Leahy to Gonzales: Answers, Please

Just a taste of what’s to come.

In a letter today to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales (who’s doggedly preparing for his upcoming testimony), Senate Judiciary Chairman Pat Leahy (D-VT) scolded Gonzales for failing to respond to prior questions from the committee and requested that Gonzales prepare a written statement in advance of his April 17 hearing. Leahy said the statement should include “a full and complete account of the development of the plan to replace United States Attorneys, and all the specifics of your role in connection with this matter.”

Leahy also not so subtly rebuked Gonzales and the administration for publicly complaining about the late hearing date; the White House has said they want it “sooner rather than later” to “get the facts.” Leahy wrote: “As you will recall, my staff had requested earlier dates…, but you had declined those offers.”

And after detailing Gonzales’ failures in providing answers to written questions from the committee — sometimes ignoring questions for as long as six months — Leahy concluded:

You would not tolerate this kind of response time in a Justice Department investigation where months go by without answers and when those answers are finally provided they are outdated or superseded by events. That is not conducive to effective oversight.