Washington, DC – Today, Reps. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Artur Davis (D-AL) introduced a resolution expressing no confidence in the performance of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and urging the President to request his resignation. Reps. Schiff and Davis, both former federal prosecutors, drafted the resolution in response to failures of Attorney General Gonzales to adequately and properly manage the Department of Justice. Recent Congressional testimony and news reports have chronicled Attorney General Gonzales’ inappropriate handling of the firings of U.S. Attorneys, inconsistent statements and testimony on key matters, and lack of appropriate independence from the White House that has seriously called into question his ability to administer justice in a fair, impartial and nonpartisan manner.
“I have been deeply disappointed in Mr. Gonzales mismanagement of the Justice Department, his conflicting statements and testimony, and the low regard he seems to have for the professionals in his charge. America needs an Attorney General who acts in an impartial, judicious and nonpartisan fashion, and who places the interests of justice above all else. Regrettably, I do not feel Mr. Gonzales fits the bill," said Rep. Schiff. “The Department is broken, and it is clear to me that he is not the one to fix it.”
“Congressman Schiff and I firmly believe that the institutional integrity of the Department of Justice has been substantially weakened by attorney general Gonzales’ leadership of that department,” said Congressman Davis. “The termination of United States attorneys for crassly political motives is the latest and most acute example of a pattern of unacceptable leadership A Congressional vote of no confidence would send an unmistakable signal that a change is vital at the Department of Justice.”
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