John Roberts,  Politics,  Supreme Court

Judge John Roberts Watch: Adopt A Box of Documents: Deliberative Privilege and the Confirmation Process

August 22, 2005 /

U.S. Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) (R) meets with Supreme Court nomineee John Roberts in his Capitol Hill office in Washington July 26, 2005. Schumer said, ‘I am disappointed that the administration has so quickly closed the door on providing Judge Roberts’ documents to the Senate Judiciary Committee’.

Flap previously had Judge John Roberts Watch: Adopt A Box of Documents Update.

Flap has been assigned Box 3 [JGR/Appointee Clearances – 08/29/1985 – 09/30/1985] – Roberts, John G.: Files SERIES I: Subject File.

There are 47 pages.

The first memorandum (and not listed last post) is:

August 29, 1985

MEMORANDUM FOR MICHAEL HOROWITZ
COUNSEL TO THE DIRECTOR
OFFICE OF MANAGMENT AND BUDGET

FROM: JOHN G. ROBERTS (S)
ASSOCIATE COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT

SUBJECT: Your Memorandum of July 19 on Deliberative
Privilege and the Confirmation Process
__________________________________

Fred has asked me to review the above-referenced memorandum you sent to him, the Attorney General and B. Oglesby on July 19. I certainly concur that we should take whatever steps are necessary to ensure that the general opening of files to Hill scrutiny as occurred in the Reynolds confirmation process does not become routine. The Reynolds case was unusual in that the administration had precious little leverage; I would hope that with most nominations we would be in a better position to resist committee demands.

I do not know if it will do any good to raise the matter in the abstract at this point with Dole and Thurmond; perhaps B. and his colleagues can give us a better sense of that. I suspect that any vague assurances in the abstract from the Hill would be readily swept away by the dynamics of a particular future confirmation dispute, and that the most we can do is to ensure proper sensitivity to the deliberative privilege when the future dispute arises.

In any event, by 2001 Hill staffers need only go to the Reagan Library to see any internal White House deliberative document they want to see – – at least under the current, untested provisions of the Presidential Records Act. The pernicious effect of that statute will have to be addressed in any effort to revitalize the deliberative privilege.

In this memorandum John Roberts, as Associate Counsel to President Reagan supports executive deliberative privilege and supports whatever steps to ensure that the general opening of executive files to Congressional scrutiny like in the William Bradford Reynold’s confirmation case does not become routine.

William Bradford Reynolds headed the justice department’s civil rights division throughout the Reagan administration. In 1985, Reagan nominated him to become associate attorney general, the number three post at Justice, but the Republican-led Senate Judiciary Committee rejected the promotion.

During his confirmation hearings, critics claimed that as head of the Justice Department’s civil rights division, Reynolds had refused to enforce civil rights laws and ignored court rulings with which he disagreed. [14] Republican Senator Arlen Specter accused Reynolds of giving misleading testimony, “disregarding the established law,” and “elevating [his] own legal judgments over the judgments of the courts.” [15]

William Bradford Reynolds, had been denied promotion to assistant attorney general, partly because Congress had obtained provocative memos Reynolds had signed.

This memorandum previously released by the Library of Congress was mentioned in this Washington Post piece.

Stay Tuned for more in Flap’s box of documents.

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