Statements on Fired U.S. Attorneys

Some quotes about the controversy involving the fired U.S. attorneys:
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“Again, all political appointees can be removed by the president of the United States for any reason. I stand by the decision, and I think it was a right decision.” — Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.
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“As a general matter, some two years ago, I was made aware that there was a request from the White House as to the possibility of replacing all the United States attorneys. That was immediately rejected by me. I felt that that was a bad idea and it was disruptive.” — Gonzales.
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“If somebody calls you up and says, ‘We have a concern that there may be a failure to investigate possible violations of the law,’ it’s appropriate to pass that on. … You’re not making recommendations, you’re not issuing pressure, you’re not saying, ‘Fire somebody.'” — White House spokesman Tony Snow.
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“As attorney general, he is the defender and protector of the Constitution of the United States. He takes that oath. Before that he was the counsel to the president. Perhaps those lines have blurred in his mind.” — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
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“It appears he is over his head in this job.” — Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.
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“Mr. President, did the attorney general not know that eight U.S. attorneys were to be fired? If he didn’t know, he shouldn’t be attorney general.” — Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.
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“I’m calling on the president of the United States and the attorney general to restore Dan Bogden’s reputation.” — Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., referring to the U.S. attorney in Las Vegas who was dismissed.
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“I guess what really incenses me somewhat is the fact that the attorney general called me and said, you know, I really didn’t have my facts right, that none of this was correct. And now we see it’s a much bigger and grander strategy.” — Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.
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“Americans deserve to know who in the White House is pulling the strings at the Department of Justice, and why.” — Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill.
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“If White House officials ordered this purge, he should have refused them. If they insisted, he should have resigned in protest. Attorney General Gonzales should certainly resign now.” — former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards.
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“By standing behind the politically motivated decision to fire eight U.S. attorneys, the attorney general underscored the fact that this administration will go to any lengths to protect the president instead of the people.” — Ralph G. Neas, president of People for the American Way, a liberal public advocacy group.

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