Bush Orders Jefferson Documents Sealed

Material Taken From Rep's Office By FBI In Bribe Probe Off-Limits For 45 Days

(CBS/AP)  President Bush stepped into a confrontation between the Justice Department and Congress on Thursday, ordering that documents seized in an FBI raid on a lawmaker's office be sealed for 45 days.

His spokesman also labeled as "false, false, false" charges that Attorney General Alberto Gonzales' department had tried to intimidate Republican House Speaker Dennis Hastert.

In an effort to defuse an intensifying, election-year dispute between the Republican-led Congress and his administration, Mr. Bush, facing growing complaints from lawmakers in both parties that he has abused presidential powers, called for a cooling-off period.

"Our government has not faced such a dilemma in more than two centuries," he said in a statement. "Yet after days of discussions, it is clear these differences will require more time to be worked out."

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Full statement released by President Bush(.pdf)

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Mr. Bush granted one of Hastert's demands, directing the FBI to surrender documents and computerized records taken last weekend from the office of Rep. William Jefferson, D-La. He ordered Solicitor General Paul Clement, who has a separate office in the Justice Department, to take custody of them.

A senior law enforcement official said the cooling-off period would not affect the investigation. "There is videotape of the congressman putting cash in the trunk of his car," the official tells CBS News "Two plea agreements and more than enough evidence to finish this case."

The president said no one is above the law and that he continued to support the investigation of Jefferson. The eight-term congressman is accused of accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars to facilitate a telephone investment deal in Africa.

"Those who violate the law, including a member of Congress, should and will be held to account," the president said. "This investigation will go forward and justice will be served."

Within minutes, the heads of the battling institutions stood down and began talking about solutions.

Hastert said the order would "give us some time to step back and try to negotiate with the Department of Justice."

Gonzales said the move provides "time to reach a permanent solution that allows this investigation to continue while accommodating the concerns of certain members of Congress."