WASHINGTON — The Justice Department on Tuesday proposed a way to calm the furor over the unprecedented search of Rep. William J. Jefferson's Capitol Hill office, but also disclosed evidence that the Louisiana Democrat tried to conceal documents during an earlier search.
Responding in court to a demand by Jefferson that documents seized in the office raid this month be returned, the department proposed a "procedural accommodation" that would give Jefferson a new chance to challenge whether prosecutors should have the documents.
Although it was unclear whether the proposal would be accepted, it was the first significant public concession by the department since the 18-hour search of Jefferson's office ignited a political firestorm.
The disclosure of the search has created the spectacle of the House leadership -- Republicans and Democrats alike -- siding with the target of a federal bribery investigation in the name of protecting congressional traditions and the doctrine of separation of powers.
It also left some senior officials, including Atty. Gen. Alberto R. Gonzales, weighing whether to resign if President Bush decided to intervene and order the documents returned.
Bush last week ordered the documents sealed for 45 days and urged the parties to negotiate a settlement.
The general counsel of the House, Geraldine Gennet, wrote to Gonzales on Tuesday, proposing that the two sides meet next week.
"In order to prepare for this meeting, we have been developing proposals for you to obtain the evidence you need in a manner consistent with the Constitution," she said.
But members of Congress continued to ratchet up the rhetoric.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman F. James Sensenbrenner Jr. (R-Wis.) said Tuesday that he would summon Gonzales and FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III to testify before his committee about their decision to launch the search.
"They didn't get it right this time," Sensenbrenner said during a committee hearing that he had titled: "Reckless Justice: Did the Saturday Night Raid of Congress Trample the Constitution?"
Jefferson went to federal court last week in an effort to force the return of his documents. The Justice Department filing Tuesday addressed that request.
Jefferson and members of Congress have said the search violated the "speech or debate" clause of the Constitution, which protects members of Congress while they are performing their legislative duties. They also have complained that agents scooped up documents that may have been protected under the Constitution.
