It's been a long and tiring road for the eight US attorneys fired last year for political reasons. Alberto Gonzales announcing his resignation yesterday, news outlets across the country called up the former prosecutors at the center of the scandal to find out what they were thinking.
Inside you'll find a sampling of their comments. Needless to say, they don't go easy on the soon-to-be Former Attorney General.
Emphases are all mine.
David Iglesias, who also said the investigation is far from over, given questions that remain about the involvement of other political figures, such as New Mexico Senator Pete Domenici and Rep. Heather Wilson:
"He should have done this a long time ago," Iglesias said of Gonzales' resignation.
"He should have stayed as White House counsel, because the White House counsel's job is to protect the president and give him political advice. But the job of the U.S. attorney general is law enforcement," said Iglesias. "He never understood the core mission of his job as attorney general.
"Some things have happened that shows his lack of understanding. Sometimes his job is to tell the White House, `No, you can't do that,' and his natural default was to say `yes.' "
Bud Cummins:
...I felt relieved for the department, because I think this will give them the opportunity to move forward and restore themselves to the dignified institution that it has hopefully been historically....
...It's just a matter of understanding that there's gonna be times where you have to push back from the political people and say no, and you have to be prepared to weather that storm. If you're not prepared for that, then you shouldn't accept the job.
Paul Charlton:
"He's doing the right thing," Charlton told The Associated Press. "Although it might be a bit belated, it is a good thing for the Department of Justice, and it's an opportunity for those career professionals to begin to focus on what is important, and that is the administration of justice."
John McKay:
"I think it's a tremendous relief to people in the Justice Department that he is resigning because he has been an embarrassment to them," McKay said....
McKay said Gonzales' problem was that he was more interested in loyalty to the president than advancing the rule of law. "He remarked to us -- in his first speech to the U.S. attorneys -- that we worked for the White House, stunned all of us."...
...McKay said he was "sad" about Gonzales' resignation. "This isn't a happy day for me. I am pleased for my colleagues that are still serving because they want to focus on law enforcement. I had high hopes for Alberto Gonzales and he has disappointed me tremendously."
