Congress plans public probe of phone-jam case

Two officials served time in prison after pleading guilty to telephone harassment charges in connection with the scheme.

The U.S. House Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on the election day 2002 Republican phone-jamming scheme against the New Hampshire Democratic Party and the Manchester firefighters union.

A committee spokesman told UnionLeader.com that committee chairman U.S. Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., has decided to schedule a hearing. The spokesman said no date has been set but expected that it will be held sometime next month, noting that the schedule can change.

The spokesman said committee staff counsel are talking to potential witnesses and setting up a schedule for testimony, but said the witness list will not be made public until a week before the hearing.

The committee responded to a letter by New Hampshire U.S. Rep. Paul Hodes last September asking whether the White House and Department of Justice were involved in a “politically motivated plot” to delay and obstruct justice.

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