Presidential candidates Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois and Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-New York offer similar comments that the next attorney general should serve the people, not the president as Gonzales has shown. Across the country, several papers ran editorials along the same [head]lines this week: "Cronyism bows out at Justice," by the Boston Globe; "Restore integrity to Justice Dept: Bush must choose a nonpolitical successor" by the Fresno Bee; "Gonzales failed Americans" by the Merced Sun Star; and "Give Justice a lawyer, not a Bush surrogate" by the Palm Beach Post, to name a few.
In response to Gonzales' resignation, President Bush said it was "'sad'" and that the attorney general's name had been "'dragged through the mud for political reasons,'" according to the New York Times. This was something that he did not do when the eight U.S. attorneys were fired last year, despite "glowing performance appraisals," said former U.S. Attorney Daniel Bogden in this Las Vegas Sun report. After being given contradictory explanations for his firing and hearing of Justice officials "using political litmus tests in hiring," Bogden realized that "'I didn't want to work under the leadership.'"
With the presidential primaries around the corner, it is imperative that Americans are aware of their voting rights and how those rights have been manipulated by a politicized Justice Department. Above all, restoration of the Justice Department and American confidence in elections is crucial to a fair democracy. We've provided links below on Gonzales and related voting issues.
Quick Links:
"Remarks of Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales Announcing His Resignation." DOJ. August 27, 2007.In Other News:
"Alberto Gonzales: A timeline of events." USA Today. August 27, 2007.
"The Politics of Voter Fraud." Project Vote. March 2007.
Arizona's proof-of-citizenship requirement to register and vote has been ruled constitutional, despite claims that the law is, in effect, an illegal poll tax that discriminates against minority groups. Read more in the Arizona Daily Star and at Project Vote's website.
In other Arizona news, Solicitor General Mary O'Grady is defending the state's rigorous felon disenfranchisement law, which the ACLU contends to be improper. The state requires one-time felons to complete their sentence and pay a restitution to regain voting rights. Those who are convicted of at least two felonies are automatically. About 4.3% of the state is disenfranchised as a result of Arizona law. Read more in the Arizona Daily Sun.
Erin Ferns is a Research and Policy Analyst with Project Vote's Strategic Writing and Research Department (SWORD)
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