Confirm Gonzales (our release from this morning...)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 6, 2004

CONFIRM ALBERTO GONZALES

www.fairjudiciary.com

(WASHINGTON, DC) – The Coalition for a Fair Judiciary today announced its endorsement of Alberto Gonzales for U.S. Attorney General. Gonzales is testifying today at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

“Mr. Gonzales is an extraordinary nominee with a compelling personal story,” said Kay Daly, president of the Coalition for a Fair Judiciary. “His stellar career is a testament to his dedication to serving this nation and his determination to overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles.”

The son of migrant workers, Mr. Gonzales grew up in Humble, Texas. His childhood home, where his mother still lives today, was built by his father and uncle. As a child, he sold soft drinks at Rice University football games and dreamed about someday enrolling there as a student. Mr. Gonzales is the first person in his family to go to college. After graduating from Rice and Harvard Law School, he joined a prestigious international law firm headquartered in Texas and became one of its first minority partners. Governor George W. Bush appointed him general counsel, secretary of state, Texas Supreme Court justice, and eventually, counsel to the president.

“Instead of celebrating Mr. Gonzales’ accomplishments and supporting his nomination enthusiastically, extreme elements of the left wing are pulling out the stops to prevent his confirmation,” said Daly. “Why? It seems that the legal exploration of the Geneva Convention is somehow troubling to the anti-war left. Given the new circumstances of the War on Terror, understanding of the Geneva Convention’s applications would seem to be a central question for a White House counsel to explore.

“But apparently Ralph Neas (president, People for the American Way) and Nan Aron (president, Alliance for Justice) have watched one too many episodes of ‘Hogan’s Heroes’,” said Daly. “The terrorists captured in the War on Terror do not wear a military uniform from their home country which is a primary requirement for POW status under the Geneva Convention. The very nature of warfare has drastically changed. Ramzi Omar is not Colonel Hogan.”

“Enough is enough,” said Daly. “Gonzales should be confirmed without delay.”

The Coalition for a Fair Judiciary The Coalition for a Fair Judiciary is a 501(C)4 organization comprised of more than 75 grassroots organizations dedicated to supporting qualified, capable federal judicial nominees who are committed to fair and accurate interpretation of existing law. Judicial activism, characterized by rulings that create law rather than apply the law, has had a detrimental impact on American society and commerce. We seek to support federal judicial nominees who, in the words of Socrates, will “hear courteously, answer wisely, consider soberly and decide impartially.”
# # #