Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA), has written several stern letters to Attorney General John Ashcroft accusing the Justice Department of punishing employees that have cooperated with Congress. Grassley believes the Justice Department has taken hostile actions and reprisals against Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard Convertino and his colleagues in Detroit because Convertino testified before Congress and has raised objections about the Justice Department. The Detroit prosecutors successfully convicted three men of operating a terrorist cell in Detroit but apparently had serious disagreements during the trial with Justice officials in Washington. After the trial Convertino accused the Justice Department of not providing sufficient support for the prosecution and hindering the case by limiting the attorney's use of strong evidence. Last fall the Senate Finance Committee, chaired by Grassley, asked Convertino to testify about terror financing schemes. When the department learned that Convertino was subpoened to testify, it initiated an internal investigation of Convertino and his colleagues, apparently fearful of what might be disclosed concerning the trial troubles. Grassley views the investigation as retaliation against the attorneys and has insisted that they "be made whole and not suffer reprisals.'' This is hardly the first time that Bush administration, and the Justice Department in particular, has come under fire for trying to limit and control what information Congress receives. In June, Ashcroft repeatedly refused requests from members of the Senate Judiciary Committee to produce a copy of the recently leaked Justice Department memo that explored the legal justifications for torture. In March 2003, the department issued a directive instructing employees to inform the Office of Legislative Affairs before all potential communications with Congress, and mandated that liaison officials accompany employees to Congressional briefings. Grassley called the directive "an attempt to muzzle whistleblowers."