One more Bush crony leaves, new opportunity emerges

It is Rove's departure that perhaps put the writing on the wall for Gonzales, who also quickly rose through ranks after getting together with Bush in Texas. In sticking with Gonzales, Bush was seen as trying to protect Rove, who last year was said to be behind the dismissal of eight U.S. attorneys -- including San Francisco's Kevin Ryan. With Rove gone, there was less need to protect Gonzales.

Though the dismissal of the attorneys and the convuluted reasoning given behind them was the most recent misstep, it could have surely been the most forgivable. After all, it was Democrat Bill Clinton who dismissed every U.S. attorney without reason when he was president. It is clear that the United States' chief executive has the inititiave to dismiss U.S. attorneys as he or she pleases, but it was the way Gonzales dodged questions on the rationale that seemed to pique the most ire in Washington. During congressional hearings on the firings, Gonzales said "I don't know" and "I have no recollection" more than 100 times.

Granted, the tug of war over Gonzales was a tug of war between the new Democrats in power and the White House with the congressional GOP staying on the sidelines. Conservatives had little to say in support of Gonzales because of his soft stances on abortion and affirmative action in addition to his support of the prosecution of two border patrol agents for shooting a suspected drug dealer. From the left, he was bashed for telling Congress Bush could eavesdrop without warrants on Americans as part of the war on terror, excessive secrecy as he urged the end of anti-torture laws that was seen as a precursor to the scandal of Abu Ghraib and his overall caginess regarding the unexplained U.S. attorney firings.

Gonzales was not the only lightning rod produced by the Bush administration and some could contend that he was unfairly targeted by new Democratic leadership flexing its power, but his quick rise and fierce loyalty to a Bush and his administration ultimately sealed his fate. Now, the talk of impeachment will end and the discussion will soon turn to who will be Gonzales' replacement for the next few months. Clearly, Bush will likely avoid a recess appointment since someone with similar beliefs will not pass congressional muster. And although this may be too much to wish for in the highly charged political environment of the Beltway, but it is necessary and important for a quick and thorough approval of a new attorney general who can bring stability to the office while recognizing that the consolidation of the power in the executive branch is not its primary goal.