Patrick Leahy

Democrat Patrick Leahy is the senior Senator from Vermont. In the November 2010 general elections, he won his seventh term in the U.S. Senate. He defeated six other candidates, and is the Senate's second longest serving member. He has served as Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and was first elected in 1974.http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5iSdf_lfCgus51oJDmDHUPSucbOpg?docId=5013350

In February 2009, Leahy proposed a "truth commission" which would investigate the years of the administration of George W. Bush to "learn the truth". The commission would investigate allegations of civil liberties violations by The Bush Administration. The suggestion have faced opposition from Republicans and some Democrats.Fox News: Democrats Split Over Leahy's Call for Bush Administration 'Truth' Commission (February 16, 2009)

A trained lawyer, Leahy served as the Chittenden County State's Attorney from 1966 to 1974, immediately after which he was elected to the Senate representing Vermont. (Leahy was the youngest Senator in Vermont's history, at 34.) He has since been re-elected 6 times.http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5iSdf_lfCgus51oJDmDHUPSucbOpg?docId=5013350

In 1987, Leahy, then a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, was accused of leaking information to a reporter. Though there was no criminal violation, because the information was not classified, Leahy nevertheless resigned from his position on the Committee.

In 2004, while taking a photo alongside Vice President Dick Cheney, the two got into an argument about Leahy's criticism of Halliburton and implication of collusion between the company (Cheney's former employer) and the Bush White House. Cheney allegedly told Leahy, "Go f--k yourself."WashingtonPost.com: "Cheney Dismisses Critic With Obscenity" (2004)

In February 2009, Leahy proposed a "truth commission" to investigate allegations of civil liberties violations by The Bush Administration. Leahy made the suggestion during a speech at Georgetown University. Leahy said the commission would be a compromise between prosecuting Bush for the alleged violations of civil liberties and the politicization of the Justice Department and not investigating the accusations. The suggestion have faced opposition from Republicans and some Democrats.Fox News: Democrats Split Over Leahy's Call for Bush Administration 'Truth' Commission (February 16, 2009)

Leahy said some of the issues the committee could look into would be the firings of U.S. attorneys, interrogation methods used on terrorism suspects and warrantless wiretapping.Fox News: Democrats Split Over Leahy's Call for Bush Administration 'Truth' Commission (February 16, 2009)

Patrick Leahy, as Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, talks about the results and fallout of a Supreme Court decision. He talks about his disapproval of a decision that removes government restrictions for how corporations spend money on elections. He states that this ruling throws out important parts of the law, and that future elections will be affected. He comments that the decision is a threat to the rule of law.