Republican tells Gonzales to quit

Just make sure he poops the cocaine filled balloons he's been carrying around for President Bush before he leaves the DOJ.

I really just want AG Gonzalez to implicate President Bush in this entire thing. I really do believe him when he says he didn't choose the people on the list, but somebody had to have, and I'm inclined to believe that it was somebody above him. Gonzalez is getting ready to take the fall for Bush because Bush won't admit to something he did wrong. The White House has turned into a Frat House, with the pledge taking the fall for the Chapter President.

Bush has truly remade our "Justice" Dept. in his own image. We have a buffoon appointing a clown to be the chief law enforcement agent in the world, who is so inept we now feel sorry for him. Domenici should lose his head as well.
Rove should be hauled in under oath!
Power to the people and their representatives, and down with the retarded prince. "Voter fraud" is the new JIM CROW in our living room.

Mr.Gonzales is apparently unaware that his new job is to be the head of the Justice Department instead of President Bush and Karl Rove's personal attorney. His incompetence is far beyond any of the eight attorneys who lost their jobs.

we all know karl rove is the master planner of all that smells of politics in this administration. lets get his lying testimony in this manner.

Wait what!?

Gonzalez lets a bunch of U.S. Attorneys go because of their performance issues and some management problems in their offices and now a Senator is demanding that Gonzalez resign on account of his performance!?

One of the hardest things managers have to do is make hiring/firing decisions. That is why they get the big bucks. I never new a manager that did not agonize over firing someone, even when they deserved it. We are expected to believe that this guy turned over nearly 10% of his key staff and could not remember discussing it or was minimally involved in these kinds of decisions? Forget political differences, Gonzales deserves to go on the grounds of being an inept, uninvolved and uninterested manager (kind of like the guy he works for).

Everybody those mistakes, but I believe that we musat forgive him for all he has done. Give a second chance and they must stop that they are the boss. They must change there attitude towards the general attorney. Don't force them to resign.

It's pretty scary to think that the Justice Department can be used to carry out political agendas and vendettas. Anyone on the receiving end of a politically motivated investigation, Dem or Rep would be crushed, either personally, finacially or both. The DOJ has to be apolictical, they have too much power to ruin peoples' lives. Alberto Gonzales has to go, a polictical flak can't run the DOJ.

If mistakes are a cause for resignation, then why are Nancy Pelosi, Barbara Boxer, Diane Feinstein and Lynn Woolsey still serving this country. Their mistakes make Gonzales mistakes look small.

WOW! I would not have said it any better than the SEN. COBURN! George W & Oil slick Dick take notice!

HELLO AMERICA - Have we NOT had enough yet? How long are we going to do EXACTLY what the poly-ticks EXPECT us to do, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!!! Are we going to continue to ALLOW ourselves to be raped and robbed by poly-ticks? Can you not see the poly-tick machine COUNTS on us as a people being divided by poly-tick party lines??? My God, can you imagine what would happen if the Republican and Democrat people just started working TOGETHER and threw out the poly-tick machine on their lazy, criminal, disingenuous butts? It is time to STOP the biggest oxy-moron of all time called "political correctness" and call a criminal a FREAKIN CRIMINAL, and TAKE SOME ACTION!

Alberto Gonzales may be a smart person and most lucky hispanic, who became the first hispanic Attorney General of the USA, but unfortunately he was used by the Bush cult similarly they had used the great black General Colin Powell for their own benefits. Even General Powell was unable to stand up to this goon and lost his luster in few years, how come this puppet looking and powerless Gonzales can resist to do anything wrong! It will be sad but Gonzales has to GO and soon many other stooges of the Bush goons will either resign or make them to resign because they are propping the fake Empire.

So much for the crazy connies telling us loony lefties we are making up the severity of the situation here. Gonzo, chimpy and dick are in very deep on this, and no matter how they and the apologistas try, there is no way to unspin this. Now even Republicans are on board saying this is a fireable offense. Gonzo better take the hint and step down while it is still politically viable. He's gotta stop re-arranging deck chairs. Heck, he could do this nation a patriotic favor and turn in his "superiors" by testifying he was told to use DOJ to smear Dems leading up to the FANTASTIC 2006 watershed elections, where loyal Americans finally gave the traitorous re-pubbers the boot they so richly deserve.

Your note on comments says you review them for, foul language, --, -- and unfair attacts!
If the comment by a john, April 19, 2007 is fair in uour opinion, you and your paper smell of something long dead. No wonder people in the news paper buisness are looking for work. You have destroyed our confience in your slant of the "news"

This Bush "Scandal du Jour" is a direct results of the inclination to lie whenever asked a question. These lies are necessary to hide what is/had been done after due deliberation of the political advantage to the "Decider" and party. Seems just yesterday that the GOP was trying to force President Clinton out of office saying he lied to a Grand Jury. These "Bushies" have been lying to the American Public and the rest of the world for over 6 years now....where are the howls of protest from the right wing Constitutionalist now??

I believe that Gonzalez was quoted as saying, ""I now understand that there was a conversation between myself and the president."

The man's memory is so poor he can't remember having a conversation with the president on this topic?

He not only should resign, he should seek immediate treatment for early onset of Alzheimer's Disease.

Gonzales is a dead man walking. That's been obvious to everyone for some time now. The problem is that the White House strategy is to stonewall over Gonzales so that when he finally quits everyone will sigh relief and think justice has been done. The real perpetrators of this unconscionable politicizing of the Justice Dept. are Karl Rove, Harriet Miers, and others at the White House. They will continue to stall, refuse to testify, withhold and destroy evidence, and in the end the public will tire of it and Congress will not have the stomach to pursue it to the end. Gonzales will be offered up as the sacrifice. The only bright side is that hopefully we will get the entire corrupt, incompetent gang of cronies out of there on Jan. 20, 2009.

Hey john,

he'd have to pull them out of your mouth instead.
\ta

SEN. COBURN: Well, I believe there's consequences to mistakes. I was quoted in the paper saying I think this has been handled in a very incompetent manner. And I believe most people -- I don't care which side of the aisle they are -- would agree with that.

A metaphor for the Bush Presidency!!!

I personally don't believe that resignation is insufficient. There has been too many politicians who dodge the real consequences for their actions...prosecution,were I to lie in court, contempt of court would only be the begining. Politicians should be to a higher standard not a lower one. Apparently the only commandment they follow is the eleventh...DON'T GET CAUGHT!!!

HAHAHAHAHA!!

Is there anybody besides George who thinks this guy should stay?

The only thing Tom Coburn could ever say that I can agree with.

Okay if Sam Brownback also comes out in favor of Gonzales' resignation, we should be able to look outside and see pigs flying past the windows...

Gonzales should be put in guantanamo (which would not exist without his help) for what he has done to America and what it stands for. Terrorists could only dream of doing what he has done.

Oh, OK The Swamp, I get it. No INTELLIGENT posts are allowed.

Lets see is it his turn for the president to stand behind him or is it some one else's turn??

The A.G. has no credibility as do Bush, Cheney, Rice, Rumsfeld, Rove, et al...ad nauseum. These people are worse than NIXONs' crowd.

Bush and Gonzales are the BAD COPS--the US Attorneys are the GOOD COPS (or so we're supposed to believe!).

Convinced that the World Trade Center ground-zero site was contaminated enough to qualify for Super-fund cleanup, EPA Ombudsman Robert Martin resigned following the announcement by EPA that his job was to become part of the Inspector General's office--a move that Martin claims was to silence him.

In other words, it is difficult to believe that this issue is truely about Bush appointees that have crossed him...

Isn't it much more likely that the entire "episode" is simply a way to make someone in the Bush administration look good, or simply to divert the public attention away from the problems with the electronic voting machines, or from the compelling global warming discussion?

I wonder how come the press isn't having a field day explaining exactly what Bush found so objectionable about his own men???!!!

www.freedomtofascis.com

watch it and learn why we're being subjected to Bush's megalomanical madness and his accompanying culture of rampant and insidious cronyism.

Post resignation statement from Gonzales ...'I don't recollect...err ....remember having resigned... !!!

AGAG comes more and more to resemble Chance the gardener (aka Chauncey Gardner) in "Being There." Here's the imdb summary of the movie of Jerzy Koszinski's novel:

"A simple-minded gardener named Chance has spent all his life in the Washington D.C. house of an old man. When the man dies, Chance is put out on the street with no knowledge of the world except what he has learned from television. After a run in with a limousine, he ends up a guest of a woman (Eve) and her husband Ben, an influential but sickly businessman. Now called Chauncey Gardner, Chance becomes friend and confidante to Ben, and an unlikely political insider."

Oh, I know it's not a perfect match, but it's pretty clear that AGAG claims he doesn't know anything about the firings except what he learned - after the fact - from "the documents." He's seen more of them - unredacted - than the Senate committee, and he still seems to know less than the Senators about what he's done (intentionally and unintentionally). When Tom Coburn, a very conservative heartland Republican, tells AGAG it's time to go (as he did today), it's past time.

Best case, he's either incompetent or negligent. In either event, he should go and take his so-called "senior leadership" group with him.

It's a sad day in the history of our nation when the highest law enforcement official in the land lies under oath.

Habib, Charles, and Bolverk need to check on your reading comprhension. Its not the fact that there was a performance review that was negative. It was the time frame in which it was made, the rules that are to be followed, so that an appointee cannot "use" the position of AG for political means. If this was the case then the AG could conceivably be mre powerful than the President and Congress.

I want to know why the assistant took the "fifth"! There is more to this than meets the eye. I hope he doesn't resign so we can find out what was really going on!

Why is it that the diminishing "right" can only resort nasty, meaningless taunts? And what does "Nancy Pelosi, Barbara Boxer, Diane Feinstein and Lynn Woolsey" have to do with a barely competent lawyer who, by (hypocritical) "republican" ethical standards proclaimed during the last administration, should be in prison for lying to Congress? (There seems to be a theme there; did somebodies mommy not love them enough, or do girls just scare you?)

charles. charles, charles, you cant see the point because you are a gop stooge, you lil bush monkey,,,,,,,the gop has run rough shod over every one, bush administration is nothing but a bunch of his cronies,,,its one scandal after another,,,,,,,,,,abranoff, cunningham, halliburton,,,cheney/libby,,,,, idiots like you helped this gang of monkeys steal into the whitehouse!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hhhmmmmm..... Nothing on Rush Limbaugh's website about the hearings that took place today. Now how are conservatives claiming they are so well informed about news events when America's anchorman leaves them in the dark?

What does a good resume look like to the Bush team?

Political Ideology?
.
.
.
.
.
Job Skills?

I wonder why it took Gonzalez weeks to prepare for questioning which he handled so poorly. Was he prepping how to answer questions about Rove and Bush and how to shield them in this horrible mess?

The Justice Department exists to enforce the laws and regulations enacted by Congress on evidence gathered by the FBI and other law enforcement agencies. If instead it is used for the political agenda of the President (or worse, of his operatives) our country is no better than a dictatorship and justice has died.

There is reason to believe that at least one US attorney was fired because Rove wanted the job for one of his friends. Let's get to the bottom of that, while we're examining the situation.

He should agree to resign, only after a 10 page synopsis on each of the 93 firings made by Dollar Bill and his thunder-thighed spouse, are turned over to the committee. Let's review all of the firings over the past 2 or 3 administrations.....we'll see which are political and which are based on job-related performance. Right, that'll happen!!

The phrase "fall guy" comes to mind. Apparently Gonzalez hasn't learned the One Big Rule of serving at the President's pleasure, which is: When you have been picked to be the front man for Rove's insane machinations, and those machinations finally come to light, you must pretend that all of this was actually your own doing and place your head politely on the chopping block. That way, Rove and Bush can persist in the fantasy that America still believes the GOP isn't sick, sick, sick to the bone, it just has a few booboos it needs to bandage up.

He should agree to resign, only after a 10 page synopsis on each of the 93 firings made by Dollar Bill and his thunder-thighed spouse, are turned over to the committee. Let's review all of the firings over the past 2 or 3 administrations.....we'll see which are political and which are based on job-related performance. Right, that'll happen!!

Posted by: Jeff | Apr 20, 2007 6:08:29 AM

Memo to Jeff's therapist: I think we need to adjust the dosages. He's not responding well.

Jeff,

When (if?) you get around to an apples and apples comparison on these terminations you won't be able to find another like example. These terminations were bad policy and even worse politics.

I can't imagine how wonderful our country will be with another complete OVER-correction, exactly as happened with Bush, the OVER-correction for Clinton's follies, which was another OVER-correction for Bush Sr's follies, and on and on. Let's just see how great things are 3 or four years down the road. Most of the American people are simply a bunch of jellyfish, going with whatever flow the press feeds them. The whole system needs a complete overhaul, when will we wake up?

[quote]
Gonzalez lets a bunch of U.S. Attorneys go because of their performance issues and some management problems in their offices and now a Senator is demanding that Gonzalez resign on account of his performance!?
Posted by: charles | Apr 19, 2007 4:56:06 PM
[/quote]

Emails released by the DOJ now show that these "performance issues and some management problems" that Gonzalez claims exist are TOTAL FABRICATIONS. So yes, charles, the people of America want this LIAR TO RESIGN NOW!!!

[quote]
If mistakes are a cause for resignation, then why are Nancy Pelosi, Barbara Boxer, Diane Feinstein and Lynn Woolsey still serving this country. Their mistakes make Gonzales mistakes look small.
Posted by: Bolverk | Apr 19, 2007 5:01:25 PM
[/quote]

Please post examples for each person you named to justify your allegation that they've made mistakes that "make Gonzales mistakes look small."

Fabrications from the Republican Party's web site don't count.

When Janet Reno fired a bunch of US Attorneys when Billy Clinton first got into office, that was just hunky-dory.....

Lefties are apparently exempt from any accountability, under the Liberal Exemption Clause that is contained in the newly created Liberal Bill of Rights (which is listed right after the "Freedom to suppress conservative speech").

Let's see, Bill Clinton gets into office and fires all 93 US attorneys and no one says anything about it. George Bush fires a few (which he has the legal right to) and the Democrats go nuts. By the way, Diane Feinstein was the one that filed a complaint against the attorney in San Diego because she wasn't prosecuting illegal aliens but she and the press have conveniently forgotten this. Sick of the Democrats and their better than thou attitudes!

Sick of the Democrats and their better than thou attitudes!

Posted by: Susan | Apr 20, 2007 10:18:41 AM

Well, Suze, I for one am sick of Republicans who continue to put their partisan interests ahead of the country's. And I'm sick of Republicans who continue to trot out the same talking points even after they've been consistently (and tediously, at this point), repudiated.

Besides, at this point the issue is not the firing, but the cover up. After considering Gonzo's joke of a performance yesterday, even a half-wit you should be able to tell that he's been lying.

if the benchmark for impeachment is BJ from a young lady then Bush and Cheney have exceeded the mark by spades.

Susan & Jeff:
Do you guys bother to actually check on what you post or do you just repeat the talking points you have heard somewhere else with out even bothering to check if it is true or not? Why not try learning something 1st before repeating hearsay.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dismissal_of_U.S._attorneys_controversy
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/19/AR2007041900937.html

The reason Gonzales can remember when "he" decided these USA's should be fired, but not why, is because Karl Rove decided why. Gonzales needs to go because he is so incompetent and because the Attorney General should not be a mere lackey for the White House, but him leaving will not solve the problem because the problem lies at the feet and in the brain of Karl Rove.

Yet again, Barack Obama's judgment was impeccable.

http://obama.senate.gov/news/050203-floor_statement_from_senator_barack_obama_on_the_nomination_of_alberto_gonzales_for_attorney_general/
Thursday, February 3, 2005
clip:
In this sense, the Attorney General is not like the other Cabinet posts. Unlike the Secretary of State, who is the public face of the President's foreign policy, or the Secretary of Education, whose job it is to carry out the President's education policy, the Attorney General's job is not just to enforce the President's laws. It is to tell the President what the law is. The job is not simply to facilitate the President's power, it is to speak truth to that power as well.

The job is to protect and defend the laws and the freedoms for which so many have sacrificed so much.

The President is not the Attorney General's client - the people are. And so the true test of an Attorney General nominee is whether that person is ready to put the Constitution of the people before the political agenda of the President. As such, I cannot approach this nomination the same way I approached that of Secretary of State Rice or VA Secretary Nicholson or any other Cabinet position. The standard is simply higher.

I wanted to give Alberto Gonzales the benefit of the doubt when we began this process. His story is inspiring - especially for so many of us who have shared in achieving his American Dream. And I have no question that, as White House counsel, he has served his President and his country to the best of his ability. But, in my judgment, these positive qualities alone are not sufficient to warrant confirmation as the top law enforcement officer in the land.

I had hoped that during his hearings Judge Gonzales would ease my concerns about some of the legal advice he gave to the President. And I had hoped he would prove that he has the ability to distance himself from his role as the President's lawyer so that he could perform his new role as the people's lawyer.

Sadly, rather than full explanations during these hearings, I heard equivocation. Rather than independence, I heard an unyielding insistence on protecting the President's prerogative.

Get Monica Goodling in there to testify, pronto. If she actually tells the truth, we'll learn much more about Karl Rove's and Harriet Miers' roles in this. The entire motto of this administration should be, "It's Karl Rove, stupid."

I must have a learning disorder because I am always amazed at the stupidity of the people who believe that every single decision made in the Bush White House is not politically motivated. I live in Florida and the same was true of Dubya's little brother Jeb. Both are transparent asses whose sole purpose is to promote the ultra conservative right-wing minority platform of this country. Can the country survive another 2 years of this?

Quoting directly from the Tribune's own editorial this morning:

"(T)here's nothing illegal or improper about dismissing prosecutors, as far as that goes. U.S. attorneys -- like the attorney general -- serve at the pleasure of the president. He can replace them for almost any reason."

All the rest of this silliness is just hot air. Gonzales has nothing to lose by uttering exactly the above paragraph into the record, rising, wishing the Senators a pleasant weekend, and walking out of the room.

There's only one guy Gonzales has to satisfy to "save his job," and that man isn't on Capitol Hill.

Our forefathers would be rolling in their graves over things like this. Our government is supposed to be for the people, not Bush. We all know Gonzo is the puppet at the end of the Executive fingers. Why is it that we all know this and can do nothing about it? Same with the election in 2000, Bush didnt win the vote, we all know this, but he is president anyhow. Our forefathers would not have let these actions stand. Frankly, neither should we.

Quoting directly from the Tribune's own editorial this morning:

"(T)here's nothing illegal or improper about dismissing prosecutors, as far as that goes. U.S. attorneys -- like the attorney general -- serve at the pleasure of the president. He can replace them for almost any reason."

All the rest of this silliness is just hot air. Gonzales has nothing to lose by uttering exactly the above paragraph into the record, rising, wishing the Senators a pleasant weekend, and walking out of the room.

There's only one guy Gonzales has to satisfy to "save his job," and that man isn't on Capitol Hill.

Posted by: Kurt | Apr 20, 2007 1:27:52 PM

Thank you, Kurt, for the opportunity to point out another glaring deficiency in the deadenders' repudiated talking points.

The standard of whether something is legal or not is a very low standard. Congress's role is not criminal prosecution. Its role is oversight -- to ensure that the Executive Branch is properly carrying out its duties.

Rational people can appreciate that there can be poor governance that is not illegal. For example, if Gonzo decided to fire all USAs whose names started with K, that would be lawful, but it would also be exceptionally poor governance.

Do you see the difference, Kurt? I realize that you have a hard time defending the actions of the worst president in history and his incompetent cabal, but by lowering the bar to lawful/unlawful conduct, you are unwittingly condemning your Hero with faint praise.

When Janet Reno fired a bunch of US Attorneys when Billy Clinton first got into office, that was just hunky-dory.....

Lefties are apparently exempt from any accountability, under the Liberal Exemption Clause that is contained in the newly created Liberal Bill of Rights (which is listed right after the "Freedom to suppress conservative speech").
Posted by: Bob from Salem, WI | Apr 20, 2007 10:18:04 AM

Let's see, Bill Clinton gets into office and fires all 93 US attorneys and no one says anything about it. George Bush fires a few (which he has the legal right to) and the Democrats go nuts. By the way, Diane Feinstein was the one that filed a complaint against the attorney in San Diego because she wasn't prosecuting illegal aliens but she and the press have conveniently forgotten this. Sick of the Democrats and their better than thou attitudes!
Posted by: Susan | Apr 20, 2007 10:18:41 AM

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

both of the above posts have the right answer starring them in the face.

HIRE YOUR 93 ATTORNEYS WHEN THE PRESIDENT FIRST COMES INTO OFFICE. DON'T WAIT UNTIL THEY DON'T FOLLOW THE PARTY LINE AND THEN FIRE THEM. IF POSSIBLE, KEEP THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT ABOVE SUSPICION.

But it seems like the Bush team has tainted most, if not all of what it has touched. Well, the scandal of the Valerie Plame outing is over, now on to the next scandal - the world bank. The Bush team has already signed on for that scandal. Still looking for a SCANDAL that they don't like.

The way the Bush team has handled the laws of this land makes you wonder which comes first, the Country or the party?

The Bush team is different. Most of the previous Presidents handled the "changing of the guard" without raising the Nation's eyebrow. Leave it to the Bush team to mess up something that is a "no-brainer" for most.

Jeff said:

He should agree to resign, only after a 10 page synopsis on each of the 93 firings made by Dollar Bill and his thunder-thighed spouse, are turned over to the committee. Let's review all of the firings over the past 2 or 3 administrations.....we'll see which are political and which are based on job-related performance. Right, that'll happen!!
Posted by: Jeff | Apr 20, 2007 6:08:29 AM

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Frequently, those who follow the right wing agenda fail to accept responsibility for their missteps and they are quick to call names if they are accused or wrong doing.

By now America has seen the many government officials who apparently have an strong link to the Bush team. Some have started to wonder just who those officials work for - the country or the Bush team. Some time ago, at NASA, an employee told the world just what his job was. And he left out the United States of America.

He did leave NASA.

So, the current problem with the Justice Department has nothing to do with either of the Clintons. It has nothing to do with the first Bush administration. It has nothing to do with the Eisenhower administration. It has nothing to do with the Nixon administration.

It is centered on the current Justice Department. The BUCK STOPS AT THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT.

Quoting directly from the Tribune's own editorial this morning:

"(T)here's nothing illegal or improper about dismissing prosecutors, as far as that goes. U.S. attorneys -- like the attorney general -- serve at the pleasure of the president. He can replace them for almost any reason."

All the rest of this silliness is just hot air. Gonzales has nothing to lose by uttering exactly the above paragraph into the record, rising, wishing the Senators a pleasant weekend, and walking out of the room.

There's only one guy Gonzales has to satisfy to "save his job," and that man isn't on Capitol Hill.
Posted by: Kurt | Apr 20, 2007 1:27:52 PM

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Did that man who is not on Capitol Hill know that WMD "document" was bogus? Does that man, who is not on Capitol Hill, know where the CIA document on terrorist is?

Does that man, who is not on Capitol Hill, know what the United Nations is talking about when it mentions Iraqi citizens and an exodus that reminds one of 1948?

It is possible that the man, who is not on Capitol Hill, may be as in favor of the Justice Department as HE is in favor of the World Bank.

And if the law says that man, who is not on Capitol Hill, can do as he pleases with those attorneys then that law should be changed. And this law need not be made "retroactive".