Gonzales Resigns

buckeye6976 · August 27, 2007

Good thing?

Otto · August 27, 2007

huh?

britbird · August 27, 2007

Absolutely a good thing. The man was completely under qualified for the job and a total drain on the Department. Good riddance.

WifeOHunkyJohn · August 27, 2007

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales Resigns

Monday, August 27, 2007

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales

WASHINGTON — U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has handed in his resignation, FOX News confirmed Monday.

Gonzales was to hold a press conference later in the day. A senior Justice Department official said a temporary replacement for Gonzales could be Solicitor General Paul Clement, who would take over until a permanent replacement was found. Clement and Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff have been floated as possible permanent replacements.

Watch FOX News and FOXNews.com at 10:30 a.m. ET for live coverage of Alberto Gonzales' press conference.

The embattled chief law enforcement officer in the U.S. had been besieged by attacks on his credibility and capability over his handling of the firing of at least eight U.S. prosecutors last year and for statements he made to Congress about the debate over the legality of National Security Agency surveillance programs.

Gonzales on Friday gave his resignation to President Bush, who grudgingly accepted it. The president was traveling to New Mexico, Washington and Nevada on Monday. Gonzales is one of the last members of the administration still around who had been with the president since before Bush was elected governor of Texas in 1994.

Bush has steadfastly held that Gonzales did nothing wrong in the firings or legal decision-making and the probes were merely an attack on the administration for its decisions. But even critics who said Gonzales had done nothing wrong in firing the attorneys argued that the handling of the public relations and his responsiveness to the Senate had raised several concerns.

Career officials also had expressed a loss of confidence in the attorney general.

Sen. Charles Schumer, the Democrat leading the Senate investigations into Gonzales, said the attorney general made the right choice.

"This was long overdue, but thank God it has come. The Department of Justice was virtually non-functioning under the attorney general. It's a wonder he stayed on so long," Schumer, D-N.Y., told FOX News. Schumer said the top problem for Democrats regarding the attorney general is that he "did not put the rule of law first."

"The No. 2 problem is that he didn't competently" run the department, Schumer said.

"I'm glad he's stepping down so the department can move forward with its important work," Sen. Arlen Specter, the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, told FOX News.

Democratic strategist Bob Beckel agreed that the decision was "well overdue."

"The question is, why did he take this long. This bleed has been going on for more than a year," Beckel told FOX News, adding that the nominee to replace Gonzales will face a "contentious" hearing. Beckel predicted that Bush would name a Democrat just to get a nominee through the Democratic-led Senate.

"It would have to be a Democrat who is not a liberal Democrat," said Weekly Standard editor and FOX News contributor Fred Barnes, who doubted the president would pursue that course.

Bush was likely not to wait too long to name a new Justice Department head. Schumer said Democrats "will not obstruct or impede a nominee who we are confident will put the rule of law above political considerations."

He urged the administration to consult Democrats before naming a replacement to serve out the remaining 17 months of Bush's term.

"We're not looking for confrontation. The ideal situation would be for the White House to come and talk to us and say, 'Here are some possibilities. What do you think?'" Schumer said.

FOX News' Wendell Goler and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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