Was the source who used this term on target? Would the Barack Obama administration actually appoint such an individual to lead the office that directed the Don Siegelman prosecution?
The answer to the first question, based on our research, is yes. The answer to the second question appears to be yes--unless outraged Democrats rise up to stop it.
We learned all we cared to know about Johnson from a brief bio that was published on October 18, 2009, in The Birmingham News. That was almost exactly a month ago, and the article was about the team of federal prosecutors who were handling the case against former Birmingham Mayor Larry Langford.
Here is the section on the woman the Obama administration apparently wants to lead the politically sensitive office in Montgomery:
Tamarra Matthews Johnson
Alice Martin said Tamarra Matthews Johnson joined the office about five years ago. Johnson clerked for former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor and was a fellow in the solicitor general's office.
"She is exceptionally bright and perceptive," Martin said. "She is likable and easily able to express her thoughts and convictions."
Johnson was on the two-person team that successfully prosecuted state Sen. E.B. McClain this year. Her name was initially among the ones discussed in legal circles as a successor to retired U.S. District Judge U.W. Clemon on the federal bench, but she did not apply.
What do we learn from this segment--other than The Birmingham News has spelling problems? Johnson's first name has one "r," not two.
One, we learn that Johnson clerked for retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, who was a Ronald Reagan appointee. O'Connor certainly was not a right-wing ideologue in the mold of Antonin Scalia or Clarence Thomas. But she could hardly be labeled a friend to progressives. After all, she joined the majority in 2000 that put George W. Bush in the White House. Johnson clerked for Sandra Day O'Connor, and that indicates pretty strong conservative leanings.
Two, we learned that Johnson's name was raised in legal circles as a possible successor to retired U.S. District Judge U.W. Clemon. This indicates that indeed the Obama administration has had its eye on Johnson.
Three, and perhaps most alarmingly, we learn that Johnson has close ties to Alice Martin, former U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Alabama and one of George W. Bush's most notorious appointees. You will recall that Scott Horton, legal-affairs contributor at Harper's magazine and a law professor at Columbia University, has described Martin as perhaps the most "corrupt and crooked public official" in the country.
Here's the kicker: We learn from the 2009 article that Johnson joined the Northern District of Alabama office "about five years ago." That would have been in 2004, in the midst of Alice Martin's reign. That means Alice Martin did not just inherit Tamara Matthews Johnson; she hired her.
And consider this quote from Martin about Johnson: "She is likable and easily able to express her thoughts and convictions." That sentence should send chills down the spines of everyone who cares about justice.
One definition of a "conviction" is a "fixed or firmly held belief." To say that Johnson easily expresses "her thoughts and convictions" sounds like a compliment, and Martin undoubtedly meant it as one. But the "compliment" comes from one of the most politically motivated prosecutors in American history--a woman who oversaw the first Don Siegelman case, plus the cases of Alex Latifi and Sue Schmitz, three of the most blatant political prosecutions in recent memory. In fact, Alice Martin is under investigation for possible criminal misconduct in the Alex Latifi case.
In describing Tamara Matthews Johnson, Alice Martin unwittingly described someone who almost certainly is not fit to be a U.S. attorney. The position does not call for someone who is easily able to "express her convictions." The position is about justice, not "firmly held beliefs."
The U.S. attorney will be "the people's lawyer" in the Middle District of Alabama. As such, he or she will represent the interests of people from all walks of life--and from all political persuasions. The position calls for someone who can dispassionately analyze the facts and the law and prosecute crimes, not people.
Alice Martin was an abject failure in that regard. And there is every reason to think that Tamara Matthews Johnson, Martin's acolyte, would be a failure, too.
If the Obama administration is seriously considering Johnson for the U.S. attorney position in Montgomery, Alabama, someone needs to receive a wake-up call--quickly.
I watched Johnson in the Langford trial and thought she did a great job. She's smart--that was clear, and seems like she doesn't take much crap on cross.
ReplyDeleteEither her name IS spelled with two 'r''s or her own Justice Dept. doesn't know how to spell her name:
http://bit.ly/1sgUdl
(it's near the bottom, do a find for 'Tamarra')
Almost every news report I've seen also spells her name with two 'r's.
I doubt she's a "rabid Republican." And you really can't fault U.S. Attorneys for prosecuting lots of Democrats--D's in our legislature and state government may not be the only corrupt people but it seems to me they are the worst at hiding it.
I think Alice Martin failed at some things, and may have been a Bush appointee but I don't have the same disdain and suspicion of her that you do. She obviously hired some talented folks, like George Martin, who really just want to prosecute evildoers because they're evil. Biased against corruption, maybe.
Hell, Alice Martin even launched an investigation into Troy King, right? That's a risky thing to do--investigate an AG from your own party in another district.
TMJ is married to a prominent plaintiff's lawyer at Wiggins Childs. And the Supreme Court justices do not hire clerks based on ideology - in fact, Scalia often some of the most liberal clerks.
ReplyDeleteAs for association with AM, your argument depends on reading pretty far into the word "conviction." Prosecutors have discretion - they have to have convictions in order which cases to prosecute. It's not the presence of conviction that should concern us, but what the actual convictions are.
In sum, your two sources of criticism for TMJ are both guilt-by-association, a logical fallacy.
Look closer at TMJ. I think you'll like what you see.
Interesting about the spelling issue. A document from the Langford case is online, and it has the spelling with one "r." I feel for TMJ on that one. My name gets misspelled all the time, too.
ReplyDeleteInteresting about her husband being at Wiggins Childs. On a personal note, I took my employment case against UAB to WCQP--Ann Robertson and Temple Trueblood said they were going to take it, even filed my EEOC complaint, and then backed out for flimsy reasons. I appreciate that the firm tends to stand up for victims of discrimination, but my personal interactions with them have not been great. Seems like they played politics with me, and I didn't appreciate it.
I'll admit it's hard for me to get past the Alice Martin association. I personally sent a significant amount of information to AM about judicial corruption among Republicans in Shelby County, and she not only did nothing, she lied to me about what she had done. The actions of AM & Co. in the Alex Latifi case were despicable. Someone should go to prison for that. Not to mention the first Siegelman case and Sue Schmitz case.
Just one blogger talking, but I'm willing to take a second look at TMJ. My preference on the Middle District, though, would be for an appointment from outside Alabama. I doubt that's going to happen, so a realistic preference would be for Obama to push forward with Van Heest or Nicrosi. Those are the two who seems to have pretty strong support from AL Dems.
TMJ might have potential for public office. But if she wants to get strong support from Democrats, she probably has some serious work to do.