Democrats challenge Mukasey
President Bush
President Bush’s nominee for attorney general, once considered a shoo-in for easy confirmation, clashed with Senate Democrats last week over the limits of executive power. On his first day of hearings before the judiciary committee, former federal judge Michael Mukasey won bipartisan praise when he said that the attorney general must remain independent of the White House. If the president sought justification for violating the Constitution, Mukasey said, “I could either try to talk him out of it or leave.” That prompted panel chairman Patrick Leahy to say, “I’m encouraged by the answers.”
But the goodwill evaporated when Mukasey argued that the president had the right to order any action not forbidden by the Constitution—including warrantless eavesdropping and “enhanced interrogation”—even if Congress has passed a law against it. Mukasey also declined to say whether he considered the controversial interrogation technique of waterboarding to be “torture.” Some Democrats now want Mukasey to clarify his remarks before they will send the nomination to the full Senate for confirmation.
Democrats claim they don’t want “another yes-man as attorney general,” said The Wall Street Journal in an editorial. But what they mean is that they want their own yes-man. Democrats repeatedly pressured Mukasey to denounce Bush’s efforts to keep Americans safe from terrorists. Mukasey’s rebuff showed he “won’t let himself be intimidated into adopting any senator’s personal interpretation of the Constitution.”
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The issue here isn’t a matter of personal interpretation, said Jed Rubenfeld in The New York Times. Mukasey testified that presidents have the prerogative to ignore the law as long as they are fulfilling their constitutional authority “to defend the country.” That’s chilling, and it goes against the most fundamental American principle: “that everyone, including the president, is subject to the rule of law.” Anyone who doesn’t agree with this basic principle should not be attorney general.
Mukasey’s views on torture are also troubling, said Phillip Carter and Dahlia Lithwick in Slate.com. He called torture “antithetical to everything this country stands for,” but then begged off ruling out waterboarding, a “technique from the Spanish Inquisition” that makes victims feel as if they’re drowning. Mukasey claimed he didn’t know enough about the now-infamous procedure to say whether it violates U.S. standards. His plea of ignorance was so disingenuous, “you could almost hear him channeling Alberto Gonzales.”
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
What is cloud seeding and did it cause Dubai's severe rainfall?
The Explainer The future is flooded
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
American Airlines pilots are warning of a 'significant spike' in safety issues
In the Spotlight The pilot's union listed 'problematic trends' they say are affecting the airline's fleet
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
6 star-spangled presidential libraries to visit
The Week Recommends These institutions provide insight into American leaders
By Catherine Garcia, The Week US Published
-
Arizona court reinstates 1864 abortion ban
Speed Read The law makes all abortions illegal in the state except to save the mother's life
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump, billions richer, is selling Bibles
Speed Read The former president is hawking a $60 "God Bless the USA Bible"
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
The debate about Biden's age and mental fitness
In Depth Some critics argue Biden is too old to run again. Does the argument have merit?
By Grayson Quay Published
-
How would a second Trump presidency affect Britain?
Today's Big Question Re-election of Republican frontrunner could threaten UK security, warns former head of secret service
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
'Rwanda plan is less a deterrent and more a bluff'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By The Week UK Published
-
Henry Kissinger dies aged 100: a complicated legacy?
Talking Point Top US diplomat and Nobel Peace Prize winner remembered as both foreign policy genius and war criminal
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Last updated
-
Trump’s rhetoric: a shift to 'straight-up Nazi talk'
Why everyone's talking about Would-be president's sinister language is backed by an incendiary policy agenda, say commentators
By The Week UK Published
-
More covfefe: is the world ready for a second Donald Trump presidency?
Today's Big Question Republican's re-election would be a 'nightmare' scenario for Europe, Ukraine and the West
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published