CBS legal expert Andrew Cohen took to the "Couric & Co." blog to blast Attorney General Alberto Gonzales as a Bush toadie, then turned to law scholars with a history of donating to liberal Democratic candidates to back up his claims.
We’ve indeed got trouble. Few attorneys general in recent history have
been more beholden to their President than Gonzales is to President
George W. Bush. In fact, two years ago, when asked by the Academy of
Achievement to list his role models, Gonzales listed his mother, his
father, and the President as the three people to whom he owed the most.
This would be more charming if the Attorney General had during the past
two years stood up to his hero-- on domestic surveillance, on
Guantanamo Bay, on protecting good federal prosecutors—instead of
simply defending or justifying White House policies and practices.
So, in essence, Cohen asserted that Gonzales has no independent thought on his own because Gonzales failed to act how Cohen thinks he should have. That is, Gonzales is at fault for doing his job: crafting and implementing the president's legal strategy for the war on terror.
Not content to leave his gripe with Gonzales as a matter of personal opinion, Cohen brought in two ostensibly politically neutral legal experts to lend credence to his attack on the attorney general's performance in office: Stanley Kutler of the University of Wisconsin and Stanley Katz of Princeton University.
Cohen was particularly enamored with Katz, quoting him as he closed his March 13 blog post:
"It is not fair to say that we all are agreed upon what the ideal
Attorney General should be. But it is fair to say that Gonzales falls
short of any ideal I can think of."This from a guy who can name
attorneys general in American history like the rest of us can name
members of our family.
So what's the problem? Both Katz ($4,650) and Kutler ($4,950) are heavy donors to liberal Democrats.
Kutler has frequently contributed to the campaigns of liberal Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) and gave $500 to the John Kerry campaign. Katz frequently gave money to liberal Rep. Rush Holt (D-N.J.) and former Sen. Paul Sarbanes (D-Md.), as well as the Democratic National Committee.
Below are Kutler's donations in the past few election cycles, according to OpenSecrets.org...:
KUTLER, STANLEY
VERONA,WI 53593
UW-MADISON
8/7/2002
$1,000
Feingold, Russ
KUTLER, STANLEY
VERONA,WI 53593
UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON
7/31/2003
$500
Feingold, Russell D
KUTLER, STANLEY
VERONA,WI 53593
UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON
9/2/2004
$500
Feingold, Russell D
KUTLER, STANLEY
VERONA,WI 53593
UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN
8/6/1997
$500
Phelps, Richard J
KUTLER, STANLEY
VERONA,WI 53593
UW-MADISON
3/10/1997
$500
Feingold, Russell D
KUTLER, STANLEY
VERONA,WI 53593
UW-MADISON
7/3/1997
$500
Feingold, Russell D
KUTLER, STANLEY
VERONA,WI 53593
UW-MADISON
10/22/1998
$250
Feingold, Russell D
KUTLER, STANLEY
VERONA,WI 53593
UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN
9/26/1996
$250
Soglin, Paul
KUTLER, STANLEY
VERONA,WI 53593
SELF/WRITER
4/19/2004
$250
Baldwin, Tammy
KUTLER, STANLEY
VERONA,WI
10/5/1998
$200
Feingold, Russell D
KUTLER, STANLEY I
VERONA,WI 53593
NOT EMPLOYED/RETIRED
5/27/2004
$500
Kerry, John
...and Katz's donations in the past few election cycles, according to OpenSecrets.org. :
KATZ, STANLEY
PRINCETON,NJ 08540
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY/PROFESSOR
4/28/2006
$250
Sarbanes, John
KATZ, STANLEY
PRINCETON,NJ 08540
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY/PROFESSOR
10/30/2006
$250
Sarbanes, John
KATZ, STANLEY N
PRINCETON,NJ 08540
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY/PROFESSOR
4/18/2002
$500
Holt, Rush
KATZ, STANLEY N
PRINCETON,NJ 08540
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY
5/25/2000
$500
Holt, Rush
KATZ, STANLEY N
PRINCETON,NJ 08540
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY
8/4/2000
$500
Holt, Rush
KATZ, STANLEY N
PRINCETON,NJ 08540
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY
8/14/2000
$250
Arts for America PAC
KATZ, STANLEY N
PRINCETON,NJ 08540
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY
10/2/2000
$250
Holt, Rush
KATZ, STANLEY N
PRINCETON,NJ 08540
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY/PROFESSOR
4/23/2001
$250
Holt, Rush
KATZ, STANLEY N
PRINCETON,NJ 08540
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY/PROFESSOR
10/31/2002
$250
Holt, Rush
KATZ, STANLEY N
PRINCETON,NJ 08540
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY
10/20/1998
$250
Holt, Rush D
KATZ, STANLEY N
PRINCETON,NJ 08540
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY
12/28/1999
$200
Holt, Rush
KATZ, STANLEY N
PRINCETON,NJ 08540
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY/PROFESSOR
12/13/2005
$200
Holt, Rush
KATZ, STANLEY N
PRINCETON,NJ 08540
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY/PROFESSOR
5/19/2006
$200
Holt, Rush
KATZ, STANLEY N
PRINCETON,NJ 08540
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY/PROFESSOR
10/23/2006
$200
Holt, Rush
KATZ, STANLEY N
PRINCETON,NJ 08540
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY/PROFESSOR
4/19/2004
$200
Holt, Rush
KATZ, STANLEY N
PRINCETON,NJ 08540
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY/PROFESSOR
6/22/2001
$200
Holt, Rush
KATZ, STANLEY N MR
PRINCETON,NJ 08540
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY/PROFESSOR
6/11/2004
$200
DNC Services Corp
—Ken Shepherd is Managing Editor of NewsBusters
Editor at Large
Comments Policy
Cohen thinks Mr. uh, Ms. Jan
March 13, 2007 - 18:10 ET by Mean Gene Dr. LoveCohen thinks Mr. uh, Ms. Janet Reno was less beholden to BJ Clinton?
That's a hoot.
To Liberals when Democrat Administrations work together and accomplish their goals it is considered supporting the president. However, when Republican Administrations do the same, the officials are considered (by the Left) as "shills" "puppets" "house-slaves", etc. It is childish and ignorant to think that administration officials' opinions and actions should be different than the president's goals.
8 attorneys isn't earth-shattering. People need to keep in mind that typically 20% of a group of people will provide 80% of the productivity (Pareto's Principle). 8 attorneys isn't even 20%, so they got rid of a few less-productive personnel...life will go on. If an attorney can't find gainful employment (especially outside the government) then he isn't worth hiring. No one wants an unmotivated/non-productive employee...no one.
Gun Safety Tip #8: No matter how responsible he seems, never give your gun to a monkey. (www.imao.us)
"Cohen thinks Mr. uh, M
March 14, 2007 - 01:47 ET by Indiana Joe"Cohen thinks Mr. uh, Ms. Janet Reno was less beholden to BJ Clinton?"
My thoughts exactly, Doc. You just beat me to it by 7+ hours or so, LOL. A hoot, indeed.
Reno is definitely in the running for "Toadiest AG in US History." Vegas odds would have her as the frontrunner, methinks.
I think this is about smear
March 13, 2007 - 18:39 ET by motherbeltI think this is about smearing a Hispanic Attorney General because he is a Republican. To liberals, a "real" Hispanic has to be a Democrat. Any Hispanic in the Bush administration, just like African-Americans Rice and Powell, are considered tokens, who succeed by becoming, in Harry Belafonte's words, "house slaves."
Just a thought......
mother...The unspoken truth f
March 13, 2007 - 18:47 ET by Clear thinkermother...
The unspoken truth for the Dems would be they expect the "real" Hispanic to carry the water and clean the floors for the Dems. They treat them the same way they treat blacks in this country. Go off the reservation and the Dems consider them dog meat!
The liberal MSM has become an enemy of the USA.
Not sure that that is exact
March 13, 2007 - 18:56 ET by Ken ShepherdNot sure that that is exactly the case here. But it doesn't occur to Cohen that Bush picked Gonzales for the job because they have similar views on the law or that Gonzales generally has no qualms with the president's direction in the war on terror.
There's no reason why a president should pick an antagonistic attorney general. Sure, you want an attorney general who won't impede investigations into White House staff, etc., but that's wholly different than having an attorney general who works closely with the president and the president's chief legal counsel to implement the administration's vision for the direction of the Justice Department.
True. I have never seen any b
March 13, 2007 - 19:01 ET by Clear thinkerTrue. I have never seen any boss hire someone that is going to argue with him about his ideas and decisions.
The liberal MSM has become an enemy of the USA.
Or hire someone that will i
March 13, 2007 - 19:31 ET by Ken ShepherdOr hire someone that will intentionally, consistently do so and do so publicly.
Who's to say Gonzales has never had heated discussions with the president before resigning himself to carrying out a policy he might disagree with, but not substantially enough to resign?
That happens all the time in government, in corporate life, and yes, in newsrooms in the mainstream media. It's a part of life. Cohen knows that, he just doesn't seem to care in this instance.
Precisely.First, (and IMO) th
March 13, 2007 - 19:57 ET by BlondePrecisely.
First, (and IMO) the only function of one's job....cover the boss' six at all times. Publicly and privately.
Disagree only in private.
If you're not up to that...find another boss or another place to work.
You mean the President woul
March 13, 2007 - 18:48 ET by dervishYou mean the President would recruit and retain cabinet members who feel a sense of personal loyalty to him? Holy smoke! I bet Gonzalez voted for Bush in the last two elections, too. If that's not corruption and toadyism, then they don't know what it is.
And obviously, they don't.
None of Bill Clinton's appo
March 13, 2007 - 19:43 ET by motherbeltNone of Bill Clinton's appointees were ever accused of being "toadies" for him. When a Democrat President hires like-minded people, it's called teamwork and loyalty; when a Republican does it, it's because he wants "yes men" around so he can bully them.
Democrat (notice the spelli
March 13, 2007 - 19:50 ET by bobthemanDemocrat (notice the spelling) hypocrisy is nauseating. This is going to be a long political season to 2008 and I'm not sure I'm up to it. Someone wake me in Nov 2008 to get to the polls on time.
I'm not sure what Cohen mea
March 13, 2007 - 20:41 ET by radiofitz34I'm not sure what Cohen mean't by "protecting good federal prosecutors". Frankly I think Mr. Cohen made a rather weak arguement. He should have taken a truth pill and said "cause he's a concervative and we don't like him". That I could believe.
Ken if you could tell me the
March 13, 2007 - 22:19 ET by tkeefeKen if you could tell me the answer to this question I would be very greatful. I have heard sooo many times today that the 93 is no big thing. Becouse all presidents do it. Ok my question is this, if you have the abilaty to find out the number of dismisals on a average from previous presidents is normal. This will kill of 1 of their talking points as soon as they drop it on us. And then it will show how irational the for blood over 8 is. Thank You In Advance
You're right. The fact that
March 14, 2007 - 00:34 ET by Ken ShepherdYou're right. The fact that the initial idea was to purge all 93 attorneys and start afresh is something that cuts against the notion that 8 dismissals was some sort of politically-motivated massacre.
Where the controversy is being ginned up is apparently some of the 8 dismissed were given decent if not excellent performance reviews. Couple that with some complaints about them not prosecuting election fraud (particularly in cases that cut against Republican candidates) and you have liberal activists alleging this was some political vendetta.
It's all well and good to report the charges liberal advocates are saying. It's not appropriate to fall in line with those advocates and fail to report all the dimensions of this story.
Ken, the reality is that Clinton's 93 firings was a first.
March 14, 2007 - 12:10 ET by acaiguanaKen, the reality is that Clinton's 93 firings was a first.
It did not follow tradition. Bush has been much more traditional than Clinton's management of Justice.
And then there were all those kids 'saved' by Reno.
What's that?
Oh, yeah, they all died, didn't they?
Except for Gonzales (odd isn't it the name similarity?). He was saved by shipping him to one of the most oppressive countries next to N. Korea in the world.
ACA
...
Quoted from: 'Acaiguana Notes from the Bomb Shelter' (soon to be a movie at theaters near you)
Here is a good summary in Ope
March 13, 2007 - 22:57 ET by bigtimerHere is a good summary in Open Secrets of the contributions these leftists law firms with an agenda give, there is a lot more info if you want to dig further, I just put in Rush Holt, who by the way is is one of the most leftists socialists crazy so-called mad scientists there is in congress...but heck that is another story in itself.
I have and always will detest the piece of shite...he has done everything he possibly can to hurt this country as far as what conservatives believe.
Just in case that didn't work here is the site...http://www.opensecrets.org/industries/indus.asp?Ind=K01
great information. thanks
March 14, 2007 - 11:09 ET by buddycgreat information. thanks