From the WaPo (Via Froomkin):

The accusation that Gonzales has been deceptive in his public remarks has erupted this summer into a full-blown political crisis for the Bush administration, as the beleaguered attorney general struggles repeatedly to explain to Congress the removal of a batch of U.S. attorneys, the wiretapping program and other actions. . . .

Yet controversy over Gonzales’s candor about George W. Bush’s conduct or policies has actually dogged him for more than a decade, since he worked for Bush in Texas….

Over the past 2 1/2 years, lawmakers have accused Gonzales of dissembling on many topics, including civil liberties abuses under the USA Patriot Act and his role in reviewing aggressive interrogation tactics. . . .

“He’s a slippery fellow, and I think so intentionally,” said Richard L. Schott, a professor at the University of Texas’s Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs. “He’s trying to keep the president’s secrets and to be a team player, even if it means prevaricating or forgetting convenient things.”

“This almost subconscious bond of loyalty’ between the attorney general and the president ‘may be driving a lot of this,” said Schott, who has studied relations between the executive and legislative branches of government and the role of psychology in political behavior. “It’s obvious that Gonzales owes Bush his career. Part of his behavior comes from this gratitude and extreme loyalty to Bush.”  (emphasis mine)

Is it me or wouldn’t it have been great for all these Republican folks with “insider” knowledge to step forward, say, back in 1999 to say these two were big, fat liars who were willing to do whatever it took to cover each others’ asses, including drag the nation through one big, freaking scandal after another while utterly disrespecting the rule of law and the Constitution? You know, saved the rest of the nation the irritation and all by actually exhibiting some personal character and honesty.

Or hey, what if journalists had also dug into this information and really reported it.  I mean REALLY reported it, digging out every little nasty bit and piece for the public’s interest and aired it all out fully instead of talking, ad nauseum about why Al Gore chose an earth toned suit on Tuesday last. 

Um…yeah.  Guess it was too much to ask.

(Photo by Jason Reed/Reuters via Newsweek/MSNBC.)