TIME: Why Gonzales Finally Caved

[seafan]

Why Gonzales Finally Caved

By MASSIMO CALABRESI
August 27, 2007



Attorney General Alberto Gonzales speaks at a news maker event in Washington, in this May 15, 2007, file photo. Bush administration officials say Gonzales will announce his resignation, Monday, Aug. 27, 2007.
Ron Edmonds / AP

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Better to make the move now, the White House figured, than wait for Congress to return and perhaps renew its campaign to oust Gonzales. "You're not going to make a decision with the tip of a bayonet in your face," says a former senior official.

Some White House watchers are pointing to another factor in Gonzales's departure: the resignation earlier this month of Bush's longtime adviser, Karl Rove. Rove had argued that letting Gonzales go would only make matters worse for Bush in the final months of his presidency. "Karl has concerns about a confirmation process where Democrats will try to exploit unfairly that process," says the former senior Administration official. But that official and others say Rove's departure had nothing to do with Bush's decision to accept Gonzales' resignation.

Rove's concerns are not unfounded: Both camps on Capitol Hill saw Gonzaels's departure as an opportunity to dial up the spin to please their respective bases. Texas Senator John Cornyn lamented that the departure would "lead to more posturing and more controversy" in Congress as the Senate debates whomever Bush nominates as a successor. And hints that Gonzales's tenure at Justice may be at the center of a confirmation battle have already emerged in statements from key Democrats.

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Nevertheless, key players in the Administration felt that Gonzales's continued presence in the cabinet was a drag on the department and the White House during a key period of vulnerability for the President, eating up what little political capital the President has to spend on the Hill. For his part, Gonzales was growing increasingly frustrated that issues he cared about, such as stopping gang violence and combating child pornography, have been overshadowed by the controversy surrounding him.

Now is the time to pour on the pressure to Congress to examine in excruciating detail how Alberto Gonzales has systematically dismantled the Rule Of Law.

This must NOT be allowed to fade into oblivion now that he has skipped off into the Texas sunset.

[TwilightGardener]

1. Face-saving maneuver, to resign during recess. A coward to the end.

[Robbien]

2. Time just water carrying for Bush. All the standard talking points

Boring.

[eppur_se_muova]

3. Um, just how low can that "political capital" get ?

Sorta reminds of a time when the Saudi kingship changed hands ... the new king sent an urgent request to find out much money was left in the royal treasury, fearing the kingdom was down to its last million or two ...

The return message: 29 riyals.