Documents appear to contradict Gonzales’ claim of limited involvement in U.S. attorney firings

Support for U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales continued to be stripped away over the weekend as documents released Friday evening show that he was more involved in the firings of eight U.S. attorneys than he previously admitted.

It was another in a long series of contradictions, withheld facts and backtracking by the Department of Justice that have caused the situation to explode into full-blown scandal, but is, to date, the first contradictory statement made by the attorney general himself.

Gonzales said during a March 13 news conference, in explaining that he had only a limited role in the firings, that he “never saw documents (related to the firing of the attorneys.) We never had a discussion about where things stood.” But documents reveal that he attended an hour-long meeting on Nov. 27, 2006, days before the firings, at which he approved the department’s plan for executing the firings.

The department quickly tried to spin the situation by saying there’s no evidence Gonzales discussed who was being fired, but only that he talked about how it would be done. At this point, that explanation rings hollow.

Among those who were fired was David Iglesias, who was New Mexico’s U.S. attorney. He has accused the Bush Administration of firing him for political reasons after he refused pressure from U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici and Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M., who he says tried to pressure him to speed indictments in a public corruption probe in time to sway voters in the November 2006 election.

Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Penn. and a member of the Judiciary Committee, told the Associated Press that the documents “appear to contradict” Gonzales’ earlier statement, but said he’ll wait for Gonzales’ April 17 testimony before the committee before he passes judgment.

If Gonzales “has not been candid and truthful, that’s a very compelling reason for him to not stay on,” Specter told the news service. He was one of three Republican senators to express concern over the weekend about the contradiction and Gonzales’ tenure.

President Bush continues to support Gonzales.