Some highlights of the Gonzales hearings this morning and afternoon.
Arlen Specter signaled that Inherent Contempt is not out of the question for administration members that do not comply with subpoenas. Specter also strongly suggested that Gonzales would be subject to prosecution for perjury if he did not correct his testimony.
The latter specifically relates to testimony Gonzales previously gave about whether or not there was an internal disagreement about the NSA wiretapping program. Alberto’s defense is that his hospital visit to Ashcroft involved another program than the one revealed in the December 2005 New York Times article. Beyond that, he wants to go into executives session before he elaborates.
One of his problems is that both Sens. Feingold and Whitehouse serve on both the Judiciary and the Intelligence Committee. They are both saying that Gonzales’ is full of it. They are both saying that Gonzales perjured himself.
It’s hard to describe how badly Gonzales’ testimony has gone. There are several areas where he has had to basically admit that he misled Congress. For example, he previously testified that he was aware of no serious violations related to the Patriot Act. But he had received extensive reporting about abuses, including misuse of National Security letters by the FBI. His defense is that he is sorry and has tried to make amends.
This is a real test for Republicans. Sens. Kyl and Hatch showed up briefly to throw some softball questions. But after that, the Republicans abandoned the field. Specter has been unmerciful in his criticism.
I honestly don’t know if the Republicans can hold the line after this testimony. And if they can’t they will have a real problem because the Democrats will not confirm a new AG unless the administration turns over the documents they are seeking.
