Mukasey Testimony Free and Easy Without OathIn a rather odd bit of procedural maneuvering, House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers (D-MI), neglected to swear Attorney General Michael Mukasey before he testified to the committee today.
Mukasey seemed perplexed, and mentioned the omission before questioning began by Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY):
CONYERS: The Chair recognizes, to begin the questioning, the Chairman of the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Jerry Nadler of New York.
MUKASEY: I’m sorry, um, Mr. Chairman, I don’t mean to raise a matter that’s none of my business, but I haven’t been placed under oath. Did you want me to take an oath?
CONYERS: No, I do not require that.
We’re no strangers to hearings here at TPM, but we’re not quite sure what’s going on with this. Our best guess? Conyers is trying to ensure quality testimony from Mukasey by relaxing the hearing. Readers have any other guesses?
