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Senate Democrats Thursday called for a special counsel to investigate whether Attorney General Alberto Gonzales perjured himself during congressional testimony. Calling it a “sad moment,” Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) blasted what he categorized as the attorney general’s inability to answer questions in a straightforward manner. “The attorney general took an oath to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth,” Schumer told reporters. “Instead, he tells the half-truth, the partial truth and everything but the truth. And he does it not once, and not twice, but over and over and over again. His instinct is not to tell the truth but to dissemble and deceive.” Schumer, with Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), are asking Department of Justice (DoJ) Solicitor General Paul Clement to appoint a special counsel to determine whether statements Gonzales made before Congress were false. Schumer pointed to several instances as potential offenses, including testimony Gonzales gave on whether there was internal dissent over a warrantless wiretapping program. The New York senator believes that two statements Gonzales made with regard to the program may be false. Schumer noted other instances where the attorney general’s sworn testimony differed from that of others. “He testified that he hadn’t talked to witnesses about the U.S. attorney investigation, but [former Justice Department White House liaison Monica Goodling] testified that she had a conversation with the attorney general that made her uncomfortable,” Schumer said. “He also testified in 2005 that there were no abuses of the Patriot Act,” the senator added. “We have now learned that when he made those statements, the attorney general knew about a number of failures to protect rights under the Patriot Act.” The group has the support of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) in its quest to find an investigator from outside the Justice Department to probe the charges made against Gonzales. The White House continued to stand by its attorney general. Asked whether there were discrepancies between Gonzales’s testimony and documents and statements by others, White House spokesman Tony Snow said, “The attorney general was speaking consistently.” “The president supports him,” Snow told reporters aboard Air Force One. “I think at some point this is going to be something where members are going to have to go behind closed doors and have a fuller discussion of the issues.” |
