What a Joke!

The Times editorial staff discusses the farcical dog and pony show that was the attorney general hearing yesterday.

Alberto Gonzales, Bush's favorite ass-kissing yes-man - when he wasn't dodging questions that he had months to come up with answers for, he lied or answered questions that weren't asked:

And then he equivocated astonishingly when asked whether American soldiers or intelligence agents could "legally engage in torture under any circumstances."

"I don't believe so, but I'd want to get back to you on that and make sure I don't provide a misleading answer," said Mr. Gonzales

Dude! Did Georgie tell you about it the day before? Jesus, you managed to invite your mom and get your kids the day off from school, couldn't you have pieced together a single fucking torture answer? What, did you think no one would bring it up? Perhaps it's just that he spent as much time preparing as he spent "vetting" Bernie Kerik.

The worst part? He's going to get the job. Who would have thought Bush could come up with anyone worse than Ashcroft? I'm always misunderestimating MonkeyBoy.

Mr. Gonzales is said to face a sure confirmation. But thanks to the members of the committee, including some Republicans, who met their duty to question Mr. Gonzales aggressively, the hearing served to confirm that Mr. Bush had made the wrong choice when he rewarded Mr. Gonzales for his loyalty. The nation deserves an attorney general who is not the public face for inhumane, illegal and clearly un-American policies.

See also:
The Yes Man - Joe Conason
Promoting Torture's Promoter - Bob Herbert

And to broaden the discussion a little, Paul Krugman describes a bad novel that you'd never want to read, but oops! We're living it:

How did we find ourselves living in a bad novel? It was not ever thus. Hypocrites, cranks and scoundrels have always been with us, on both sides of the aisle. But 9/11 created an environment some liberals summarize with the acronym Iokiyar: it's O.K. if you're a Republican.
...

when the Senate confirms Mr. Gonzales, it will mean that Iokiyar remains in effect, that the basic rules of ethics don't apply to people aligned with the ruling party. And reality will continue to be worse than any fiction I could write.