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The permanent
Republican majority: Daughter of jailed governor sees White House hand in her
father's fall
Larisa
Alexandrovna
Published: Tuesday November 27, 2007
Part two of a Raw Story Investigates
series on the architects and the execution of backroom Republican politics
In Part II of the RSI
special investigation, The Permanent Republican Majority, the daughter of
former Alabama Governor Don Siegelman sits down for an exclusive interview
about the family’s ordeal and her father’s case.
To fully understand what the
Don Siegelman case is about, please see “Part I – The Political
Prisoner” of this series.
Pictured at center in the
above photograph with her mother Lori and father Don, 22 year old Dana
Siegelman is passionate and idealistic. There’s a charming innocence in the way
she sees the world, despite her family’s troubles.
Throughout
a week of phone and email discussions, Ms. Siegelman spoke and wrote about her
father’s conviction and imprisonment on bribery and conspiracy charges and
about the continued harassment of the family and those around them. The family
home was broken into. Her father’s attorney had his office ransacked. Even the
key whistleblower in the case – Dana Jill Simpson – had her house burned down
and her car run off the road.
She maintained throughout
all of these communications that Karl Rove – the former White House Chief of
Staff – helped engineer her father’s fate with the help of two judges and two
Indeed, Republican attorney
and whistleblower Simpson testified that Bush-appointed Federal Judge Mark
Fuller, who presided over Siegelman's trial, was selected in advance by
The other federal judge with
an involvement in the case is Judge William Pryor, who as
Then there are the two US
Attorneys whose offices brought charges against Siegelman, Leura Canary, who
was appointed by George W. Bush in 2001 as the US Attorney for the Middle
District of Alabama, and Alice Martin, another 2001 Bush appointee, who is the
US Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama. Leura Canary is the wife of
Bill Canary, an Alabama political operative with strong ties to Karl Rove who
has worked as a campaign advisor to both Alabama's current governor, Bob Riley,
and former Attorney General Pryor.
Dana Siegelman believes
strongly that the two
“What I mean by pressure is
the prosecutors knew that in order to please Gonzales, Canary, Pryor, Riley,
and the White House, they needed a conviction,” Siegelman said. She added:
“Even if he were guilty of what they accused him of, there wasn’t enough
evidence to put him away. The entire trial was corrupted by politics.”
Siegelman asserts that her
father is only allowed to have visitations in prison with his family and his
attorneys and is being denied access to the media and communication with the
outside world. She notes, however, that this appears to be prison policy. What
is unclear is whether Siegelman is being denied access to reporters. Dana
Siegelman says that some reporters have attempted to reach out to her father,
but were denied access.
Raw Story's Larisa
Alexandrovna: Let's go back to the election of 2002, ultimately where this
story begins, and the strange turn of events. Your father was governor from
1999-2003. He was leading in the polls against Republican opponent Bob Riley
and it was widely believed your father would win. But something happened on the
evening of November 5 [2002]. Can you take us back to that night?
Dana Siegelman: It was a
strange two days, really. Our family stayed at the RSA building in
RS: At
that point, anyway, that was the belief. Is that correct?
DS: Yes. We ran upstairs,
threw on our nice clothes, and ran outside to security and asked them to take
us back to the RSA tower quickly. My dad was already onstage saying his thank-yous, when we came up to join him. It was a very special
moment for the Siegelman family. We were just so happy for him.
RS: But something changed
overnight, is that correct?
DS: Well, the next morning,
November 6th, my dad's opponent, Bob Riley, came on
RS: How close was the
election?
DS: Close enough for there
to be skepticism with Bob Riley's proclamation.
RS: So your father wanted a
recount?
DS: My dad wanted a recount
because it was blatantly obvious that the ballots had been tampered with.
RS: Blatantly obvious?
DS: They announced that my
dad was the winner when there were enough votes accounted to accurately state
that. For new votes to mysteriously appear the next morning, it seems clear
that they had been tampered with one way or another.
RS: Have you heard of a man
by the name of Dan Gans?
DS: I don't know of Dan
Gans, but I do know that someone, or some people, are to blame.
RS: First let me tell you
the allegations surrounding Mr. Gans. This is from the Baldwin County Now website: “Glynn Wilson,
a former Christian Science Monitor correspondent who now publishes and writes
for his news site locustfork.net, posted a piece in June stating that Dan Gans
– Riley's chief of staff during the would-be governor's time as a U.S. Representative
for Alabama's 3rd District – electronically changed the results, giving a razor
thin edge to Riley, who went on to win the state by 3,120 votes." Is this
what you mean about the ballots being tampered with or are you talking about
something else?
DS: Absolutely. Like I said,
someone is to blame for swinging the election.
RS: Just to be clear, I am
not saying Mr. Gans was behind anything. I was just curious about this
allegation and if you had heard of it. Let’s move on to the recount. Governor
Siegelman – your father – wanted a recount. What happened next?
DS: I am not sure if a
legitimate recount was ever performed. Needless to say, my dad conceded the
election to Bob Riley. The reason for this has a lot to do with who was in the
attorney general's office during this time. That much, I do know.
RS: Are you talking about
William “Bill” Pryor?
DS: Yes. He put my dad in a
catch-22. Either my dad asked for another recount, in which he knew Pryor would
reward Riley and therefore make my dad look like a schmuck, or my dad had to
concede the election with his dignity.
RS: What about him as the
attorney general?
DS: The attorney general
assumes control in an overtime election such as this. For two months the
attorney general manipulated the situation on Riley's behalf. There was little
my dad could do.
RS: How did he manipulate
it?
DS: He had decision-making
power. As for the logistics, I don't know.
RS: What happened after he
had the ballots sealed? Specifically, what happened with the investigation into
your father?
DS: Leura Canary and her husband Bill…
RS: Let me make sure
everyone knows who we are talking about. Leura Canary is the US Attorney for
the United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama and William
“Bill” Canary is her husband, a close friend of Karl Rove and GOP operative who
during this time was advising the now governor Bob Riley.
DS: That is correct. The
prosecution came out of Leura Canary's office and a few months later was thrown
out by a judge who thought the indictment was completely contrived. [Editor's
note: This prosecution came out of Alice Martin's office. The second indictment
was the one from Leura Canary's office.]
RS: This was the first
indictment for Medicaid big-rigging, the one Judge
U.W. Clemon threw out for lack of evidence, with
prejudice, correct?
DS: Yes.
RS: Then there was the
second indictment. Tells us about this indictment.
DS: Yes. The second indictment
came out of
RS: What do you mean
“pressure?” From whom?
DS: What I mean by pressure
is the prosecutors knew that in order to please Gonzales, Canary, Pryor, Riley
and the White House, they needed a conviction. In other words, it was going to
take more than a scolding from a judge to get the prosecutors to drop the case
the second time. Karl Rove and Bill Canary regained their prosecutorial power.
RS: But when you say
pressure from
DS: I mean
RS: What else can you tell
us about this indictment?
DS: A whole new selection of
charges that had been conjured up, and a new team of prosecutors to boot. The
first indictment had been thrown out, but my dad was already a political target
for Karl Rove. My dad was the first governor to endorse Al Gore in his campaign
against Bush, and that was enough to keep Rove's prosecutors after my dad. It
is obvious that these indictments mean nothing in terms of going after a
criminal but mean everything in going after a man.
RS: Do you think your father
committed any of the crimes he was convicted of?
DS: I know my dad isn't
guilty of a crime. He should have been wiser about those he hired and
surrounded himself with, but as for doing something illegal, absolutely not.
Even if he were guilty of what they accused him of, there wasn’t enough
evidence to put him away. The entire trial was corrupted by politics.
RS: But even if he were, do
you think that at this point it would make a difference in terms of how this
case was handled?
DS: Not in the slightest.
Everything about the case was corrupt. There is even alleged misconduct within
the jury.
RS: How do you think your
father emotionally handled the trial? Did he think he there was a chance he
would be convicted? Was he surprised?
DS: My dad is incredibly
strong. He is also the most positive person I know. He never let on that he was
upset or scared in any way. Every time we talked, he was encouraging and
optimistic. He truly believed this indictment had no stronghold on him. That's
one reason the conviction was such a shock. Anyone getting their news from my
dad assumed everything was hunky dory.
RS: Did you think there was
a chance he would be convicted? Were you worried?
DS: I never for a moment
imagined he would be convicted. It was so absurd to even think in that way. We
knew there was no evidence, so we had nothing to worry about.
RS: How about your mother
and brother? Did they think there was a chance he would be convicted?
DS: No, they never thought
he would be found guilty. I will say that my mom was a nervous wreck, all the
time, and for the most part, still is. She had no problem voicing her anger
through all of this. My brother's personality is a mixture of my mom and dad's.
He has great composure. Some days he would smile and joke about the situation,
and other days he would blow up about it.
RS: Did you get a lot of
local support from the community, news outlets, etc.?
DS: People in
RS: What about the media? Do
you feel they have given this story enough attention?
DS: No. There hasn't been
enough press. This isn't just a sad story or a bump in the road for politics.
This is the corruption of the United States Justice Department. This is a
criminal conspiracy for political reasons at best. We have a team of national
players trying to manipulate the government so that they can have unchecked
power. I hate to use this as an example, because it upsets me, but truth be
told, this is cancer, not a cold. The media which has covered it thus far has
done an incredible job. Thank God for intelligent, moral people.
RS: Have you read any of
Scott Horton’s work [in Harper’s] on this? He has been covering the case for
some time now.
DS: He is one of my heroes.
I haven't talked to him personally, but when I get the chance to shake his
hand, I'm going to hug him instead.
RS: What about interviews
with your father? Has any media outlet attempted to interview him in jail?
DS: Many have tried to get an
interview with him. From what I've heard, they are not letting anyone in.
RS: Who would have had the
authority? The warden?
DS: I suppose, but in this
case, I doubt the warden would ban the media from seeing my dad.
RS: Then who do you believe
is behind this and why? Do you know this to be the case for sure or is this just rumors you have heard? Has your father
attempted to reach out to the press as well?
DS: My dad has been looking
forward to meeting with the press. It is my belief that the Justice Department
has a hand in keeping the press away. They just finished getting my dad out of
the way. The last thing they want is him speaking out from prison.
RS: The question that is
always on my mind about this whole thing is that this is a great deal of trouble
to go through just to get rid of a [former] governor who had already lost the
[2006] Democratic primary. Isn’t it? Even if we assume that the seven charges
your father was convicted of were in fact valid, that still does not explain
the rest of the issues around this case. Looking at it objectively, the only
time I have seen these types of extremes is usually to silence someone. Do you
think your father knows something?
DS: He knows a lot. I think
what they were afraid of is the fact that my dad will never stop the good
fight. The men and women behind this conspiracy have a lot against my dad. My
dad wanted an education lottery, brought jobs to the state, made big businesses
pay their taxes, sought to completely change Alabama's constitution, raised teachers'
salaries, gave African Americans jobs that Caucasians had supremacy over for
years, helped in fundraisers for other Democrats, supported the arts, was
well-respected on a national level, etc... It was a battle against a truly
liberal leader, not some moderate Democrat. He held the highest offices in the
state and was
RS: Okay. Let me ask you
about his communications with the outside world now. What about email? Does
your father have access to email?
DS: No.
RS: Just him or is that the
prison policy for all prisoners?
DS: All prisoners, I
believe.
RS: How about the legal
bills. How did your family pay for everything?
DS: We couldn't possibly. My
dad never made enough money as a politician, and unlike most public officials,
doesn't have a business on the side. It's no secret, we have lots of help.
RS: What type of help and
from whom?
DS: I can't disclose that
information. This is a dangerous situation. When Dana Jill Simpson came forward
with her testimony, her house was burned down. My dad's lawyer's office was
broken into. Our house was broken into. My point is, I
would tell you if I thought it was safe to do so for the people helping out.
RS: I had no idea your house
was broken into. What happened? Was anything taken? Did the police find the
perpetrator?
DS: We figured it was Big
Brother dropping in for a visit. A plug here...a plug there...this happened
twice during the trial. Nothing was stolen.
RS: Now you are starting to
sound like me when my anger is overpowered by my Jewish sarcasm.
DS: [Laughs]
RS: How has all of this
affected you? What are you doing now?
DS: It affected me greatly.
My entire philosophy on life has changed. You start questioning everything. In
fact, I was in
RS: When was the last time
you saw your father? What did he say?
DS: I saw him Thanksgiving weekend, and he was very positive. Everyone likes him at the
prison, and even the guards come up to talk to him. I'm happy to know his
disposition hasn't changed just because his environment has. He wants to know
what's happening out here. He has ideas on what more we could be doing, or new
people to contact. That's mainly what we talk about.
RS: How does he usually find
out what is happening “out here,” is it through his attorney and your visits?
Does he have access to the papers and/or the Internet?
DS: No Internet. I believe
there might be a few papers allowed into the prison. Mostly, he hears the news
through letters people write.
RS: Again, do you know if
this is prison policy for all prisoners or is your dad being denied access?
DS: I believe it is the same
for all of them. I'm sure my dad would have mentioned if there were
discrepancies.
RS: Why do you think this
was done to your father and who do you think is behind this?
DS: Like I said, Karl Rove
wanted him out of the way. I know this happened because of [Rove’s experience
with this type of] politics. Rove was managing Pryor's campaign for the
Attorney General's office in
RS: You are speaking of
Judge Mark Fuller, is that right? What specific evidence? Can you give an
example or two?
DS: For instance, when my
dad's lawyers found out that the jury had been privy to information outside the
courtroom that was negative in respect to [HealthSouth founder Richard] Scrushy
[who Siegelman was found guilty of taking bribes from], Judge Fuller overlooked
it. When a juror said he believed Scrushy was guilty before the case began, he
was allowed to stay and was eventually made foreman!
RS: But President Bush
nominated both Judge Fuller and Judge Pryor and used a recess appointment to
confirm Pryor. Do you think the President knew what was going on? Do you think
this is why Karl Rove resigned?
DS: The President absolutely
knew what was going on. Perhaps Rove resigned so that he could spend time with
his family before they put him on trial.
RS: [Laughs] I see you have
a healthy sense of humor. But how can you say the President absolutely knew? Do
you have proof or you believe he had to have known?
DS: I wrote [President
Bush]. But that's hardly proof. I doubt he read my letter. I'm just assuming he
knew because he should know what his Deputy Chief of Staff is up to.
RS: What about Bill Canary?
He continues to be a player in
DS: He tainted his wife. He
put his wife on the front line, and she has taken all the blame. He had her do
the dirty work. In reality, Bill Canary is just as guilty as his wife.
RS: If you had a moment, a
chance to face Judge Mark Fuller and now-Judge William Pryor, what would you
say to them?
DS: May God forgive you.
RS: What about the tobacco
industry? Do you think they played a role in this?
DS: Quite possibly. The
tobacco industry hates my dad. They wouldn't hesitate to get rid of him.
RS: How would you place your
father’s case in the context of the
DS: Up front and center. My
dad's imprisonment brought light to several other corrupt cases. When we went
to
RS: And together, that is,
your father’s case and the ones you allude to, what do they mean collectively?
Is this about elections?
DS: It is more than
elections. It is ultimate power they're after. It went from dirty campaign ads
that hurt a person's reputation, to dirty politics that destroyed that person's
life.
RS: If you could tell the
world something about your father, what would it be? What kind of man is he?
DS: My dad is my hero. I
know no one more caring, dedicated, smart, and positive than him. He notices
everyone and sees situations for what they really are. He knew what the people
of
RS: There are people who say
your father was a crooked politician and deserved what he got. What do you say
to that?
DS: I'd say those people see
all politicians that way.
RS: What happens next?
DS: We continue fighting for
justice. As Martin Luther King Jr. said, "Human progress is neither
automatic nor inevitable... Every step toward the goal of justice requires
sacrifice, suffering, and struggle; the tireless exertions and passionate
concern of dedicated individuals."
RS: Thank you for your time
Dana. I know you generally don’t give interviews, so I thank you for taking the
time and allowing me to ask you some of these questions.
DS: Thank you for choosing
to focus on this case. I have a newfound respect for journalists and writers
since this trial. There is power in the pen.
The permanent Republican majority:
Part one: How a coterie
of Republican heavyweights sent a governor to jail
11/26/2007 @ 11:28 am
Filed by Larisa Alexandrovna and Muriel Kane
Part one of a Raw Story Investigates series on the
architects and the execution of backroom Republican politics. For most Americans,
the very concept of political prisoners is remote and exotic, a practice that
is associated with third-world dictatorships but is foreign to the American
tradition. The idea that a prominent politician -- a former state governor --
could be tried on charges that many observers consider to be trumped-up,
convicted in a trial that involved numerous questionable procedures, and then
hauled off to prison in shackles immediately upon sentencing would be almost
unbelievable.
Photo of Governor Don Siegelman & Family
But there is such a
politician: Don Siegelman, Democratic governor of
Siegelman was ultimately
charged with 32 counts of bribery and other crimes in 2005, just as he began to
attempt a political comeback. He was convicted the following year on seven of
those charges. Last summer, Siegelman was sentenced to seven years in prison
and immediately whisked off to a series of out-of-state jails, not even being
allowed to remain free on bond while his appeal was under way.
Shortly
before the sentencing, however, suspicions expressed by
As a result, RAW STORY
Investigates has decided to focus a series of reports, interviews, and
investigative pieces over the next several weeks on Siegelman’s case. At the
very least, the investigation will illuminate an incestuous pool of corruption
in
Part one: Don Siegelman,
political prisoner
Governor Don Siegelman was a
popular Democratic politician in a largely Republican state and was the only
person in
On Election Day in November
2002, when the polls had closed and the votes were being counted, it seemed
increasingly apparent that Governor Siegelman had been victorious in his
re-election bid against Republican challenger Bob Riley. But then -- just as in
the infamous
- Click here to see a timeline of
the case.
As CNN reported at the time, there appeared to be
two different sets of numbers coming through for one particular
“The confusion stems from
two sets of numbers reported by one heavily Republican district,” the network
stated.
“Figures originally reported
by
"Sometime after midnight,
after the poll watchers were sent home, a small group there decided to recount
the votes a third time," Siegelman told a news conference at the time.
"No watchers legally entitled to be present were notified -- and then a
different total was established."
The following morning,
Riley's electoral victory
rested on a razor-thin margin of 3,120 votes. According to official reports,
State and
Unless Siegelman filed an
election contest in the courts, Pryor said, county canvassing boards
throughout the state did not have the authority “to break the seals on ballots
and machines under section 17-9-31” of the constitution.
But at the same time, other,
more embarrassing questions involving the Riley camp and
Embarrassing questions
A RAW STORY investigation
shows that as early as 1998, when Siegelman was first elected governor,
One of those well-known
Republican operatives was William "Bill" Canary, who was a longtime
At that time, Rove had been
active in Republican political campaigns for more than 15 years and had
recently been hired as an advisor to George W. Bush's campaign for governor of
Rove and Canary managed
Attorney General William Pryor's re-election campaign in 1998. It was Pryor who
would later seal the
After Pryor was re-elected
as Alabama Attorney General in 1998, he almost immediately began the
investigation into Siegelman which would eventually lead to Siegelman's
conviction and imprisonment nearly a decade later.
Pryor's history and relationship
with Canary and Rove should have been reason enough for the Alabama Attorney
General to recuse himself from the November 2002 election controversy. But
Pryor refused. The following April he was nominated by George W. Bush to serve
as a federal judge on the Eleventh Circuit Court. He was eventually installed
by a recess appointment, overriding the objections of Senate Democrats.
It would take a Riley
campaign attorney -- long-time
Simpson had worked for the
Riley campaign in 2002 as an opposition researcher, digging up dirt on
then-Governor Siegelman. According to Simpson's May 2007 affidavit, Siegelman
was pressured to concede the 2002 election because the Riley camp threatened to
make public a set of photographs of one of Siegelman's supporters planting
Riley campaign signs at a Ku Klux Klan rally. Simpson also stated that Canary
had indicated that “Karl” -- by which she had no doubt he meant Karl Rove --
had taken a personal interest in the matter.
Simpson had been
communicating with Siegelman attorney's before releasing her affidavit, and
during that period her house was burned down and
her car was run off the road.
Expanding on her original
allegations, Simpson testified on Sept. 14 before
lawyers for the House Judiciary Committee and dropped a bombshell revelation.
In this additional testimony, Simpson described a conference call among Bill
Canary, Governor Riley's son Rob and other Riley campaign aides, which she said
took place on November 18, 2002 -- the same day Don Siegelman conceded the
election. Simpson alleged that Canary had said that “Rove had spoken with the
Department of Justice” about “pursuing” Siegelman and had also advised Riley's
staff “not to worry about Don Siegelman” because “‘his girls’ would take care
of” the governor.
The “girls” allegedly
referenced by Bill Canary were his wife, Leura Canary -- who was appointed by
George W. Bush in 2001 as the US Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama --
and Alice Martin, another 2001 Bush appointee as the US Attorney for the
Northern District of Alabama. Simpson added that she was told by Rob Riley that
Judge Mark Fuller was deliberately chosen when the Siegelman case was
prosecuted in 2005, and that Fuller would “hang”
Siegelman.
The Canary “girls,” the judge, and the jury
Siegelman case watcher have noted that the Canary “girls” would be
instrumental in “taking care” of the governor by fixing the facts around his
indictment. Yet it remains unclear what charges, if any, Siegelman was actually
guilty of, because the process had become so politicized and the case so
aggressively partisan.
Leura Canary had begun
working on Siegelman’s case almost as soon she took office in 2001, when she
federalized Attorney General Pryor’s ongoing state probe. It was that
investigation that finally culminated in Siegelman's prosecution on corruption
charges in 2005-06, just as he was again running for the governorship.
In 2002, after having spent
more than six months investigating Governor Siegelman, Leura Canary was forced
to recuse herself -- or at least give the appearance of doing so -- over her
husband's connections to the Riley campaign. However, it is widely believed that she in fact continued
to guide the case behind the scenes.
In 2004, charges of Medicaid
bid-rigging were brought against Siegelman by the other one of Bill Canary's
“girls,” US Attorney Alice Martin. These charges were eventually thrown out by a visibly exasperated
After Siegelman indicated
his intention to seek reelection in 2005, Canary’s original investigation
resurfaced. Canary had never stopped pushing the investigation along, even
against the advice of her professional staff, and in October 2005, Don
Siegelman was once again indicted by a federal grand jury in Canary's district on
32 counts of bribery, conspiracy and mail fraud.
The Siegelman case was
assigned to Judge Mark Fuller, a former district attorney whom George W. Bush
had nominated for a federal judgeship in August 2002. Fuller was accused by his
Siegelman-appointed successor in the district attorney's office of falsifying
payroll records with intent to defraud the