Steve King Grasping At Straws To Justify "Default Mechanism" Charge

Steve King Embraces J. Christian Adams

Rep. King: "Adams' Remarks Serve As Compelling Evidence That My Comments About The Obama Administration's 'Default Mechanism' Are On Target." In a July 7 press release, Rep. King said: "Mr. Adams' testimony supports my comments that the Obama Administration allows race to serve as a 'default mechanism' in policy making. This explains the 'widespread hostility . . . to bringing cases against national racial minorities' personally observed by Adams. Sadly, it also explains the DOJ's questionable motivation for dismissing the voter intimidation case brought against the New Black Panthers. Adams' remarks serve as compelling evidence that my comments about the Obama Administration's 'default mechanism' are on target. I will continue to raise concerns about the Administration's decision making process until their actions reveal that they have adopted a truly race-neutral approach towards enforcing the law." [SteveKing.House.gov, 7/7/10, emphasis original]

Adams' Accusations Do Not Hold Water

Adams Claims That Obama Appointees In Justice Department Forced Him To Drop Charges Against The New Black Panthers. In an appearance on America Live, Adams and Fox News host Megyn Kelly had the following exchange:

KELLY: So you get something that's called a default judgment, meaning a judgment because they didn't bother to defend it and the judge says to you at the Department of Justice, OK, write up an order and tell me whether you want to make this final essentially.

ADAMS: Yeah, the court had already found and entered the fault against the defendants. It was done. All we had to do is tell the judge what we wanted for punishment.

KELLY: OK, but instead of doing that, something changed at the Department of Justice. What happened?

ADAMS: Well, the case was dismissed on May 15. All the charges were dropped against three of the defendants and the final order against one of the defendants was a timid restraint.

KELLY: So, the only person who wound up facing any punishment was the guy with the baton. And instead of having a permanent injunction, which is what you guys wanted, never let this guy near a polling station to do this, to do this kind of thing again, he got what?

ADAMS: He's stopped from appearing at the polls with a weapon only in the city of Philadelphia and only for a couple more years.

KELLY: And the other three defendants?

ADAMS: Nothing. They're dismissed from the case completely.

KELLY: OK, so what happened at the Department of Justice to get you to the point where you literally snatched defeat from the jaws of victory?

ADAMS: Sure, well what happened was, and it's been testimony. We were ordered to dismiss the case. I mean we were told drop the charges against the New Black Panther Party.

KELLY: Who told you that?

ADAMS: Well, the testimony has been that Steve Rosenbaum and Loretta King, two political officials at the Department ordered the dismissal of the case. Of course that was the first story. Eventually it was revealed that there were more people involved. But originally Steve Rosenbaum and Loretta King, two political appointees did.

[FoxNews.com, 6/30/10]

Bush DOJ Chose To Pursue A Civil Case, Forgo Criminal Charges. According to Assistant Attorney General Thomas Perez's testimony to the US Commission on Civil Rights: "Moving to the matter at hand, the events occurred on November 4th, 2008. The Department became aware of these events on Election Day and decided to conduct further inquiry. After reviewing the matter, the Civil Rights Division determined that the facts did not constitute a prosecutable violation of the criminal statutes. The Department did, however, file a civil action on January 7th, 2009, seeking injunctive and declaratory relief under 11(b) against four defendants." [U.S. Commission on Civil Rights Hearing, 5/14/10]

Obama DOJ Concluded That Evidence Supported Charges Against One Of The Four Men Named In The Civil Action. According to Assistant Attorney General Thomas Perez's testimony to the US Commission on Civil Rights: "Based on the careful review of the evidence, the Department concluded that the evidence collected supported the allegations in the complaint against Minister King Samir Shabazz. The Department, therefore, obtained an injunction against defendant King Samir Shabazz, prohibiting him from displaying a weapon within 100 feet of an open polling place on any Election Day in the City of Philadelphia or from otherwise violating Section 11(b). The Department considers this injunction to be tailored appropriately to the scope of the violation and the constitutional requirements and will fully enforce the injunction's terms. Section 11(b) does not authorize any other kinds of relief, such as criminal penalties, monetary damages, or civil penalties. The Department concluded that the allegations in the complaint against Jerry Jackson, the other defendant present at the polling place, as well as the allegations against the national New Black Panther Party and its leader, Malik Zulu Shabazz, did not have sufficient evidentiary support. The Department reviewed the totality of the evidence in the applicable law in reaching these decisions." [U.S. Commission on Civil Rights Hearing, 5/14/10, emphasis added]

Adams Claims The Finding Of Insufficient Evidence For Action Against Other Defendants Is "Obviously False." In an appearance on America Live, Adams and Fox News host Megyn Kelly had the following exchange:

ADAMS: Well, you know the Department has said that the facts and the law don't support going forward on the case. Now, obviously that's false. Anyone with eyes can see that the facts and the law would support this case. Uh, there's video. Take for example Jerry Jackson; he's the tall Black Panther. He's also a Democratic elected official from the city of Philadelphia.

KELLY: The one without the baton.

ADAMS: That's right. There is sworn testimony in front of the Civil Rights Commission that Jackson tried to stop people from going into the polls. Witnesses testified that he tried to block them from entering the polls, yet they dismissed the case against him.

[FoxNews.com, 6/30/10]

Civil Rights Commissioner Melendez Contradicts Adams' Claim Of "Sworn Testimony" That Jerry Jackson "Tried To Stop People From Going Into The Polls." In an April 23 hearing on the case, Civil Rights Commissioner Arlan Melendez said: "My remarks are going to be brief because I think far too much of our time has been consumed on this seemingly unnecessary investigation. Citizens should be able to vote without intimidation, and it is our Commission's duty to investigate complaints from citizens that their voting rights have been infringed. In this case, however, no citizen has even alleged that he or she was intimidated from voting at the Fairmount Avenue Polling Station in 2008. This absence of voter intimidation was clear to the Justice Department last spring, which is why they took the course of action that they did. This absence of voter intimidation was clear to the members of this Commission as well, or at least it should've been. Our investigation has been going on now for the better part of a year. We have wasted a good deal of our staff's time, and the taxpayers' money." [U.S. Commission on Civil Rights Hearing, 4/23/10, emphasis added]

Adams Alleges That The Holder/Obama DOJ Is Hostile To "These Sorts Of Civil Rights Cases"...

Adams: "There Is A Pervasive Hostility" Toward Protecting "A White Victim Of Racial Discrimination." In an appearance on America Live, Adams told Fox News host Megyn Kelly that "there is a pervasive hostility to bringing these sorts of civil rights cases. I've worked on other ones at the Justice Department. I've worked on cases in Mississippi. I've represented both black victims of racial discrimination and Hispanic victims and in this case a white victim of racial discrimination. There is a pervasive hostility within the civil rights division at the Justice Department toward these sorts of cases." [FoxNews.com, 6/30/10]

Adams Claims That Obama DOJ Protects "Only Some Americans" From Racial Discrimination. In a post for Pajamas Media, Adams wrote: "Soon after his confirmation, Attorney General Eric Holder labeled us a nation of cowards, a people supposedly unwilling or afraid to discuss race. Based on my experience as an attorney at the Civil Rights Division at the Justice Department, Holder has far more to fear from that discussion than do the rest of us. If we had that frank, truthful discussion about race, we'd learn that the Obama administration doesn't believe some civil rights laws protect every American. The Bush Civil Rights Division was willing to protect all Americans from racial discrimination; during the Obama years, the Holder years, only some Americans will be protected. Americans have a right to know and judge the racial policies of the administration they elected in 2008. The dismissal of the voter intimidation lawsuit against armed New Black Panthers in Philadelphia is the most prominent example of this hostility toward race-neutral enforcement of civil rights laws." [PajamasMedia.com, 6/28/10]

...But His "Evidence" For That Charge Is All Hearsay

Adams Did Not Talk To The Attorneys Who Decided Not To Pursue Further Charges. In an appearance on America Live, Adams and Fox News host Megyn Kelly had the following exchange:

KELLY: Ok, so what happened at the Department of Justice to get you to the point where you literally snatched defeat from the jaws of victory?

ADAMS: Sure, well what happened was, and it's been testimony. We were ordered to dismiss the case. I mean we were told drop the charges against the New Black Panther Party.

KELLY: Who told you that?

ADAMS: Well, the testimony has been that Steve Rosenbaum and Loretta King, two political officials at the Department ordered the dismissal of the case. Of course that was the first story. Eventually it was revealed that there were more people involved. But originally Steve Rosenbaum and Loretta King, two political appointees did.

KELLY: And did you personally speak with Mr. Rosenbaum and Ms. King about the dismissal of this case?

ADAMS: No. Chris Coates and Bob Popper did. Two other attorneys.

[FoxNews.com, 6/30/10, emphasis added]

Adams: "I Don't Know. I Wasn't There." In an appearance on America Live, Adams and Fox News host Megyn Kelly had the following exchange:

ADAMS: Steve Rosenbaum hadn't even read the memos which detailed all of the facts and the law before he started arguing against the case. The mind was made up. And it was so derelict and so corrupt that Chris Coates actually threw the memo at Rosenbaum and said, "How dare you make these arguments without even knowing what's in the briefs?"

KELLY: So your boss, the guy who had been a career DOJ lawyer, voting-rights lawyer, throws the memo, throws a brief at the head of this guy Steve Rosenbaum?

ADAMS: He very passionately believed in the merits of this case and very much opposed corruption of this sort, and he was angry.

KELLY: What was the response? I mean, that's an extraordinary story.

ADAMS: I don't know. I wasn't there.

[FoxNews.com, 6/30/10, emphasis added]

DOJ: Adams "Distorts The Facts And Makes Baseless Allegations To Promote His... Agenda." According to FOXNews.com: "In a written statement last week, the [Justice D]epartment questioned the motives of Adams, now an attorney in Virginia and a blogger for Pajamas Media. 'It is not uncommon for attorneys with the department to have good faith disagreements about the appropriate course of action in a particular case, although it is regrettable when a former department attorney distorts the facts and makes baseless allegations to promote his or her agenda,' the statement said." [FOXNews.com, 7/6/10, emphasis added]

J. Christian Adams: The Poster-Child Of Bush's Politicized DOJ

2008: DOJ Inspector General Reports That Senior Bush Justice Official Brad Schlozman Made Personnel Decisions Based On Ideology. In their report on the investigation of politicized hiring in the Civil Rights Division of the Bush Justice Department, the DOJ's Inspector General and Office of Professional Responsibility concluded: "The evidence in our investigation showed that Schlozman... considered political and ideological affiliations in hiring career attorneys and in other personnel actions affecting career attorneys in the Civil Rights Division. In doing so, he violated federal law -- the Civil Service Reform Act -- and Department policy that prohibit discrimination in federal employment based on political and ideological affiliations, and committed misconduct. The evidence also showed that Division managers failed to exercise sufficient oversight to ensure that Schlozman did not engage in inappropriate hiring and personnel practices. Moreover, Schlozman made false statements about whether he considered political and ideological affiliations when he gave sworn testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee and in his written responses to supplemental questions from the Committee." ["An Investigation of Allegations of Politicized Hiring and Other Improper Personnel Actions in the Civil Rights Division," 7/2/08 via Justice.gov, emphasis added]

• Schlozman's Civil Rights Division Hires Were Conservatives Who "Rarely Expressed Any Interest In Civil Rights Enforcement." In their report on the investigation of politicized hiring in the Civil Rights Division of the Bush Justice Department, the DOJ's Inspector General and Office of Professional Responsibility wrote:

[Special Litigation Chief Shanetta] Cutlar said that the applicants whose résumés she reviewed after they had been culled from the applicant pool by Schlozman or others in the front office typically reflected membership in conservative organizations. She also said the most striking thing she noticed about the résumés was that the applicants generally lacked relevant experience. She said Schlozman minimized the importance of prior civil rights or human rights work experience.

[...]

Former Criminal Section Chief Moskowitz also said the candidates for career positions chosen by Schlozman had conservative political or ideological affiliations and rarely had any civil rights background, rarely expressed any interest in civil rights enforcement, and had very little or no federal criminal experience.

["An Investigation of Allegations of Politicized Hiring and Other Improper Personnel Actions in the Civil Rights Division," 7/2/08 via Justice.gov, emphasis added]

• Schlozman Sought To Replace "Disloyal" "Liberals" In DOJ With "Real Americans." In their report on the investigation of politicized hiring in the Civil Rights Division of the Bush Justice Department, the DOJ's Inspector General and Office of Professional Responsibility wrote: "Several attorneys in the Division also told us that Schlozman was open about his disdain for and lack of trust in the attorney staff of the Division. Appellate Section Chief Diana Flynn told us that in conversations with her, Schlozman alternately referred to the Appellate Section lawyers hired during prior administrations as 'Democrats' and 'liberals,' and said they were 'disloyal,' could not be trusted, and were not 'on the team.' Flynn said Schlozman pledged to move as many of them out of the Division as he could to make room for the 'real Americans' and 'right-thinking Americans' he wanted to hire. Accounts from numerous other Division employees and officials, including former AAG Wan Kim and Section Chiefs Cutlar and Flynn, as well as the context of Schlozman's e-mails, indicate that his use of terms such as 'real American,' 'right-thinking American,' being 'on the team,' and similar terms were Schlozman's way of referring to politically conservative applicants and attorneys." ["An Investigation of Allegations of Politicized Hiring and Other Improper Personnel Actions in the Civil Rights Division," 7/2/08 via Justice.gov, emphasis added]

Former DOJ Official: Adams "Is Exhibit A Of The Type Of People Hired By [Brad] Schlozman." According to Main Justice:

Joseph Rich, the former chief of the Civil Rights Division's Voting Section and a 36-year employee of the Department of Justice, said that shortly before he left the DOJ in 2005 he received a call from Bradley Schlozman, then a Deputy Assistant Attorney General who later became acting Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division...

Rich said Schlozman asked him to attend an interview with J. Christian Adams, a solo practitioner from Alexandria, Va., who had worked for the Secretary of State in South Carolina. Adams had also volunteered for the Republican National Lawyers Association, a GOP-funded group that sought to draw attention to voting fraud.

Adams did not have an extensive background in civil rights, Rich said, but may have had limited voting rights experience from his time in South Carolina. "He is exhibit A of the type of people hired by Schlozman," Rich said.

Rich said he sat in on the interview, but Schlozman asked most of the questions. There was no discussion of Adams' political background at the meeting, according to Rich. Adams was offered the position shortly thereafter, and Rich said he doesn't believe anyone else was interviewed for the job.

"I was invited to the interview but was never asked for a recommendation," Rich said. "This was an example of the way things were being done. There's no evidence that this was a normal hiring process." As a supervisor, Rich said, he normally would have been involved in hiring decisions.

[MainJustice.com, 7/6/10, emphasis added]

Adams Has A History As A Republican Activist

Adams Volunteered With "An Offshoot Of The Republican National Committee." According to Main Justice: "Before coming to the Justice Department, Adams volunteered with the National Republican Lawyers Association, an offshoot of the Republican National Committee that trains lawyers to fight on the front lines of often racially tinged battles over voting rights." [MainJustice.com, 12/2/09]

Adams Was Reportedly A Poll Watcher For Bush-Cheney Campaign In 2004. According to Talking Points Memo: "And in 2004, as a Bush campaign poll watcher in Florida, Adams publicly criticized a black couple that refused to accept a provisional ballot, after election officials said they had no record of the couple's change of address forms, Bloomberg reported. Voters had been warned not to accept provisional ballots, because of the risk that they could later be discounted." [Talking Points Memo, 5/19/10]

Adams Likened President Obama's Foreign Policy To Chamberlain's Appeasement Of Hitler. In a piece for the American Spectator, Adams wrote: "President Obama's received his Peace Prize, according to the Nobel Committee, for his 'efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between nations.' Norman Angell's Nobel was awarded for similar reasons... Angell wistfully advocated for 'relinquishing the principle of isolated national defence [sic]...and erecting an international authority' to replace 'the self interest of individual nations.' The Nobel Committee described Angell as 'cool and clear,' and that he 'spoke to the intellect.' Most notably, Angell argued, 'you cannot kill ideas with bullets.' He believed that an enlightened citizenry, once someone or something enlightened them, would render war obsolete. Norman Angell won the Nobel in 1933, a most dangerous year for his ideas to gain currency. In January 1933, Adolf Hitler became the Chancellor of Germany. And in the following years, Norman Angell's ideas flourished and were adopted as policy by a British Government unwilling to acknowledge the Gathering Storm... The 1933 Peace Prize winner profoundly influenced British policy in ways that led directly to German tanks rolling into Poland in September 1939." [American Spectator, 10/30/09, emphasis added]