Give Attorney General Alberto Gonzales credit. To a far greater extent than many in Washington have even now come to recognize, he acknowledged in an opening statement prepared for his appearance Thursday before the Senate Judiciary Committee that the scandal swirling around him involves a lot more than the firing of eight U.S. attorneys.
Of course, the acknowledgment came in the form of another self-serving denial of any wrongdoing by the embattled attorney general. "I know that I did not, and would not, ask for a resignation of any individual in order to interfere with or influence a particular prosecution for partisan political gain," Gonzales claimed. "I also have no basis to believe that anyone involved in this process sought the removal of a U.S. attorney for an improper reason."
That reference to concerns about whether decisions were being made at the Department of Justice for "partisan political gain" goes to the very heart of what the U.S. attorneys scandal is all about. And there can be little question that, while it surely was not his intent, Gonzales in the course of his tortuously vague testimony confirmed the worst fears about the politicization of decisions made by his department regarding who should serve as federal prosecutors and what they should be prosecuting.
New York Times
If Attorney General Alberto Gonzales had gone to the Senate yesterday to convince the world that he ought to be fired, it’s hard to imagine how he could have done a better job, short of simply admitting the obvious: that the firing of eight United States attorneys was a partisan purge.
Huston Chronicle
Gonzales' testimony did not sufficiently settle the question of whether he directed the reviews and firings, or largely and irresponsibly delegated the firing of chief federal prosecutors to aides acting under the influence of White House political operatives. He maintained that the prosecutors' firings were not improper, but he couldn't seem to articulate how they came to be fired, or why.
However, by leaving so many questions unanswered, Gonzales ensures that the furor over the firings will continue, badly serving the president and the public.
Seattle Times
Attorney General Alberto Gonzales looked like an ineffective, and at times clueless, leader in his testimony before Congress Thursday.
He hemmed. He hawed. He did not recall. He was responding to scathing Senate Judiciary Committee questioning about his role in what has become an imbroglio over the firing of eight U.S. attorneys.
Scripps News
If the Senate hearing Thursday is any indicator, U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales should clean out his desk and depart. Dishonesty, incompetence, evasiveness _ every sin in public life _ were all pinned on the nation's top lawman. Quitting, not continuing, is the only option.
Washington Post
Alberto Gonzales's tenure as attorney general was pronounced dead at 3:02 p.m. yesterday by Tom Coburn, M.D.
The good doctor, who also happens to be a Republican member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, made this clinical judgment after watching Gonzales suffer through four hours of painful testimony. The Oklahoman listed the cause of death as management failure and other complications of the Justice Department's firing of eight federal prosecutors.
"It was handled incompetently. The communication was atrocious," Coburn told the beleaguered attorney general. "You ought to suffer the consequences that these others have suffered, and I believe that the best way to put this behind us is your resignation."
CNN
The attorney general has been roundly criticized for his handling of the shakeup and for the shifting explanations Justice Department officials have given for the changes.
Gonzales said more than 60 times that he "couldn't recall" certain incidents. His former chief of staff, Kyle Sampson, used that explanation 122 times during his testimony weeks ago.
On Friday, another Republican, Sen Jeff Sessions of Alabama, told CNN that Gonzales should consider leaving office.
"I think the attorney general ought to take the weekend and think about this and ask himself whether he can effectively reconstitute the attorney general's office," Sessions said, "and I'll be thinking about the same thing.
"If he feels like he cannot, then it would be best for the president and the country to resign."
As expected, the Bush-Voice stated that the Administration has full confidence in Gonzales. As if Bush has ever listened to anyone other than the voices in his head, you know, "God told me to do it."
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