Seems that everyone at the Justice Department is getting the message except Gonzo. But then again he only does what he's told by President Bush, who only tells Gonzales what his handlers tells him to say. Add Bush and Gonzales together and you might come up with a pretty good half-wit. But that might be a little unfair to the genuine half-wits.-Jake

From Al Jazeera

The US deputy attorney-general has announced his resignation, becoming the highest-ranking Bush administration casualty in the furor over the firing of several prosecutors.

Paul McNulty, who served 18 months as the justice department's second-in-command, announced his plans at a private meeting of US attorneys in San Antonio on Monday.

He told them he would remain at the department until late summer or until the senate had approved a successor, aides said.

He also sent a one-page resignation letter to Alberto Gonzales, the attorney-general, whose own job has been put in jeopardy by the prosecutor firings and their aftermath.

McNulty has been considering leaving for months, but his decision to step down, aides said, was hastened by anger at being linked to the purge of eight prosecutors that the Democratic-led congress is investigating to determine whether they were fired for political reasons.

From CNN

McNulty, a former U.S. attorney himself, told the Senate Judiciary Committee in February that the firings were performance-related. That provoked an outcry from the ex-officials, some of whom raised allegations that some of the firings were politically motivated.

McNulty later told the committee that he was not briefed properly before that hearing -- and blamed his testimony on former aide Monica Goodling, who invoked her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination rather than discuss the matter with Congress. A federal judge Friday approved a House Judiciary Committee request that she be granted immunity from prosecution, allowing it to compel her testimony.

Goodling and another aide, Kyle Sampson, have resigned in connection with the controversy. "Another resignation won't make the unanswered questions about the fired U.S. attorneys disappear," Rep. Rahm Emanuel, the chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, said Monday.

"For months, Democrats have been seeking straight answers about the prosecutor purge," Emanuel said. "Democrats will continue our aggressive investigation into this serious matter. Resignations are no substitute for the truth."

Gonzales has admitted the firings were poorly handled, but has defended his leadership and resisted calls to resign.