Gonzales Goes

It's been a long few months for Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, and he's had enough... He announced his resignation this morning, effective September 17th. Reaction has been just as testy as the controversy over his role in the firing of those eight US Attorneys, and the debate over his push for warrantless wiretaps. His most recent testimony in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee may have been the last straw ("I don't recall" was one of his most quoted answers). We're shifting into Special Coverage mode on the show today. We'll look at the political legacy of Alberto Gonzales, and reaction to his resignation. Thoughts or questions on Gonzales? Let us know...

 

Comments (Send a comment)

Good! I'm glad he's gone. Now if we can just get him, and ALL those with him within and outside the administration, prosecuted, we could be okay. And he should be prosecuted, because he is liar, criminally forgetful and negligent, and conspirator to Abstruction of Justice. (AND Congress.)
thanks-
wil ferguson
theyarehere@earthlink.net
traverse city, michigan, usa
WIAA\WICA - INTERLOCHEN, MI

Sent by wil ferguson | 2:13 PM ET | 08-27-2007

It is amusing to hear the most partisan people ever to take control of the government complaining of partisanship when it is directed at them. They created the mess. They poisoned the atmosphere going back to the election of Bill Clinton.

Alberto Gonzales is nothing more than another crony placed in a position of authority based on his loyalty to this president. He used his position to pursue a political aggenda instead of Justice. How about picking someone based on qualifications instead of how good a political operative they are? And please! No more nonsensical blah blah about how he has devoted himself to public service. He devoted himself to the service of George W. Bush. Period. He has damaged our civil liberties and debased the position for which he has resigned.

Sent by George from Oregon | 2:30 PM ET | 08-27-2007

NPR / KCFR have devoted alot of time to Gonzales and DOJ in recent months. We have yet to hear any stories of the people effected by DOJ not doing its job and enforcing the law when it comes to people with disabilities / minorities / etc.

NPR did a great story on Native American females and being raped by non Indians and having no justice. Well that is due to DOJ not doing its job.

NPR has done no stories on the disabled community and thier inability to exist due to the lack of enforcement of the ADA.

Now that Gonzales is leaving; we would ask NPR to deal with the people effected by a department who keeps sending out letters that we dont have the resources (time and money) to investigate as we get so many of these complaints. This is a form letter by the way and they send out the same form letter no matter if the complaint is on a city / county / state / police dpet / etc.

Its called disabled have no right to exist along with minorities including Native Americans / blacks / gays / etc or get anything done in thier daily lives and if they are a victim in a crime; well who cares!!!

Its time NPR / KCFR did.

Sent by JM Fay | 2:40 PM ET | 08-27-2007

The most lame questioning of Mr. Francisco by Neil Conan on today's show about Mr. Gonzales. Mr. Conan persistently displays his right wing political leanings without any substantial questioning of his guests. Our Department of Justice has become a joke for true justice and Conan/Juan Williams still defending this egregious mockery of justice. Come on NPR - this country needs honest reporting and political pandering must go.

Sent by Betsy Williams | 2:54 PM ET | 08-27-2007

I wonder if the president understood the irony of his statement of support for AG Alberto Gonzales.
"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."
Among the reasons Mr. Gonzales has been the focus of so much criticism is that he dragged the good names of career prosecutors in the Dept. of Justice through the mud for political reasons.

Sent by Beth Mengel | 4:57 PM ET | 08-27-2007

I can understand the use of executive privilege when national security is at stake. If members of the press defy a federal grand jury subpoena, what would happen? Are the terminations of U.S. Attorneys and questionable wiretaps issues involving national security or an administration???s insecurity?

Sent by Wayne Przybylowski | 8:38 PM ET | 08-27-2007

Great show tonight - I thought Daniel Metcalfe, in particular, was quite articulate on the subject of Gonzales and the extent to which he's besmirched the DOJ. One quibble - Metcalfe seemed to portray one of his early colleagues, Attorney General Saxbe, as being "in the club" and implied that he was selected as replacement AG due to his close connections to the Senate and to President Nixon. As Saxbe's granddaughter, I wish to set the record straight - Saxbe was in fact a fairly vocal critic of Nixon, including his handling of the Vietnam War and of Watergate, and was quoted widely in regard to the latter scandal as saying that Nixon "has taken leave of his senses." To imply that he was a Gonzales-style insider is a bit unfair and was probably not Metcalfe's intention. Let's hope the next AG maintains his independence from an increasingly embarrassed and embarrassing administration, as my grandfather sought to do in Nixon's time.

Sent by Darby Saxbe | 1:31 AM ET | 08-28-2007

Ms. Saxbe: You are correct -- by using the phrase "member of the club" I was trying to advert to the Senate's common practice of greatly favoring former senators in the confirmation process. (John Tower, who failed as a Sec Def nominee, was the exception that proved the rule.) I know full well that your grandfather was hardly part of Nixon's inner or even outer circle: When he arrived at the Justice Department in early 1974, many of us there were mindful that Nixon was so desperate for comfirmation of a post-Saturday Night Massacre AG that he went so far as to name someone who so wittily and even more colorfully had observed that "Nixon's stance on Watergate is like the piano player in the lobby of the bordello who swears that he does not know what's going on in the rooms uptstairs." Dan Metcalfe

Sent by Dan Metcalfe | 6:48 AM ET | 09-03-2007

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