Gonzales is the Problem

Gonzales is the Problem

First, the breaking news from TPM
Muckraker. For one, \”Administration would not oppose our legislation requiring Senate confirmation for all U.S. Attorneys.\” More here.

If you\’ve been following the firing of the U.S. attorneys, you will have long
ago smelled the usual Bush type campaign we\’ve come to expect. If the politics
of the person doesn\’t match up with the White House\’s view of the world, get
rid of the person causing the trouble.

Tampering with U.S. attorneys goes to the heart of our justice system, which
Mr. Bush through Mr. Gonzales seems hell bent to manipulate. These firings are
nakedly political, with Republicans like Specter making serious threats.

Senior Senate Republicans today delivered scathing criticism of Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales for his handling of the firing of eight U.S. attorneys, joining Democrats in charging that the prosecutors were dismissed without adequate explanation. Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, suggested that Gonzales\’s status as the nation\’s leading law enforcement officer might not last through the remainder of President Bush\’s term, pointedly disputing the attorney general\’s public rationale for the mass firings. \”One day there will be a new attorney general, maybe sooner rather than later,\” Specter said at a committee hearing where a new round of subpoenas to the Justice Department was considered. … .. Senate Republicans Deliver Sharp Criticism of Gonzales

You\’ve even got John
Ensign blubbering some nonsense about being \”misled.\” Aw, Mr.
Empty Suit was \”misled.\” The man could be misled on the way to the
Las Vegas strip, that\’s just how clueless he is.

Time to call Gonzales out. Oh, Congress.

Congress must keep demanding answers. It must find out who decided to fire these prosecutors and why, and who may have authorized putting pressure on Mr. Cummins. And it must look into whether Senator Domenici and Representatives Wilson and Hastings violated ethics rules that forbid this sort of interference. We hope the House committee will not be deterred by the fact that Mr. Hastings is its ranking Republican. The Justice Department also needs to open its own investigation. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales’s claim that these prosecutors were fired for poor performance was always difficult to believe. Now it’s impossible. The Gonzales Eight

But it\’s gotten even weirder. Take a look at Andrew Sullivan\’s post, then Josh
Marshall\’s last post. Hmmmm. Hackers strike.