US Attorney General Gonzales resigns (2nd Roundup)

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By Mike McCarthy Aug 27, 2007, 16:12 GMT

Washington - The top US law enforcement officer, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, announced his resignation Monday after months of allegations he was behind the politically motivated firings of federal prosecutors. US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales announces his resignation during a press conference at the Justice Department in Washington, D.C., USA, 27 August 2007. Gonzales has been under fire for months over his handling of the firing of several US attorneys. EPA/MATTHEW CAVANAUGH

US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales announces his resignation during a press conference at the Justice Department in Washington, D.C., USA, 27 August 2007. Gonzales has been under fire for months over his handling of the firing of several US attorneys. EPA/MATTHEW CAVANAUGHGonzales told reporters at a press conference that he informed US President George W Bush of his decision on Sunday and that his last day in office will be September 17. The position will be filled by Solicitor General Paul Clement until Bush appoints a successor. 'It has been one of my greatest privileges to lead the Department of Justice,' Gonzales, the nation's first Hispanic attorney general, said in a brief statement before walking away from the podium without taking questions. Gonzales has been under intense pressure to resign from Democrats in Congress and even some of Bush's Republicans who believe he has not been honest about his role in the dismissal of eight federal prosecutors in December 2006. Democrats also allege he has abused the country's anti-terrorism laws. Gonzales, 52, has been close to the president since Bush was governor of Texas and served as his top legal aid in the White House before taking over at the Justice Department in February 2005. Bush, speaking from an airport in Waco, Texas, told reporters that he reluctantly accepted the resignation after months of 'unfair treatment' of Gonzales by Democrats. 'It's sad that we live in a time when a talented and honourable person is impeded from doing important work because his good name was dragged through the mud for political reasons,' Bush said. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a longtime critic of Gonzales, said the resignation will not end the investigation into any potential White House role in the sacking of the prosecutors. 'Alberto Gonzales was never the right man for this job. He lacked independence, he lacked judgment,' Reid said in a statement. 'This resignation is not the end of the story.' Senate Democrats in July called for a perjury investigation of Gonzales, charging that he made conflicting statements during congressional testimony about the firing of the prosecutors. Republicans who remained loyal to Gonzales characterized the Democratic assault on the attorney general as politically driven. 'It is my hope that whomever President Bush selects as the next attorney general, he or she is not subjected to the same poisonous partisanship that we've sadly grown accustomed to over the past eight months,' said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. Gonzales had also come in for sharp criticism for allegedly overstepping the bounds of anti-terrorism laws in permitting surveillance of US citizens. Gonzales is the latest to announce his departure from the administration as Bush heads into his final stretch in office. Bush's closest political advisor and deputy chief of staff Karl Rove announced earlier this month that he was leaving. Rove had also been the subject of allegations about a potential White House role in the dismissal of the prosecutors. Rove, like Gonzales, has been with Bush since his days in Texas. Rove has refused to appear before the congressional panels probing the case. While in the White House, Gonzales helped draft controversial rules for the interrogation of suspects in the war on terrorism that some critics allege permitted the use of torture - a charge strongly denied by Bush and his attorney general. Gonzales also helped oversee the implementation of a domestic spying programme as a White House aide, and he accompanied then chief of staff, Andrew Card, during a 2004 hospital visit to pressure the attorney general at the time, John Ashcroft, into signing off on renewing the programme. Ashcroft, who was in intensive care, refused. An Ashcroft deputy who was present in the hospital room, James Comey, told Congress that he viewed the visit as a White House attempt to take an advantage of a sick man. © 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur

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MikeAug 27th, 2007 - 16:46:33

Apparently Mitch McConnell believes supporting the Constitution and the Geneva Conventions is an act of partisanship.

Maybe McConnell, like Sarah Taylor, mistakenly believes he took an oath the President. Whatever the case may be, McConnell has violated his oath of office, failed to respect the rule of law and helped turn the Senate into a cheerleading section for his corrupt President. McConnell's unwavering support for a corrupt official like Gonzales is disgraceful.

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US Attorney General Gonzales resigns (2nd Roundup)

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