Attorney General Alberto Gonzales appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee today. He needs a cold shower after the grilling he received. First he got the soft touch from Orin Hatch “lauding his extreme integrity and diligence” WTF?
Then the grilling began from Senator Feingold on TSA, Terrorists Surveillance Program and FISA. Caught by Glenn Greenwald
“The Grave and Epic War – Spending time with Alberto Gonzales, Orin Hatch and Russ Feingold”
In an exchange is this weird reply from Gonzales:
Feingold’s first question – “do you know of any one in the country who opposed eavesdropping on terrorists?”
Gonzales: Sure – if you look at blogs today, there is a lot of concern about all types of eavesdropping, who don’t want us eavesdropping at all.
Feingold: Do you know anyone in government who ever took that position?
Gonzales: No, but that is not what I said.
Feingold: It is a disgrace and disservice to your office and the President to have accused people on this Committee of opposing eavesdropping on terrorists.
Gonzales: I didn’t have you in mind or anyone on the Committee when I referred to people who oppose eavesdropping on terrorists. Perish the thought.
Feingold: Oh, well it’s nice that you didn’t have us “in your mind” when making those accusations, but given that you and the President were running around the country accusing people of opposing eavesdropping on terrorists in the middle of an election, the fact that you didn’t have Congressional Democrats in “mind” isn’t significant.
Your intent was to make people think that anyone who opposed the “TSP” did not want to eavesdrop on terrorists, even though that was false. No Democrats oppose eavesdropping on terrorists.Gonzales: I wasn’t referring to Democrats.
(emphasis added)
Hmmm, Good to know Gonzales reads the blogs and that we’re under watch. You know what am saying? BEWARE!
That was just the warm-up of his grilling. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales got BBQed, Well Done and crispy. Senator Patrick Leahy at this point is joined by Senator Dianne Feinstein.
Laura Rozen caught some of this segment on the US attorneys that were pressured to resign:
10:45am: Sen. Feinstein, a member of both the Judiciary and Intel committees, now up. How many US attorneys have been asked to resign in the past year?
Gonzales: You know…. I don’t know the answer to that question. …. We gave you a lot of information in the letter Tuesday. …
Feinstein: I know of at least six who have been asked to resign. I know we amended the Patriot Act…We did not amend it to prevent the confirmation process from taking place. I have had two of them asked to resign from my state with substantially good records as prosecutors, and I am very concerned. Because technically under the Patriot Act you can appoint someone without confirmation for the remainder of the President’s term.
Gonzales: No evidence that is what I am trying to do. […]
Feinstein: Was there any other reason to ask Bud Cummings of Arkansas to resign other than to put [former RNC opposition researcher and Rove aide] Tim Griffin in?
Gonzales: (won’t say). . . .
Leahy: Would it be possible during lunch to get the numbers Sen. Feinstein asked for?
Gonzales: I don’t want to have a public discussion about personnel decisions…..
Leahy: Just the numbers . . .
But the fire to Gonzales’ feet was to come when Sen. Leahy turned to torture and the Canadian Maher Arar case. Leahy showed his anger. He was scathing and gave Gonzales ONE week, saying:
U.S. ‘knew damn well’ Arar would be tortured”
WATCH VIDEO via C&L HERE
From the CBC
“Gonzales was grilled relentlessly on Thursday by Senate judiciary committee chairman Patrick Leahy.
Leahy said that when Arar — a citizen of both Canada and Syria travelling on a Canadian passport — was detained in 2002, American authorities knew he would be tortured if they deported him to Syria.
“We knew damn well if he went to Canada he wouldn’t be tortured,” said Leahy, a Democrat from Vermont. “He’d be held and he’d be investigated.
“We also knew damn well if he went to Syria, he’d be tortured. And it’s beneath the dignity of this country — a country that has always been a beacon of human rights — to send somebody to another country to be tortured.
“You know and I know that has happened a number of times in the past five years by this country. It is a black mark on us.”
Leahy noted that U.S. officials claimed to have had assurances that people sent to Syria would not be tortured.
“Assurances,” he snorted, “from a country that we also say now that we can’t talk to them because we can’t take their word for anything.” Gonzales was not attorney general in 2002 but drafted some of the administration’s justifications for harsh interrogation practices in combating terrorism.
He promised the committee a briefing on the Arar case. It was not immediately clearly whether the information would be made public.
“Before you get more upset,” he told Leahy, “perhaps you should wait to receive the briefing.”
“How long?” the senator responded.
“I’m hoping that we can get you the information next week.”
(emphasis added)
NPR, All Things Considered aired an interview with Senator Leahy.. In short he was still fuming. Leahy is not satisfied and notes the administration did an abrupt U-turn on the NSA wire taps. He has asked the FISA court judge to release records. “No one is above the law and that includes the president” said Leahy. So Stay tuned.
Some BBQ.
Guess Mr. Gonzales saw this coming when he pre-announced Bush would now seek court warrants. But don’t be fooled. Leahy isn’t buying. There are those National Security letters.
so what are national security letters?
The Pentagon has been using a little-known power to obtain banking and credit records of hundreds of Americans and others suspected of terrorism or espionage inside the United States, part of an aggressive expansion by the military into domestic intelligence gathering.
(H/T cursor.org)
Is this replaying on any of the C-SPANS?
Unless I am misreading this schedule it will be rebroadcast at 11:22 tonight on C-Span.
just that CNN clip link at C&L. NPR had a clip on hourly news. So does CBC radio in Canada. C-Span not listed to replay. C-Span 2 now live on budget matters. It was quite the day.
Thanks for dropping by.
of Leahy …
I was moved to tears on the drive home when I heard the audio clip …
To finally hear someone w/ the same anger as I have question those responsible for what happened to Arar.
Here’s the online link to the CBC’s story: U.S. ‘knew damn well’ Arar would be tortured: senator.
Stockwell Day (Canadian Public Safety Minister), who met w/ Chertoff today was also quoted as saying he had reviewed Arar’s file held by US and it contains nothing that would indicate he should be on that list.
And this is Chertoff’s advice, if you can fucking believe it:
Can you believe that?
Thanks for the additional link to CBC. On November 8th, Senator Leahy was gushing – couldn’t wait to get back to Washington, D.C.
These evil weasels should be scared.
Leahy is serious about that 1 week deadline. Unless Gonzo returns with a “Oh, Senator, I forgot our lips are sealed because of Arar’s lawsuit is pending – we can’t provide the info.”
Bullshit. Recall the administration’s refusal to provide any info to the Canadian inquiry. Arar and his under-age children, wife and babies still on the US Terror List even after being cleared by a Judiciary Commission appointed by the Canadian government. That’s part of the reason the grilling today is being widely reported by CBC and other Canadian media.
The RCMP chief resigned. More heads will roll. Not directly linked to Arar but all the other torture cases for BushCheneyChertoffGonzo, there’ll be a Pinochet moment ahead. In your lifetime.
Living in ottawa, it’s very much front and centre.
And regarding your last sentence, I hope so.
Interesting, that Chertoff claim the Arar case it’s kind of a hypothetical issue.
Perhaps Condi’s Memo has not reached his desk. Stuck in an undelivered Santa stocking. Condi promised the Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Peter McKay just before Christmas that she would have the homeland security chief review the case.
I give this administration credit. They’ve honed their skills on digging in their heels.
If Gonzales thinks he is going to put anything over on the Judiciary committee, he is dead wrong. He is overmatched intellectually by every Democrat (I don’t know enough about Cardin and Whitehouse, but all the others) and at least 2 of the Republicans.
ej, Here’s what I know about Sen Cardin: he moved up from the House, and his wife calls him “My Benji.” From his biog, he represented Maryland’s 3rd CD from 1987-2006.
When Sen Whitehouse was campaigning against former Sen Lincoln Chaffee, his background was described as being as eminent as Chaffee’s. From his website, he served as US Atty from 1994-1998, was elected Rhode Island’s Atty General and served in that office from 1999-2003.
This started as “smiley face” type comments, but I couldn’t resist checking out their websites. Both of these new senators have strong backgrounds in health care provision, from what I noticed just now.
when he’s pissed or believes someone is lying to him. He gets really red in the face and calls a liar a liar. I remember him getting really pissed during hearings I believe about tne Bolton confirmation. I hope he stays on Abu Gonzales.
I caught only the last minutes of the hearing this morning, but newly-elected Sen Whitehouse was into it with Gonzales: responsive versus evasive answers from the AG and what can be done about getting him to be responsive. They agreed to meet privately.
In a wrap-up, Leahy mentioned that Whitehouse is a former US Attorney, and this is one outstanding example of the type of public-interest fighter that the Bush justice dept is eliminating from the states. A good example of why Leahy is co-sponsoring with Sen Feinstein to get the Patriot Act provision changed.
Hope this hearing is reaired again.
I was impressed, too.
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse will be a huge asset for the committee. He is energetic, sharp, and uses his time well, laying the ground to put executive witnesses on the spot.
He got Gonzales to admit that
(1) mostly, an executive witness’s word should be taken as if it were under oath;
(2) the committee chair is in a similar position to a judge in cutting to the chase with a bob ‘n’ weaving witness, and directing the witness to give a responsive answer;
(3) Gonzales doesn’t have any written general instructions that he supplies the executive witnesses he counsels prior to Congressional hearings.
Have just e-mailed Sen Schumer to suggest that as the DSCC head, he might look for possible 2008 Senate candidates from among these “deposed” US Attys.
Thanks for listing the points here, and in the thread below. I turned on the radio rebroadcast today, but heard only the portion in which Sen Leahy got so angry. I’ll check the links below.
Written testimony is available via the Senate Judiciary Committee website. Leahy’s is here. He accused the Justice Department of being complicit in Bush’s policies, including Bush’s signing statements and Administration refusal to answer oversight questions.
Leahy and others feel the Bush U-turn on wiring tapping was an affront, an 11th -hour ploy to avoid congressional scrutiny. Leahy isn’t buying.
Who is ABu Gonzo and Bush kidding?