Department of Justice had to approve federal investigation into Cuomo's interference with Moreland Commission

Department of Justice had to sign-off on Cuomo investigation : NYPOST

Preet Bharara’s investigation of Gov. Cuomo needed pre-approval from the Justice Department in Washington. In today's column, Michael Goodwin of The New York Post reminded New Yorkers that U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara's investigation into the Cuomo administration's reported obstruction of the Moreland Commission needed to be signed-off by the Justice Department. "Bharara’s office is sending public signals that the governor might even have a legal problem, a move the prosecutor wouldn’t make without a green light from the Justice Department, which holds veto power over high-profile criminal cases." Mr. Bharara, who is leading the charge on a once-in-a-lifetime renewal of government integrity, testified last year before the first hearing of the Moreland Commission, a corruption-fighting panel appointed by Gov. Cuomo and deputized by state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. Mr. Bharara's testimony before the Moreland Commission took place one month after Kenneth Lovett of The New York Daily News reported that Gov. Cuomo's campaign committee had received $100,000 in campaign contributions from Extell Development Company in the time leading up to the governor signing into law tax breaks worth $35 million for one of the developer's projects. Eventually, Extell was reported to have contributed over $300,000 to the governor's campaign committee. These and other revelations forced the Moreland Commission to issue subpoenas to Extell and four other developers. Even before Mr. Bharara delivered his testimony before the Moreland Commission on the evening of Sept. 17, 2013, the stage was set by journalists and Moreland commissioners, who had already begun to draw attention to Gov. Cuomo's involvement in the unscrupulous machinations that makes Albany a cesspool of corruption. Leaving the only unanswered question : when did Mr. Bharara seek approval from upper level Department of Justice officials in Washington, DC ? Was it last September, as he walked into the Moreland Commission to make his entry of appearance, by which point it was already know that Gov. Cuomo was playing dirty, or was it only very recently, based on Gov. Cuomo's alleged witness tampering of Moreland commissioners, by which point it was already known that Gov. Cuomo was playing even dirtier ? As Mr. Bharara proceeds full-speed ahead on completing his office's due diligence of the unfinished Moreland Commission investigations and the separate investigation into the Cuomo administration's reported obstruction of the Moreland Commission's investigations, he has the full faith and support of the Washington office of the Department of Justice, meaning that Gov. Cuomo has no friends in D.C. to whom he could possibly appeal to, in turn, tell Mr. Bharara, "Pull it back."

RELATED Latest governor poll shows Albany needs to address the sleaze (The New York Post) A government attorney should seek pre-approval if a case consists of violations of State law, but involves prosecution of significant or government individuals, which may pose special problems for the local prosecutor. (9-110.310 Considerations Prior to Seeking Indictment) Michael Hayes, LMT, has practiced massage for more than 20 years as a licensed massage therapist in New York City.

Chelsea Manning exposes U.S. military role in restricting freedom of the press

Chelsea Manning on the Obama administration's police of making the U.S. Military control and restrict Media Freedom

RELATED If a reporter’s embed status is terminated, typically she or he is blacklisted. (The Fog Machine of War : Chelsea Manning on the U.S. Military and Media Freedom * The New York Times) Mushroom clouds, duct tape, Judy Miller, Curveball. Recalling how Americans were sold a bogus case for invasion. (Lie by Lie : A Timeline of How We Got Into Iraq * Mother Jones) "The Justice Department has completely lost sight of the First Amendment." (A Radical Departure on Press Freedom * The Wall Street Journal)

From her prison confines in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, former United States Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning has written a scathing editorial, published in today's Sunday edition of The New York Times. "WHEN I chose to disclose classified information in 2010, I did so out of a love for my country and a sense of duty to others. I’m now serving a sentence of 35 years in prison for these unauthorized disclosures. I understand that my actions violated the law. "However, the concerns that motivated me have not been resolved. As Iraq erupts in civil war and America again contemplates intervention, that unfinished business should give new urgency to the question of how the United States military controlled the media coverage of its long involvement there and in Afghanistan. I believe that the current limits on press freedom and excessive government secrecy make it impossible for Americans to grasp fully what is happening in the wars we finance." Fromer PFC Manning, now jailed by the Obama administration as part of the White House crackdown against government corruption whistleblowers, provides a needed reality check -- really really REAL TALK -- on how the government bullies journalists into reporting government propaganda in the mainstream media, deceiving the public about the government's actions. Her editorial is a must-read for any First Amendment activist, blogger, and voter.

Will GOP Congressmen call for hearings to investigate Attorney General Eric Holder ?

False information from the Department of Justice tricked the U.S. Supreme Court into dismissing a case that challenged the N.S.A.'s unconstitutional surveillance program.

• RELATED : Two Senators accused the Department of Justice of lying about N.S.A. warrantless surveillance to the U.S. Supreme Court last year, and those falsehoods all but ensured that mass spying on Americans would continue. (Everyone should know just how much the government lied to defend the NSA * The Guardian)

If the House of Representatives, under Republican Party control, didn't have such a bad reputation, they should hold hearings into how corrupt the Justice Department has become under Attorney General Eric Holder. Mr. Holder's already been found in contempt on another matter, for failing to turn over documents sought by a committee investigation. If the House had its stuff together, the lies to the Supreme Court would be a natural way to force Mr. Holder to resign from the Department of Justice and to hold the Department of Justice to account. But the House Republicans are part of the problem, too.

AG Eric Holder takes to HRC gala dinner to announce compliance update with landmark SCOTUS marriage equality ruling

Some Federal Civil Rights to be Extended to Same-Sex Couples, Finally

As has been noted by some LGBT civil rights activists, even though the national recognition of some civil rights being announced this evening by U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is just a "clear interpretation" of the landmark marriage equality SCOTUS ruling, it's interesting to see how desperate the jockeying is to "take political credit" for the SCOTUS ruling.

“As all-important as the fight against racial discrimination was then, and remains today, know this : My commitment to confronting discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity runs just as deep,” Attorney General Holder's prepared remarks indicated.

While the Attorney General brags about his civil rights record, he is also the very visible Obama administration official, who is leading the charge to prosecute activists, trash the First Amendment, finish off due process, violate freedom of information, and enable the NSA spying program, among other failures. All his talk is cheap. I don't know who can take the Attorney General seriously, how HRC would even revere the Attorney General, or how The New York Times even still accords the Attorney General any credibility in the realms of constitutional rights, civil rights, and civil liberties.

• RELATED : Some Federal Civil Rights to be Extended to Same-Sex Couples, Finally (The New York Times)

Federal recognition of some of our civil rights is being given to us not by the Attorney General, but by virtue of the SCOTUS ruling in the United States v. Windsor case. The Attorney General must apply the SCOTUS ruling across the nation. That's his job, that's all this is, and the timing of this was set to coincide with the Human Rights Campaign's dinner tonight. That is all.

I'm happy to see that the Attorney General can carry out his duties, as instructed by the SCOTUS ruling. If any thanks should go to the Attorney General for doing what he was told to do, then he should be accorded due thanks. How reasonable should it be for LGBT civil rights activists to expect that HRC will ask the Attorney General tonight to rise up to the challenge by asking President Barack Obama to sign the employment non-discrimination executive order referred to as ENDA ?

FOIA Appeal Update Regarding the DOJ's ''vindictive prosecution'' of Lt. Daniel Choi

FOIA Appeal asks if the "DOJ is taking an uncooperative stance"

Yesterday, the law firm of Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP filed an appeal with the U.S. Department of Justice, requesting that the DOJ respond to this appeal within 20 business days. This appeal was filed following the constructive denial by the DOJ to the Freedom of Information Act request, dated April 30, 2013, seeking various categories of "records pertaining to the prosecution of Lt. Daniel Choi."

Scribd Link to FOIA Appeal : 2013-12-06 Lt Daniel Choi FOIA Appeal - Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP - Flores Louis

According to the appeal, the DOJ presents the notion that it refuses to comply with the FOIA request. "[T]he DOJ has done nothing at all to respond to the Request other than to tell Mr. Flores that, due to the agency's own internal limitations on resources and staff, it is having difficulty processing the numerous FOIA requests that the DOJ receives. Such an excuse is not an acceptable one under the FOIA, and the DOJ is not permitted to avoid its FOIA obligations due to an internal burden of its own making," noting that, "Given the DOJ's conduct in connection with the Request, we are left with the impression that the DOJ is taking an uncooperative stance, is not exercising due diligence in responding to the Request, or both."

Scribd Link to Original FOIA Request : 2013-04-30 Lt Daniel Choi DOJ FOIA Request Louis Flores

Prior YouTube Video Links :

• Free Speech Implications of DOJ Denying FOIA Request on Lt. Daniel Choi (04 Dec 2013)
• Why won't DOJ answer FOIA Request about Lt. Dan Choi ? (15 Oct 2013)

Lt. Choi was the visible hero in the activism campaign to build public pressure on the federal government to repeal the U.S. military's former discriminatory policy known as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." Federal prosecutors have been engaged in a "vindictive prosecution" of Lt. Choi, even though Lt. Choi was merely employing activism for social justice to end discrimination, which the U.S. Congress and President Barack Obama later rightly acknowledged by repealing DADT.

The FOIA appeal is being handled by a team of lawyers, including Thomas Golden, a partner at Willkie Farr, who has a remarkable record on FOIA matters. As outside counsel to Bloomberg LP, Mr. Golden successfully litigated a FOIA case against the Federal Reserve a few years back, demanding an "unprecedented level of detail about its discount window lending during the financial crisis."

See : Fed's Court-Ordered Transparency Shows Americans ''Have a Right to Know''

See Also : Fed's Once-Secret Data Compiled by Bloomberg Released to Public

The DOJ's response is due before mid-January. As soon as I have an update, I will share that information with you. All information and records obtained from this FOIA request and appeal will be publicly posted on Scribd for everybody to access. If you support free information, the importance of upholding FOIA, the activism of Lt. Choi, and the work of bloggers, please share the link to the FOIA appeal on social media.

2013-12-06 Lt Daniel Choi FOIA Appeal - Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP - Flores Louis by Connaissable

DOJ First Amendment Violations : A Valid Concern

I just called, and I was told that the FOIA request I sent to the Department of Justice hasn't been tracked into their computer system. I left a voicemail after being transferred twice. It's interesting to learn yesterday about the DOJ getting phone records of the Associated Press, a clear violation of the First Amendment. The FOIA request I submitted on April 30, 2013, was about the government arresting activists. Among the information I requested was whether the DOJ considered First Amendment rights, among other rights, when prosecuting cases. Based on how the DOJ treats the First Amendment rights of the press, it concerns me that the First Amendment rights of activists may not be being protected.

2013-04-30 Lt Daniel Choi DOJ FOIA Request Louis Flores by Connaissable

“I am part of a global civil rights and human rights movement,” Lt. Daniel Choi declared shortly before his conviction, according to RH Reality Check. He spoke in favor of non-violent civil disobedience as a form of free speech : “I feel that the First Amendment is on trial today.”