Political Skullduggery

Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales was not very forthcoming in yesterday's testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee. I wouldn't be either if I was attempting to protect myself and my boss from allegations of illegality.

A curious aspect of his reticence was the way he danced around the question of whether there are any other "extra-legal" spying programs being conducted by the administration that haven't leaked yet.

Has President Bush, invoking his "inherent powers" under the Constitution, also authorized warrantless eavesdropping on domestic calls, opening of Americans' mail and e-mail, and searches of their homes and offices?

"I am not comfortable going down the road of saying yes or no as to what the president has or has not authorized," Gonzales, shifting frequently in his chair, informed the senators.

Nice.

I have a feeling that Gonzales was, as his boss calls it, "disassembling."

Gonzales chose his words carefully, frequently limiting his answers to "this program" or to "the program the president has confirmed." At one point he said senior Justice Department officials, whose concerns about the program contributed to a temporary halt in surveillance in 2004, did not raise objections to the program he was discussing.

A department official said after the testimony that Gonzales was not implying that any other program existed.

Senator Arlen "magic bullet" Specter, after refusing to swear in the witness, later inadvertently referred to the stereotype that all Hispanics smoke questionable substances:

When Gonzales argues that the Constitution gives the president undisputable powers to conduct warrantless surveillance despite a statute aimed at requiring him to seek court approval, such an interpretation "is not sound," Specter said in the interview. ". . . He's smoking Dutch Cleanser."

That is simply wrong.

Arlen knows full well that at the pay grade of the Attorney General, Gonzales could surely afford good bud.