Gonzales’ GOP Support Fading While Bush’s Support Remains Firm

Increasingly, it looks as if it’s now Attorney General Alberto Gonzales Versus the Democrats Versus many of the Repubicans. But there’s one factor that could keep him in office:

President George W. Bush’s continued support.

Once again Bush is digging in his heels on a decision and in this case he’s swatting aside the concerns — and a clamor — from members of his own political party. The prospect: Gonzales remaining in office with little widespread legitimacy due to a growing perception that he is either a political hack who has not been truthful in earlier statements to Congres or one of the most inept out-of-his-depth attorney generals in American history. The AP:

Desperate for support among fellow Republicans, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales faced grim prospects Friday after a bruising Senate hearing that produced one outright call for resignation and a fistful of invitations and hints to quit.

One GOP member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, John Cornyn of Texas, predicted Gonzales would weather the furor and said he should. “Frankly, I don’t think the Democrats are going to be satisfied with the resignation by Al Gonzales,” he said.

Gonzales gave no indication Friday that he was leaving.

It’s one more instance of a style of politics that rejects the idea of consensus. In this case, the Democrats and a segment of Republicans want Gonzales to leave. But rather than pick from any number of qualified people in the United States who are Republicans and who could serve in the post — and make a fresh start in terms of credibility and clout — Bush is sticking with his choice…because he has the power to do so. And Gonzales (as always) is going along with Bush.

One of the most interesting aspects of this currrent controversy (the Bush administration is one that seeming offers Americans The Controversy Of The Week) is that while the administration’s most loyal political and talk-show defenders paint this as strictly a partisan desire for Gonzales to leave to spend more time with his family it most assuredly is not. The Washington Post:

President Bush yesterday stood by his embattled friend, Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, defying the broad bipartisan consensus emerging in Washington after this week’s Senate hearing that Gonzales has so badly damaged his own credibility that he should resign.

Bush expressed “full confidence” in Gonzales through a spokeswoman and praised his “fantastic” service, in hopes of quashing speculation that the attorney general would be pushed out. But a wide array of Republicans described Gonzales with phrases such as “dead man walking,” and even some White House aides privately voiced hope that he will step down on his own.

The continuing erosion of Republican support suggested that Gonzales lost ground during a day of often-hostile questioning by the Senate Judiciary Committee, rather than repairing the damage caused by the dismissal of eight U.S. attorneys. Nearly every committee Republican appeared skeptical of Gonzales’s handling of the firings and their aftermath. Telephone calls yesterday to dozens of GOP lawmakers, lobbyists, and current and former Bush administration officials found almost no support for the attorney general.

“Congressional confidence in his ability has eroded severely,” said Rep. Adam H. Putnam (Fla.), the third-ranking House Republican leader, who yesterday became the latest to call for Gonzales’s resignation. “There is widespread concern among my colleagues about the leadership shown by the attorney general. . . . This has now reached the point where it’s larger than any one man.”

Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), a Judiciary Committee member, said Gonzales should “have a frank discussion with the White House,” adding: “If he and the president decide that he cannot be an effective leader moving forward, then he should resign. As he said during the hearing, ‘It’s not about Al Gonzales.’ The bottom line is that he must do what is in the best interest of the Department of Justice.”

Bush traditionally has bristled at pressure to dismiss advisers under fire, particularly those close to him, such as Gonzales, a longtime confidant from Texas. When he has eased out top officials, he has usually dictated the timing so as not to appear to be caving in to critics. Giving in, he has reasoned, would only embolden his foes to seek more scalps.

But, the Post notes, the fact in this case is that many in the White House want Gonzales to go — but it is Bush who is turning this into an almost classic “power struggle,” somewhat akin to when a little kid and a parent battle and the real issue isn’t really the behavior but rather who has the power to prevail. In this case, Bush is seemingly holding his breath until the face of the political landscape turns blue…

It’s one more instance where Bush — unlike most Presidents in U.S. history — is displaying a seeming contempt for the feelings of members of Congress…even from his own party. Sticking to your guns can be a virtue unless everyone (including your friends) warns you that your guns are aimed at your foot.

“Everybody at the White House . . . all think he needs to go, but the president doesn’t,” said a Republican who consulted the Bush team yesterday. Another White House ally said Bush and Gonzales are ignoring reality: “They’re the only two people on the planet Earth who don’t see it.” A third Republican intimately familiar with sentiment inside the White House said the hope is that Gonzales will leave on his own. “At some point, he’ll figure out that it’s not a sustainable situation,” the Republican said.

Rumors were swirling on the Internet yesterday that Gonzales could resign soon. And while anything could happen, the best advice to pundits would be: don’t hold your breath.