On Oct. 4, 2006, Sen. Pete Domenici (R-NM) called former Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty to complain about his state’s then-U.S. Attorney David Iglesias. In testimony yesterday, McNulty confirmed that the call “was a significant factor” in Iglesias’ firing last year:
When McNulty found out that Iglesias’ name was on the list of U.S. attorneys to be fired, he said that Domenici’s call came back to him and was key in his decision to support Iglesias’ ouster.
“That was a significant factor in my thinking as to not — as to why I did not object, yes,” McNulty said on March 30. McNulty confirmed that statement under questioning on Thursday.
Domenici, who is being investigated by the Senate Ethics Committee, also “personally appealed” to both President Bush and Attorney General Alberto Gonzales for Iglesias to be fired.