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Let Gonzo Off the Perjury Hook

He's a creep but not a criminal, says Post ’s Marcus

By Heather McPherson,  Newser User

Posted Jul 31, 2007 4:52 PM CDT

(Newser) – Alberto Gonzales’ Senate testimony last week was a disgraceful exercise in dodging, but the perjury charge Democratic senators have been hawking ever since doesn’t hold water, says  the Washington Post’s lefty Ruth Marcus. In an “unexpected position,” the writer defends Gonzales, saying he may have minced words in testimony about his Ashcroft sickbed visit—but probably didn’t lie.

There are plenty of aspects of wireless wiretapping Ashcroft and Gonzales could have argued about beyond the Terrorist Surveillance Program the attorney general claims not to have discussed, she argues. Perjury has definite boundaries, and it’s easy to believe Gonzales didn’t trespass them. Marcus is more than a little frustrated with those pushing the charge, saying they should instead be focusing their efforts on the wiretapping program itself.

%u2019s office in Springfield Ill., Friday, July 27, 2007. (AP Photo/The State Journal-Register, Justin L. Fowler)
%u2019s office in Springfield Ill., Friday, July 27, 2007. (AP Photo/The State Journal-Register, Justin L. Fowler)   (Associated Press)
Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis. gestures during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, July 26, 2007, where he, and fellow Senate Democrats called for a perjury investigation against Attorney General Alberto Gonzales . Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif. is at left. (AP Photo/Lauren Victoria Burke),
Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis. gestures during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, July 26, 2007, where he, and fellow Senate Democrats called for a perjury investigation against Attorney...   (Associated Press)
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., right, accompanied by Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., meets reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, July 26, 2007, where she, and fellow Senate Democrats called for a perjury investigation against Attorney General Alberto Gonzales . Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif. is at left. (AP Photo/Lauren Victoria Burke),
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., right, accompanied by Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., meets reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, July 26, 2007, where she, and fellow Senate Democrats called...   (Associated Press)
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., second from left, accompanied by, from left, Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, July 26, 2007, calling for a perjury investigation against Attorney General Alberto Gonzales....
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., second from left, accompanied by, from left, Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., speaks during a news conference...   (Associated Press)
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