No. 2 Official At Justice Dept. To Resign

Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty Is Leaving Amid Controversy Concerning Fired Prosecutors

(CBS/AP)  Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty said Monday he will resign, becoming the highest-ranking Bush administration casualty in the furor over the firing of U.S. attorneys.

McNulty, who has served 18 months as the Justice Department's second-in-command, announced his plans at a closed-door meeting of U.S. attorneys in San Antonio. He told them he would remain at the department until late summer or until the Senate approves a successor, aides said.

He also sent a one-page letter of resignation to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, whose own job has been put in jeopardy by the firings and their aftermath.

"The financial realities of college-age children and two decades of public service lead me to a long overdue transition in my career," McNulty said in the letter, which did not mention the firings controversy.

Neither did Gonzales, in a responding statement that praised McNulty as "a dynamic and thoughtful leader."

"Paul is an outstanding public servant and a fine attorney who has been valued here at the department, by me and so many others, as both a colleague and a friend," Gonzales said.

McNulty has been considering leaving for months, and aides said he never intended to serve more than two years as deputy attorney general. But his ultimate decision to step down, the aides said, was hastened by anger at being linked to the prosecutors' purge that Congress is investigating to determine if eight U.S. attorneys were fired for political reasons.

The aides spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk publicly about McNulty's decision.

McNulty also irked Gonzales by testifying in February that at least one of the fired prosecutors was ordered to make way for a protege of Karl Rove, President Bush's chief political adviser. Gonzales, who has resisted lawmakers' calls to resign, maintains the firings were proper, and rooted in the prosecutors' lackluster performances.

McNulty is the third top Justice official to leave in recent months, reports CBS News correspondent Bob Orr. Gonzales' liaison to the White House, Monica Goodling, and his chief of staff, Kyle Sampson, have also resigned. Gonzales has repeatedly pledged to keep fighting and says he has no intention of resigning.

"It seems ironic that Paul McNulty, who at least tried to level with the committee, goes while Gonzales, who stonewalled the committee, is still in charge," said Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

McNulty's resignation is expected to be the start of significant turnover at the department, particularly within the office he heads. Possible replacements for McNulty, according to several Justice officials, include Kevin O'Connor, the U.S. attorney in Connecticut, who also serves now as Gonzales' staff chief; Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Wainstein; and Susan Brooks, top prosecutor in Indiana, who is vice chair of the attorney general's advisory committee.

It's unclear what McNulty will do after he leaves the Justice Department, where he has held several high-ranking posts in current Bush administration and that of former President George H.W. Bush.

McNulty also served more than four years as the U.S. attorney in suburban Alexandria, Va., a position he took three days after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks and one he frequently described as "one of the greatest jobs you can ever have."

Much of McNulty's focus as U.S. attorney was on terrorism cases, including the conviction of Zacarias Moussaoui, who admitted to conspiring with the Sept. 11 hijackers but was spared the death penalty.

But it was his dealings with his former fellow U.S. attorneys that accelerated McNulty's resignation.

McNulty was in charge of overseeing the nation's 93 U.S. attorneys and attended numerous meetings about the firings — both at the Justice Department and the White House, including at least one that Rove attended.

On Feb. 6, McNulty told a Senate panel that at least one of the ousted prosecutors was asked to leave without cause — Bud Cummins in Little Rock, Ark., who was told to resign so that Tim Griffin, a former aide to Rove and the Republican National Committee, could take his place.

McNulty also told Congress that the decision to fire the eight U.S. attorneys in December was made solely by the Justice Department. He was furious, aides said, after learning later that Sampson had discussed the potential firings with the White House since at least January 2005.

Gonzales maintains the firings were needed to replace underperforming U.S. attorneys, and has disagreed with McNulty's testimony that Cummins had been fired for any other reason.

"The attorney general is extremely upset with the stories on the US Attys this morning," Justice spokesman Brian Roehrkasse wrote in a Feb. 7 e-mail after McNulty testified. "He also thought some of the DAG's statements were inaccurate."

Gonzales and Sampson's lawyer have both said McNulty should have been well aware of the circumstances surrounding the firings. In his own Senate testimony last month, Gonzales indicated he trusted his most senior aides, including McNulty, to decide which prosecutors would be asked to resign.

"It was to be a group of officials, including the deputy attorney general, who were much more knowledgeable than I about the performance of each U.S. attorney," Gonzales said.

However, e-mails released by the department show McNulty was not intimately involved in all of the choices and at one point questioned the dismissal of U.S. Attorney Daniel Bogden in Nevada.

"I'm a little skittish about Bogden," McNulty wrote in a Dec. 7 e-mail to Sampson. He concluded: "I'll admit have not looked at his district's performance. Sorry to be raising this again/now; it was just on my mind last night and this morning."

McNulty is a longtime GOP loyalist who was spokesman for House Judiciary Committee Republicans during the impeachment of President Clinton and later directed the transition team for the new Bush administration's Justice Department.

Earlier this year, he scaled back tough department tactics that aimed to curb corporate fraud after the Enron-era scandals. The so-called "McNulty Memo" limited prosecutors' ability to obtain confidential data from corporations without first receiving written approval from the department.

McNulty also led Justice Department crackdowns on military contracts, most notably in Iraq, that were awarded or otherwise pushed by bribed officials. His interest in those cases largely stemmed from his tenure as U.S. attorney, where his office had criminal oversight of the Pentagon.

A native of Pittsburgh, McNulty is married and has four children.

[pussylib]

GONZO rules!!

[wfbdem]

If you average in the republican approval rating, then the average drops to 29%. If you look at them separate:
Dems 51%
Reps 7%

Average= 29%

[stick130]

Sir Bob,, Please tell us sheep what to do next? I voted for them before I wished I didn't! LOL ,, Get use to it the New Congress will be there a long time. The Republicon's sealed the "Deal"

[realpatriot1]

b48151,

You can get all excited about the 29% approval rating for Congress and interpret that as a blow to Democratic leadership if you want.

Personally, I don't approve of Congress either..there's just too many Republican obstructionists still there killing legislation, along with their fake Dem stalking horses like Lie ber man.

It's early in the change of leadership process and the Dems have plenty of time to top the republicans 12 year record of failure before you all can pop the champagne. Any damage to the democrats is temporary; the GOP's is permanent.

[bobnjersey]

[Congress approval rating down to 29%..Apparently surrender and not funding our troops is not the will of the American people.... ]
[Posted by b48151 at 11:42 AM : May 15, 2007]

either that or those that were polled have no idea what 'congress' even is ... let's see ... is that the senate ... or what's the other thing called ... hmmm ... oh yea ... the house of representatives ... how many of those are there again ... ahhhhh ... and how many senators ... not sure ... and forget about process ... like majority ... or super majority ... or filibuster.

the american public are stupid idiots who are too busy watching american idol and downloading ringtones to know even 'what' to approve or disappove of.

ask them how many us military casualties there were in april '07 ... anyone who can't get within 20 has no opinion worth repeating.

[king77shaw]

this is the worst administration in US history - we're watching the new, true face of the Republican party destroy America, the middle class and America's historic role as world leader.

[forthepeopl1]

MOSCOW (Reuters) - The United States will not permit Russia to veto its plans to build a missile defense shield in Europe, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said in the Russian capital on Tuesday.

"The United States needs to be able to move forward to use technology to defend itself and we're going to do that," Rice told reporters after meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"I don't think that anyone expects the United States to permit somehow a veto on American security interests."

IN OTHER WORDS MORE MONEY,MORE MONEY FOR RICE,CHENEY,BUSH,ROVE,RUMSFELD..

SHE HAS B/A/L/L/S/ THE SIZE OF A ELEPHANT..I THINK SHE IS A TRANSEXUAL??????

[tejasdemo]

Another crook back to the book circuit. See ya on Larry King. Lol

[forthepeopl1]

MOSCOW (Reuters) - The United States will not permit Russia to veto its plans to build a missile defense shield in Europe, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said in the Russian capital on Tuesday.

"The United States needs to be able to move forward to use technology to defend itself and we're going to do that," Rice told reporters after meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"I don't think that anyone expects the United States to permit somehow a veto on American security interests."

IN OTHER WORDS MORE MONEY,MORE MONEY FOR RICE,CHENEY,BUSH,ROVE,RUMSFELD..

[godseyesore-2009]

Obviously, Gonzales is cutting away all rigging during the storm in order to stay afloat. What do you bet that he survives...just like the other bush miscreants.

[bobnjersey]

[Sure do like these lower gas prices Hillay promised before the 06 elections]

well that's surprising ... cause we all know how much control SHE has over a 'futures' commodity that's traded based on supply/demand and other dependent factors.

[wfbdem]

CNN/Opinion Research Corporation Poll. May 4-6, 2007. N=1,028 adults nationwide.

.

"Do you think it is good for the country or bad for the country that the Democratic party is in control of Congress?" Half sample, MoE 1 4.5

.

Good Bad Neither (vol.) Unsure
% % % %
5/4-6/07
51 37 9 3
3/9-11/07
59 29 6 6
.

"Do you approve or disapprove of what the Democratic leaders in the U.S. House and Senate have done so far this year?" Half sample, MoE 1 4.5

.

Approve Disapprove Unsure
% % %
5/4-6/07
49 44 7
3/9-11/07
47 40 13

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[rafterman1]

===Don't shake it to hard...We still need to know why Sandy Berger stole classified documents.===

I'll gladly trade you crook for crook. Because once the Dems are out of criminals on their side, the Repubs will still have good numbers left on theirs.

===Still don't get it libs..nobody cares about this ***===

Nope, YOU stil don't get it. Repub attorney firings = the same crime as Nixon impeachment article two. The usual righty tactic of minimizing their crime (while talking up the Dem wrongdoings to change the subject) won't work this time. Nice try.

[wfbdem]

Sure do like these lower gas prices Hillay promised before the 06 elections.
Posted by b48151 at 10:11 AM : May 15, 2007

bush stated in 2000 that if we voted for Gore, we would be paying @2.00/ gal. by 2004.



We should have listened to bush and voted for Gore. Even back then, bush lite knew he was going to screw things up. He warned us, begged us to vote for Gore.
Why didn't we listen!!!

[wfbdem]

Still don't get it libs..nobody cares about this ***..That is why this defeatist, do nothing congress is down to 29% approval.BUSH HAS HIGHER APPROVAL NUMBERS.
Posted by b48151 at 09:43 AM : May 15, 2007

Sorry mate, but do some research.
Latest poll (may 4-6th)
Congress approval rating: 51 %
disapprove: 37%
http://pollingreport.com/congress.htm

Bush hasn't seen numbers like that in years.
bush the lesser ratings: 35% pro 61%!!!!! con

Wow. that stings....

[antoniof123]

What a mess I just shook my head but I have now come to believe anything from this administration.

[forthepeopl1]

bush,cheney,rice,rumsfeld,rove can all s/u/c/k/ the end of a shotgun. for the murders of our troops...............

[forthepeopl1]

bush,cheney,rice,rumsfeld,rove can all s/u/c/k/ the end of a shotgun. for the murders of our troops...............

[huskerarmy]

b48151,
This Congress has done more in a few months than your guys did in years. Apparently you didn't learn anything from the last election. Keep up the corporate tool GOP propaganda. You think America doesn't care about your culture of corruption? Maybe the next election will convince you further.

[mustaphamon]

[Can't CBS exercise moderator rights on these comments and 'suspend' some for like 30 days?]

which one's would you like me to suspend?