The crumbling marriage of a GOP power couple could have national implications

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Cross Posted at Legal Schnauzer

The marriage of Leura and Bill Canary, a Republican power couple with connections to several scandals of the Bush/Rove era, is on shaky ground. Sources tell Legal Schnauzer that the Canarys might be headed for an acrimonious divorce. If that happens, it could have implications for several justice-related stories from the past decade or so.

Leura Canary was the U.S. attorney for the Middle District of Alabama until she announced her retirement on May 27, serving throughout the Bush administration and for more than two years of Barack Obama's term. She was at the helm for the prosecution of former Alabama Governor Don Siegelman, perhaps the most notorious politically driven case in American history.

Bill Canary is president of the Business Council of Alabama and has long-term ties to GOP guru Karl Rove and U.S. Chamber of Commerce President Thomas Donohue. Jill Simpson, an Alabama lawyer and whistleblower, stated under oath before Congress that she participated in a conference call in which Bill Canary outlined a plan to prosecute Siegelman, with the apparent knowledge of Rove and the Bush White House.

Both Canarys have strong ties to former Alabama Governor Bob Riley, who "defeated" Siegelman in a 2002 election that almost certainly was determined by vote fraud, with votes for Siegelman mysteriously disappearing overnight in Baldwin County.

A thirst for power in conservative circles seems to have fed the Canary marriage. But now it is on the rocks, sources tell Legal Schnauzer. Could the Canarys wind up like two snakes, coiled and hissing at each other? That's what we are hearing. Could the question become: Who will strike first? If it does, consider some of the dirt they probably have on each other:

* Leura probably knows about Bill's role in planning certain political prosecutions;

* Bill probably knows about Leura's role in executing certain political prosecutions;

* Leura probably knows about Bill's efforts, along with Rove and Donohue, to essentially buy state supreme courts in the Deep South;

* Bill probably knows about the massive GOP corruption to which Leura turned a blind eye;

* Leura probably knows how former BCA executive Ralph Stacy really died--and why.

If the Canarys go down the divorce path, our guess is that heavily monied interests will try to keep the dirt from slinging too far and too fast, making sure it stays out of the public domain.

But if that containment effort fails, and the Canary marriage continues to crumble, it could become a story of national significance.

Authors Bio:
I live in Birmingham, Alabama, and work in higher education. I became interested in justice-related issues after experiencing gross judicial corruption in Alabama state courts. This corruption has a strong political component. The corrupt judges are all Republicans, and the attorney who filed a fraudulent lawsuit against me has strong family ties to the Alabama Republican Party, with indirect connections to national figures such as Karl Rove. In fact, a number of Republican operatives who have played a central role in the prosecution of former Alabama Governor Don Siegelman (a Democrat) also have connections to my case.

I am married, with no kids and two Siamese cats. I am the author of the blog Legal Schnauzer. The blog is written in honor of Murphy, our miniature schnauzer (1993-2004)who did so much to help my wife and me survive our nightmarish experience with corrupt judges.

I grew up in Springfield, Missouri, and I am pretty much a lifelong St. Louis Cardinal baseball fan. I've lived in Birmingham for almost 30 years and have adopted the UAB Blazers as my Southern college football and basketball team to follow. Also, follow East Tennessee State basketball.

An avid reader, both fiction and non-fiction. Influential writers on public affairs are Kevin Phillips, Michael Lind, Thomas Edsall, E.J. Dionne, Molly Ivins, and Scott Horton.