Buchanan-LTE-Burn

==Buchanan can't play politics and stay in office==
U.S. Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan has again placed her office into political controversy by mulling a run for political office next year against U.S. Rep. Jason Altmire. If Ms. Buchanan is truly contemplating a political career, then she must step down from her current position.
Under the Bush administration, the U.S. Attorney's Office came under well-deserved scrutiny due to what appeared to be politically motivated prosecutions and dismissals of prosecutors who refused to tow the Republican party line. One need look no further for an example of this national embarrassment than the local U.S. Attorney's Office and the unsuccessful prosecution of Dr. Cyril Wecht in a case so weak that it never should have seen the inside of a courtroom.
After months of testimony, the Wecht case ended in a mistrial. After this, many local and national leaders, including Jim Roddey, the current chair of the Republican Party, and I, joined in a bipartisan plea to urge Ms. Buchanan to refrain from further prosecution of Dr. Wecht.
However, Ms. Buchanan turned away from the lack of evidence and instead chose to spend more taxpayer dollars in a quixotic crusade which included an unsuccessful attempt at a retrial and a defiant, almost condescending, withdrawal of the remaining, anemic charges
Through her actions in the unsuccessful prosecution of Dr. Wecht, Ms. Buchanan unfortunately contributed to the deterioration of an office which must always remain above and beyond any and all political reproach.
The evidence would certainly suggest that Ms. Buchanan's political ambitions are nothing new and she should therefore resign immediately in order to allow the office of U.S. attorney to regain its political independence.
Jim Burn, Chair, Allegheny County Democratic Committee
===Source===
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09286/1005006-110.stm#ixzz0ToZQUwLv from October 2009
==Links==
* Jim Burn
* Mary Beth Buchanan