"Joining the anti-Gonzalez chorus"

Joining the anti-Gonzalez chorus

By Alfonse D'Amato

Friday, May 11, 2007

Washington consumes headlines with the voracious appetite of a prehistoric raptor. Stories pop up and dominate media coverage for days, perhaps a week, and then recede, making room for the next shattering headline.

Yet the underlying issues that sparked the media s original frenzy usually don t go away, often becoming far more embedded as a gnawing wound that needs resolution.

So it is with calls for the resignation of U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. With its chronic attention deficit disorder, the media has moved on to the next Beltway contest while the attorney general remains in office, the Justice Department remains compromised and its staff remains in disarray.

The ethical issues confronting the AG speak for themselves. He has indicated at various times that he was not aware of events with respect to the firings of eight U.S. attorneys around the nation. Few believe him. How could we?

One would easily expect Democrats to demand his departure on simple party lines, but it goes far beyond that. Persistent and legitimate questions regarding his truthfulness and candor in how he addressed congressional inquiries have sparked anger from Capitol Hill that now crosses partisan lines.

Patriot, war hero and Republican Sen. John McCain knows something about standing up for personal ethics, and has called for Gonzales s resignation. Newt Gingrich, the former Republican standard-bearer in the House of Representatives, has also joined the call for resignation.

And now this proud Republican is compelled to call for resignation.

It is sad but not surprising that those advising the attorney general have no sense of Washington history. As prior Beltway scandals have proved time and again, Democrats and Republicans merge as one when they believe that the institution of the U.S. Congress has been lied to. It is an historic tipping point that has galvanized members of the House and Senate, regardless of who is sitting in the White House.

One could counter that Gonzales wasn t lying at all but has a convenient memory. If we were to give the attorney general the benefit of the doubt and believe the firings were not brought to his attention, then the question now is: Why didn t he know? If he didn t know what was taking place, then he should be removed for incompetence. Could he be so isolated that this shakeup never came to his attention?

His position is one part incredulous and one part insulting. The AG has lost something that no Washington public official can regain " his credibility.


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