In a statement on at Waco Airport, where he
took no questions, President Bush said: "Al
Gonzales is a man of integrity, decency and principle. And I
have reluctantly accepted his resignation, with great
appreciation for the service that he has provided for our
country."
After reciting aspects of Gonzales' career both as White House
Counsel and later as U.S. Attorney Genera, Bush added: " After
months of unfair treatment that has created a harmful
distraction at the Justice Department, Judge Gonzales decided to
resign his position, and I accept his decision. It's sad that we
live in a time when a talented and honorable person like Alberto
Gonzales is impeded from doing important work because his good
name was dragged through the mud for political reasons.
"I've asked Solicitor General Paul Clement to
serve as Acting Attorney General upon Alberto Gonzales's
departure and until a nominee has been confirmed by the Senate.
He's agreed to do so. Paul is one of the finest lawyers in
America. As Solicitor General, Paul has developed a reputation
for excellence and fairness, and earned the respect and
confidence of the entire Justice Department.
The general sense of relief in Congress over Gonzales'
departure was shared by members of Bush's own Republican party,
as well as by Democrats and Independents serving in the
Congress.
For example, Sen. Norm Coleman (Republican, Minnesota)
said that Gonzales "had lost the credibility needed to
effectively run the Justice Department." He said he
planned to "work with my colleagues to confirm a replacement
that has the ability to not only restore the faith of the
American public, but also bring transparency to the
department."|
Sen. Arlen Specter (Republican, Pennsylvania) who as the
ranking minority party member of the Senate
Judiciary Committee, will play a large part in the
confirmation hearings, said: "I commend Mr. Gonzales for
placing the interests of the Department of Justice ahead
of his own continued tenure, and now I look forward to
the confirmation of a new Attorney General so that the
Department of Justice can undertake its important
responsibilities."
The two independent member of the Senate—Joseph
Lieberman of Connecticut and Bernie Sanders
of Vermont—were notable in the contrasting tones of
their statements on Gonzales' resignation.
On the one hand, Lieberman was charitable: "As he leaves
public service, the Attorney General deserves our
appreciation for his work for our nation."
Nevertheless, said Lieberman, "the Attorney general's
resignation removes a distraction from the important
work of the Department of Justice, and it provides
President Bush with an opportunity to appoint an
individual who can restore confidence."
Sanders said of Gonzales: "It was past time for
him to go. He had not been honest with Congress. His
credibility was shot. He has not respected the
Constitution."
In explaining their delight with Gonzales' departure,
Democrats laid out what they considered his
transgressions:
Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin of Maryland said that
Gonzales' tenure "has been marred by partisanship and
lack of candor with Congress about the firings of the
nine U.S. attorneys and other matters... we can never
tolerate a Department of Justice that has become a
political arm of the White House..."
Sen. Russell Feingold of Wisconsin said
"Gonzales' tenure was marked by unprecedented
politicization of the Department of Justice, deception
of Congress and the American people, and disrespect for
the rule of law. He should never have been
confirmed and should have resigned long ago."
Looking ahead toward Gonzales' successor, Sen. Dianne
Feinstein of California said "with the right person
in place, a very distressing chapter in the Justice
Department's history can be closed and the process of
restoring its credibility as a strong and independent
department can begin."
Although they will not be involved in the confirmation
process, Democrats in the House of Representatives had
their say as well. U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen of
Tennessee suggested that former Deputy Attorney General
James Comey be appointed as Gonzales' successor,
explaining: "Mr. Comey has been one of the heroes of the
Department of Justice throughout the congressional
investigations. He is respected, well-qualified
and would make large advances toward restoring faith in
America's justice system."
Cohen said he had been working with Bruce Fein, a former
official of the Department of Justice under President
Ronald Reagan, to draft articles of impeachment against
Gonzales. He said the measure would have been
introduced on September 4, when Congress returns from
its summer recess.
U.S. Rep. Eliot Engel of New York described
Gonzales' resignation as "welcome news for those who
believe in the Constitution and don't believe in having
a government spying on its own citizens." He said
Gonzales "put politics ahead of the rule of law by
targeting and firing nine U.S. Attorneys based on their
handling of politically sensitive investigations.
When called upon y Congress to account for his actions,
instead of being truthful, he was misleading,
inconsistent, and deceptive in responses to the
questions asked of him."
U.S. Rep. Paul Hodes of New Hampshire said the
next attorney general "should be independent enough to
rebuild the public's trust in the office. I suggest
someone with the stature, experience and integrity of
New Hampshire's Warren Rudman."
U.S. Rep. Jerrold Nadler of New York said the
resignation of Gonzales does not end the problems of
President Bush's administration. "Mr. Gonzales is
but one actor in the administration's ongoing campaign
to evade, ignore and undermine the Constitution," he
said. "Normally, a resignation of this magnitude
would serve to restore the nation's confidence in a
Department that has become riddled with scandal.
However, in this case, I believe the problems with the
Administration's handling of the Department of Justice
go well beyond Mr. Gonzales and rest firmly with
President Bush. A special prosecutor must still be
appointed to investigate the Attorney General's false
statements to Congress and to investigate the apparent
criminal violations of law by Attorney General Gonzales
and others, including President Bush, by initiating the
National Security Agency's warrantless wiretapping
program."
U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky of Illinois said "My
hope is that the days of torture memos, domestic spying
and usurpation of power by the President might be over.
It was clear from the beginning that Gonzales was
nothing more than a puppet of this administration.
His biggest problem was that he believed President Bush
had unlimited power to do whatever he wanted."
U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner of New York said "The
Bush administration's misuse of the Justice Department
as a political tool has sadly dishonored the fine work
of the great collection of public servants at the
Department of Justice. I am pleased that the Attorney
General has finally done the right thing and stepped
down."
For the last two years, the company has
done something that other alternative
fuel companies have dreamt about and are
only starting to do now: they've tested
their idea with an electric utility
company - a coal-burning power plant in
the southern city of Ashkelon operated
by the Israel Electric Company (IEC).
