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It's Past Time For Gonzales To Go

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: August 28, 2007

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales resigned Monday, surprising many in Washington who had long wanted him gone.

The president expressed reluctance in accepting his old friend's departure - he leaves Sept. 17 - yet he must feel some relief that his attorney general and confidante knew it was time to go.

Gonzales, the nation's top Hispanic official, had become a political liability. He leaves Washington with little support outside the White House. Criticism of his behind-the-scenes leadership in the war on terror and his management of the Justice Department is well-earned.

Gonzales fed the impression that he politicized the Justice Department. Accused of firing eight U.S. attorneys for political purposes, he appeared before congressional committees on several occasions only to offer half-baked, inept explanations. As the top law enforcement officer in the United States, he displayed a poor memory and an inability to recall details.

While President Bush had every right to fire any prosecutor, Gonzales' crude explanations made the decisions seem driven solely by election-season politics, rather than performance issues.

The Democrats have had fun with the attorney general, calling him everything from disingenuous to incompetent - and those are the nice adjectives.

But Gonzales' sorry public performance has turned even the president's supporters against him.

Bush lamented Monday that Gonzales' effectiveness had been impeded because his 'good name' was 'dragged through the mud.' But Gonzales had survived most of the political attacks, which is why his resignation came as a surprise. Perhaps he could have stayed longer, but his departure frees the White House and the Justice Department to move forward.

Even if Gonzales served his country faithfully, he did not always serve it well. It's past time for him to go.

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