Says Justice Dept. Has Not Targeted Democrats : Thornburgh Denies Party Bias in Probes

Atty. Gen. Dick Thornburgh denied Sunday that the Justice Department has targeted Democrats for investigation and defended his agency against charges of politicization, saying: “We will investigate Republicans or Democrats . . . make no mistake about that.”

Thornburgh, speaking on CBS-TV’s “Face the Nation,” refused to talk about an FBI inquiry regarding Rep. William H. Gray III (D-Pa.), who is seeking his party’s third-ranking post in the House, but insisted that the Justice Department had not singled out Democrats for scrutiny.

“Absolutely not,” he said. “I couldn’t state it more firmly. We will investigate Republicans or Democrats where there are credible allegations of wrongdoing, and we will prosecute them if the evidence indicates they are violating federal criminal law.”

‘Stake in Integrity’

He added: “We have a very high stake in the integrity of this department. During my career as a prosecutor, during the department’s history, we have never hesitated to go where the evidence leads us. If it’s a Republican or a Democrat, including some of the highest offices in the land, that’s our charge. It’s a charge that we take seriously, and it’s a charge I assure you we will be faithful to.”

Thornburgh said that a full investigation was under way to determine the source of damaging leaks about Gray, who is seeking to replace Rep. Tony Coelho (D-Merced) as majority whip. Coelho announced his resignation in the midst of the ethics scandal that has engulfed the Capitol and led to the announced departure last week of House Speaker Jim Wright (D-Tex.).

Gray, who chairs the House Democratic Caucus, has said that FBI agents questioned him on Memorial Day, but has denied that he is the focus of a criminal inquiry. The investigation reportedly involves allegations that a “ghost” employee was on the payroll of the House Budget Committee in 1988 while Gray was the panel’s chairman. But Gray said last week there was no such employee on his staff.

“The concern about leaks is one that I stand second to no one in the seriousness of the matter,” Thornburgh said. “If the leaks are true, then they have the potential to compromise seriously ongoing criminal investigations. If they are false, then they have the potential to seriously jeopardize the reputation of persons who may not be guilty of any wrongdoing.”

Demand Outside Counsel

Angry Democrats demanded last week that Thornburgh appoint an independent outside counsel to investigate the leaks, saying that the department could not effectively investigate itself. But Thornburgh on Sunday staunchly defended his decision to conduct an in-house examination.

“I have directed that every resource that we have in the Department of Justice be brought to bear on the investigation of the leaks,” he said. “And I’ve stated, I think quite clearly, my intention to see that anyone who’s been guilty of unauthorized disclosure of any information regarding pending investigations will be fired immediately. . . . I’ve directed that a thorough investigation be carried out so that we can get to the bottom of where these leaks come from.”

Thornburgh declined to discuss a rumor put forth by some Republicans that as many as 10 other Democrats are under investigation.

“I’m not going to comment on any pending investigations, only to assert once again that these are not political investigations,” he said. “We have to very carefully protect our integrity from these kinds of charges by simply dealing in one commodity and one commodity only: and that’s legally admissible evidence of violation of federal criminal laws. Be they Republican or Democrat, they’re going to be pursued.”