This is the man replacing Ashcroft - The Honorable Alberto R. Gonzales. Judge Al Gonzales was commissioned as Counsel to President George W. Bush in January of 2001. Prior to serving in the White House, he served as a Justice of the Supreme Court of Texas. Before his appointment to the Texas Supreme Court in 1999, he served as Texas' 100th Secretary of State from December 2, 1997 to January 10, 1999. Among his many duties as Secretary of State, Gonzales was a senior advisor to then Governor Bush, chief elections officer, and the Governor's lead liaison on Mexico and border issues.

Prior to his appointment as Secretary of State, Gonzales was the General Counsel to Governor Bush for three years. Before joining the Governor's staff, he was a partner with the law firm of Vinson & Elkins L.L.P. in Houston, Texas. He joined the firm in June 1982. While in private practice, Gonzales also taught law as an adjunct professor at the University of Houston Law Center.

Among his many professional and civic activities, Gonzales was elected to the American Law Institute in 1999. He was a board trustee of the Texas Bar Foundation from 1996 to 1999, a board director for the State Bar of Texas from 1991 to 1994, and President of the Houston Hispanic Bar Association from 1990 to 1991. He was a board director of the United Way of the Texas Gulf Coast from 1993 to 1994, and President of Leadership Houston during this same period. In 1994, Gonzales served as Chair of the Commission for District Decentralization of the Houston Independent School District, and as a member of the Committee on Undergraduate Admissions for Rice University. Gonzales was Special Legal Counsel to the Houston Host Committee for the 1990 Summit of Industrialized Nations, and a member of delegations sent by the American Council of Young Political Leaders to Mexico in 1996 and to the People's Republic of China in 1995.

Among his many honors, in 2003 Gonzales was inducted into the Hispanic Scholarship Fund Alumni Hall of Fame, was honored with the Good Neighbor Award from the United States-Mexico Chamber of Commerce, and received President's Awards from the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the League of United Latin American Citizens. In 2002, he was recognized as a Distinguished Alumnus of Rice University by the Association of Rice Alumni and was honored by the Harvard Law School Association with the Harvard Law School Association Award. Gonzales was recognized as the 1999 Latino Lawyer of the Year by the Hispanic National Bar Association, and he received a Presidential Citation from the State Bar of Texas in 1997 for his dedication to addressing basic legal needs of the indigent. He was chosen as one of the Five Outstanding Young Texans by the Texas Jaycees in 1994, and as the Outstanding Young Lawyer of Texas by the Texas Young Lawyers Association in 1992. Gonzales was honored by the United Way in 1993 with a Commitment to Leadership Award, and received the Hispanic Salute Award in 1989 from the Houston Metro Ford Dealers for his work in the field of education.

Gonzales was born in San Antonio, Texas and raised in Houston. He is a graduate of Texas public schools, Rice University, and Harvard Law School. Gonzales served in the United States Air Force between 1973 and 1975, and attended the United States Air Force Academy between 1975 and 1977. He is married to Rebecca and is the father of three sons.

From the White House bios files.

CFS
PoliticalGurus@Yahoo.com

Originally posted in thread: 21687

The IFWs are trying to make a run out of the city of Al Fallujah but are not able to make it thru the Marines watching the roads around the city. It is not going to be a good week for the IFWs, the best thing for them is to surrender or die like the rest. New total of KIA in Iraq showing now 34 American KIA. We have made SIGNIFICANT progress in Fallujah and the best is yet to come.

CFS
PoliticalGurus@Yahoo.com

Originally posted in thread: 21687

you identify in message #44 for the US military to use Special Forces to go after a group or two at a time? If groups have more than one location, won't that mean thousands (or even tens of thousands) of Fallujah-like raids?

Would it help any to try to figure out what "some reason [religious and political reasons]" really are? How much do the different groups have in common? Some believe the reasons may be political and have as much to do with revolution against their national (Islamic) leaders as any "hate" for Americans.

If we were to be successful in any such analysis, how much help do you think we could count on from Islamic leaders around the world? It seems to me that Bush might be hoping that America could be seen as "assistance" to resolve internal Islamic conflicts.

Now there's a challenge for your predictive capabilities.

Enjoy, Pete

Originally posted in thread: 21687

Pete thanks for reply 61, note that not all the terror groups were listed on the reply 44, only the important groups. We do not have the manpower, the money, nor the time to take on all those groups, they are ALL over the globe and the best thing for us to do is to concentrate on what constitutes real and present danger for the US and right now that priviledge goes to the group of the IFWs fighting us in Iraq and Aghanistan, the Al Qaeda team. Must take care of them first. We can count on the Israelis to take care of PLO, Hezbollah, Hamas, Yasser Arafat Martyr Brigades, and the rest of the wannabees working around Israel. We can not rely on any Arab or Islamic country to help us, they are not reliable and they shall NOT be trusted. We have a long road ahead of us on the GWOT.

CFS
PoliticalGurus@Yahoo.com

Originally posted in thread: 21687

Does Alberto Gonzales deserve to be confirmed as Attorney General? The a man who approved the use of torture and the trashing of the Geneva Conventions?

I think not.

but.....if you want to give him the job to get mexican approval then by all means , the hell with the Constitution and individual rights.
Yes? No?

Eugene

Originally posted in thread: 21687

Thanks for the note Eugene, the new Attorney General Gonzales is about to take a leaking at the hearings by the DEM party members, after taking a beating during the 2004 election the DEM members are out for blood. The confirmation hearings are not going to be pretty!

CFS
PoliticalGurus@Yahoo.com

Originally posted in thread: 21687

This also applies to reply number 67, I was reading an article quoting the former Solicitor General Olson, he is on record saying that any GWB nominee for a seat on the US Supreme Court will face pure fire by part of the DEM members of the Senate. Mr Olson defended GWB vs Gore during the 2000 election and later was named the US Solicitor General by GWB. He was one of the tuffest anti terrorist members of the GWB administration, his wife was killed September 11 2001, Barbara Olson was a passenger on the plane hitting the Pentagon and was on the cell phone with the Solicitor General just ten minutes before the plane crashed.

CFS
PoliticalGurus@Yahoo.com

Originally posted in thread: 21687

I tell you what, the more I look at the listing of the casualties, the more uncomfortable I feel about it. Take a look at the rank and age of those KIA and tell me what you see there. I check several sites for information on the KIA and WIA. I just don't feel good about the KIAs. The link provided on reply #50 by Johnny is a good place to start. Take a look at the listing of KIA [each month] and let me know what you see happening. Just check it, and you don't have to comment about it.

CFS
PoliticalGurus@Yahoo.com

Originally posted in thread: 21687

We are making progress in Fallujah with the U.S. troops pushing deeper into Fallujah. Per latest news reports the casualty count is 36 Americans Killed In Action in Iraq during November 2004. As reported by the AP, our forces "pushed deeper into the southern reaches of Fallujah, cornering militants backed into smaller pockets of the city. Hundreds of men trying to flee were turned back by U.S. troops." In Mosul, the IFWs "launched mass attacks against police stations and political party offices in what could be a bid to relieve pressure on their allies here. On Friday, Army and Marine units moved to tighten their security cordon around the beseiged city, backed by FA-18s and AC-130 gunships. Some three to four dozen militants tried to break out towards the south and east late Thursday but were repelled by U.S. troops, the military said. U.S. forces were also positioned to the west near key bridges, blocking rebels from crossing the Euphrates River with patrol boats. Troops have cut off all roads and bridges leading out of the city and have turned back hundreds of men who have tried to flee the city during the assault. Only women, children and the elderly are being allowed to leave. The military says keeping men aged 15 to 55 from leaving is key to the mission's success." So there you have it, we have made SOME PROGRESS in Fallujah, however, with so many days of warning a large amount of IFWs packed their bags and weapons and moved to other positions outside the city of Fallujah and are now causing trouble in other cities but their day will come soon or later. Just watch.

CFS
PoliticalGurus@Yahoo.com

Originally posted in thread: 21687

Total of KIA listed on the previous Fallujah update is incorrect, the number now stands at 37 American KIA in Iraq this month and a total of 32 KIA since the 8th of this month. However, our troops are making progress in Fallujah and will take the city under full control soon, not allowing anyone to leave the city until things are well under hand there, and for the IFWs there is no place to run, best thing for them to do is surrender or die like the rest.

CFS
PoliticalGurus@Yahoo.com

Originally posted in thread: 21687