of the local politicians in your are, in New Mexico, were to complain that there wasn’t enough action quick enough, lickety-split prosecutions enough to help the election, which was very close out there this November, they would go through the RNC perhaps.  And therefore Karl Rove would legitimately be able to take the e-mail and go back and forth on someone else’s account without having a paper trail.  Is that possible? 

IGLESIAS:  That’s very possible, yes. 

MATTHEWS:  I’m wondering if that isn’t his MO.  Anyway, thank you very much David Iglesias.  Please call in, anybody out there with news.  We love to know the firsthand, especially in a case this big, with Karl Rove in the crosshairs.  Tony Blankley, Lynn Sweet, Clarence Page, we’ll have to talk again next time about this amazing South Carolina poll that’s just been taken. 

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