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Lou Dobbs Tonight
Gonzales Resigns; Michael Vick Pleads Guilty
Aired August 27, 2007 - 18:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LOU DOBBS, CNN ANCHOR: The number four man at the Justice Department to serve as acting attorney general when Alberto Gonzales steps down from his post next month. The number two and three jobs at the Justice Department? Well, they're vacant as well.
The Bush administration has many top leadership posts throughout the administration open. And that may be affecting our federal government's ability to operate effectively.
Communist China, with hundreds of billions of U.S. dollars to spend, expressing interest in another American company. And there could be national security concerns. We will have that story.
And one city's mayor, he wants top new rules to check the immigration status of criminal suspects.
All of that, all the day's news, and much more -- straight ahead here tonight.
ANNOUNCER: This is LOU DOBBS TONIGHT, news, debate, and opinion for Monday, August 27.
Live from New York, Lou Dobbs.
DOBBS: Good evening, everybody.
Attorney General Alberto Gonzales under siege by congressional Democrats and even some Republicans today announced his resignation. President Bush accepted his resignation, but said Gonzales was being driven from office for political reasons and his name dragged through the mud.
Gonzales is just the latest in a series of high-level departures from the Bush administration during the president's second term. The departures raise new questions about who's in charge of carrying out the policies of the Bush White House.
We begin tonight with Ed Henry traveling with the president in Bellevue, Washington -- Ed.
ED HENRY, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Lou, this was such a surprise, because the president spent so much time defending his attorney general, also because he's so loyal to his friends from Texas. But, as you know, that inner circle shrinking now. Alberto Gonzales leaving just days after the abrupt departure of Karl Rove.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HENRY (voice-over): A president who hates giving in grudgingly bowed to the political reality. It was time for his close friend to go.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Al Gonzales is a man of integrity, decency, and principle. And I have reluctantly accepted his resignation.
HENRY: But not before one final blast at the critics who drove his attorney general out of office.
BUSH: It's sad that when we live in a time when a talented and honorable person, like Alberto Gonzales, is impeded from doing important work because his good name was dragged through the mud for political reasons.
HENRY: In an ironic twist, the president flew from Texas to New Mexico to raise money for Senator Pete Domenici, who is at the center of the U.S. attorney controversy that engulfed Gonzales. For months, the president dug in.
BUSH: This is a man who has testified. He sent thousands of papers up there. There's no proof of wrong. Why would I hold somebody accountable who has done nothing wrong?
HENRY: But the attorney general grew tired of being a punching bag and after a month of soul searching with wife, decided to go, secretly phoning the president Friday. Mr. Bush promptly invited the couple to his ranch for a quiet farewell Sunday. The attorney general visibly relieved.
The president had a wide grin, too. This gives him a fresh start as other problems mount, from difficulties in Iraq to subpoenas flying from Capitol Hill. Even Mr. Bush acknowledged for the first time the controversy had become a problem.
BUSH: After months of unfair treatment that has created harmful -- a harmful distraction at the Justice Department, Judge Gonzales decided to resign his position.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HENRY: Now, there have been reports that the president did not accept the resignation of Gonzales immediately on Friday, but administration officials insist that's not true. They say the president did not try to talk the attorney general out of resigning when they were at the ranch on Sunday.
One other quick note just in to CNN, Lou. CNN has learned that a police officer in the president's motorcade back in New Mexico, where he was attending a fund-raiser, a police officer in that motorcade, unfortunately, has died. We have confirmed he died. He crashed his motorcycle. He was seen on the ground receiving CPR from another officer. He's a member of the Rio Rancho Police Department near Albuquerque.
And CNN has confirmed that, unfortunately, he has died -- Lou.
DOBBS: A tragic development.
And he was in the motorcade, the motorcycle officer?
HENRY: That's right. And, sometimes, you see these motorcycle officers moving very quickly to protect the president. This happened back in November in Hawaii as well. Another officer there in Honolulu died, Lou.
(CROSSTALK)
DOBBS: I recall that as well.
Ed, let's turn to the to the inner circle. Obviously Alberto Gonzales leaving, and in doing so, he joins Karen Hughes, Don Evans, Karl Rove, Dan Bartlett. How many people are left from the president's original cadre of Texas insiders?
HENRY: Very few. And, obviously, critics of this president say he waited far too long to accept a resignation from Alberto Gonzales, that he should have moved Karl Rove out sooner, that he was listening to a small group of people from Texas and that maybe he needed a fresh start. The president hoping now he can get that fresh start, but obviously this late in his second term, it might be too late, Lou.
DOBBS: Those same savants, I'm sure, might also consider what the course of the administration had been so long as Karen Hughes was there and the president's good friend Don Evans because it seems that much of the president's troubles can be almost marked by their departure dates. So, that's also an alternative consideration, I think.
Let's turn to the news just now. We have just received word here at CNN that Senator Larry Craig has been -- has pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct. What do you know about that?
HENRY: Well, all I know is that "Roll Call" newspaper -- it covers Congress -- actually just apparently broke this story a short while ago. We have not gotten any reaction, obviously, from the White House just yet, Lou, because it's just broken in the last hour or so. But obviously there have been various scandals on Capitol Hill over the last couple of years.
It was one of the reasons why control of Congress changed hands last year. And obviously this could be a new embarrassment for the Republican Party, for the White House as well, Lou.
DOBBS: Well, Senator Larry Craig, he is Republican, of Idaho. What are the -- what are the allegations?
HENRY: Well, the allegations as reported in "Roll Call" newspaper is that he allegedly was engaged in lewd conduct in an airport, I believe in Minneapolis. His office is insisting it was a misunderstanding, but at this point obviously from here we haven't gotten any reaction, Lou. DOBBS: All right, thank you very much, Ed Henry, reporting from Bellevue, Washington, traveling of course with the president.
Members of Congress in the midst of the August recess wasted no time reacting to the resignation of the embattled attorney general. Democrats and some Republicans making their positions clear, that the attorney general's departure was long overdue.
Dana Bash has our report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Remember that old line, don't kick a man when he's down? Forget about it.
SEN. CHARLES SCHUMER (D), NEW YORK: Under this attorney general, sadly, the Department of Justice had less credibility than even FEMA. Under Alberto Gonzales, the Department of Justice was a sinking ship.
BASH: Good riddance came from both sides of the aisle, from all over the world. GOP Senator Arlen Specter called reporters from Poland.
SEN. ARLEN SPECTER (R-PA), JUDICIARY COMMITTEE RANKING MEMBER: I think the departure of Mr. Gonzales is a major helpful turn of events.
BASH: All year long, Alberto Gonzales took a bipartisan beating on Capitol Hill for his role in firing federal prosecutors, warrantless wiretapping, and accusations he lied to Congress.
SEN. PATRICK LEAHY (D-VT), JUDICIARY COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN: I am not willing to accept a simple statement of, trust us. I don't trust you.
ALBERTO GONZALES, ATTORNEY GENERAL: It was not about the surveillance program that the president asked the American people. Now, I would like the...
SPECTER: Mr. Attorney General, do you expect us to believe that?
BASH: Stunning confrontations like this with fellow Republicans.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And I believe the best way to put this behind us is your resignation.
BASH: Now a few GOP lawmakers are defending Gonzales, calling him a casualty of partisan attacks and warning the Democratic majority against a bruising battle for the next attorney general.
SEN. JOHN CORNYN (R), TEXAS: It's going to lead to more controversy, more partisan posturing, and I think that's a bad thing.
BASH: But Democrats also have a warning about any nominee.
SEN. DIANNE FEINSTEIN (D), CALIFORNIA: If that individual is political in nature and susceptible to importunings of the White House, you can be sure that individual would not be confirmed.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BASH: Now, credibility is the buzz word here, somebody who is more credible, many think, than Alberto Gonzales was. That was probably his biggest problem here on Capitol Hill, so what lawmakers are looking for on both sides of the aisle, Lou, is someone with impeccable legal credentials -- Lou.
DOBBS: Would that include Homeland Security Department Secretary Michael Chertoff, who has been rumored, certainly, to be among the leading candidates to fill that post?
BASH: On the legal side, it would. He certainly does have great credentials. He was a former federal judge, a federal prosecutor. But he runs into another problem, especially with Democrats here, and that is he is, of course, the man who was the head of DHS two years ago this week when Katrina happened and somebody who really is -- has been targeted as somebody who was part of the problem with the federal response there.
DOBBS: And he's also someone who is presiding over a department that has yet to secure our borders and our ports, amongst a host of other shortcomings, in my opinion.
Thank you very much, Dana Bash, from Capitol Hill.
The next attorney general will find an embattled organization with its top leadership posts unfilled. There is speculation tonight that administration insiders saying that the president has relied on more than once a strong contender for that position.
Jeanne Meserve has our report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BUSH: This is the third time, not the first or second, but the third time that I have asked Mike to serve our nation.
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Will there be a fourth? Chertoff and his department are keeping mum about whether he is a possible pick for attorney general.
MICHAEL CHERTOFF, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: Against all enemies, foreign and domestic.
MESERVE: After two-and-a-half years at the helm at Homeland, some Democrats question whether Chertoff is the right person for the Justice job.
SCHUMER: I wouldn't say yes. I wouldn't say no. It's an open book. It's possible, but it's hardly a slam dunk.
MESERVE: When Hurricane Katrina savaged the Gulf Coast, Chertoff had been on the job only six months. FEMA Director Mike Brown took the rap, but Chertoff was tarnished. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you believe you should be fired? Because I believe you should.
MESERVE: Chertoff has also taken hits for distributing Homeland grant money to low-risk cities and for supporting the highly controversial decision, later reversed, to let a Dubai company take over six American ports.
Civil liberties groups criticize his role in crafting the administration's aggressive anti-terror policies. But, on the other hand, Chertoff won respect from members of Congress for his work this spring on immigration reform, though the bill he championed went down in flames.
Others give him good grades for his management of the newest and third-largest department in government and say moving him now would hurt the war on terror.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a complicated department, complicated problems, and you cannot have constant turnover at the top.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MESERVE: Some experts say it would be particularly unwise to move Chertoff right now, when terror concerns are high -- Lou.
DOBBS: Thank you very much, Jeanne -- Jeanne Meserve from Washington.
We will have more on the resignation of the attorney general. For President Bush, it's the loss of yet another close adviser from his Texas days. We will take a look at how this might affect the remainder of the Bush presidency late here.
President Bush today praised Iraqi leaders for reaching agreement on some key issues that have kept them apart. President Bush said their agreement was reached Sunday by Sunni, Shia, and Kurdish leaders. Power-sharing, benchmarks for success, and prisoner releases among the issues resolved. But the deal still needs to be approved by the Iraqi parliament. The September deadline for a key U.S. report on progress in Iraq is nearing. And President Bush sought to reassure Iraqi leaders and the American people that his administration would continue to support the Iraqi government.
Four more of our troops have been killed in Iraq, two soldiers and two Marines killed in separation actions; 74 of our troops have been killed so far this month in Iraq, 3,732 of our troops killed since the war began; 27,506 troops have been wounded, 12,340 of them seriously.
Communist China may be on the market for another American company. And this time there could, again, be national security concerns.
Christine Romans has our report -- Christine. CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Lou, a Silicon Valley CEO says the Chinese are interested in buying an American disk drive maker. There are only two -- Lou.
DOBBS: Christine, thanks. We are going to have more on that story in just a moment.
Also, quarterback Michael Vick taking a plea on dogfighting charges. Will he go to jail? If he does, for how long? We will have the report and the details.
And if you're looking for a job, Washington may be the place to go. The Bush administration has a lot of vacancies. We will have that special report here next.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DOBBS: New signs today that, while Americans are lining up to buy Chinese toys, the communist Chinese are gearing up to buy strategic American industries.
The CEO of Seagate Technology, the leading U.S. manufacturer of computer disk drives, says a Chinese company is hunting for a company just like his. But communist Chinese acquisitions of high-technology enterprises, such as Seagate, could threaten U.S. national security.
Christine Romans has more on the latest Chinese buying.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS: Seagate Technology's CEO told "The New York Times" -- quote -- "The U.S. government is freaking out."
TOM CASEY, SPOKESMAN, U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT: I don't know. I don't know. Is freaking out a formal diplomatic term? I will have to check.
ROMANS: Any attempt by the Chinese to buy a U.S. disk drive maker would certainly trigger a national security review in Washington.
CASEY: I think members of Congress and the administration are satisfied that we have in place a system of review for any potential sale.
ROMANS: The Treasury Department would oversee any such review. A spokesperson would not comment. Seagate sells drives with sophisticated encryption features.
MICHAEL WESSEL, U.S.-CHINA ECONOMIC AND SECURITY REVIEW COMMISSION: Seagate holds the keys to the encryption. If the Chinese company were to gain access to those keys, they could be looking at all of our encrypted transmissions that go through those disk drives. That could be a real threat to our security, both national security, the intelligence assets, and our defense assets.
ROMANS: There have been concerns before over Lenovo's purchase of IBM's P.C. business three years ago and government-controlled CNOOC's move for Unocal, a deal that was scuttled.
PATRICK MULLOY, INTERNATIONAL TRADE LAW EXPERT, GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY: By running these massive trade deficits, we're living better than we're earning. And how do we do that? We have to sell off assets in order to be able to do that. And that's exactly what we're doing. So, it should not surprise anyone we're going to see some major foreign acquisition of U.S. companies in the coming years.
ROMANS: Details were sketchy on Chinese interest in disk drives. The Seagate CEO said the Chinese are interested in buying a disk drive maker. A spokesman for Seagate said -- quote -- "Seagate has not been specifically approached by any specific Chinese company. Seagate is not for sale."
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS: Western Digital, the only other American disk drive maker, declined to comment, but there is little doubt that China has the money and the intent to buy more assets. The Chinese have more than $1.3 trillion in reserves. It's estimated that some $900 billion of that are U.S. dollars, bonds.
A company like Seagate has a market cap, Lou, of $13.5 billion. China also has huge sovereign wealth fund, with the goal of buying businesses. There's a lot of intent out there.
DOBBS: There's a lot of intent. And, again, this administration disappoints and frustrates. Instead of a hackneyed statement, as we had from the State Department suggesting that there is a procedure in place, in this case, CFIUS, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, to take care of this, which they never do, all but never do -- I think they have approved all but what -- out of some 1,500, I think they have disallowed only two out of that entire period over the last decade.
This administration should be saying straightforwardly, and Henry Paulson, the treasury secretary, should be saying straightforwardly, as should this president, invest in our credit markets. Support our credit markets with your American dollars, but forget hard assets, because that's not the bargain.
ROMANS: In terms of a national security review, Lou, the Congress made them change some of these rules. If there was a deal like this, and there is not a deal on the table, but a deal like this for these kind of assets would test any kind of new national security review.
(CROSSTALK)
DOBBS: Let me be very clear about my concerns here. And that is that a Chinese company represented by U.S. investment bankers or for that matter investment bankers from anywhere, just through its due diligence in approaching to invest could garner great information about these companies that is very sensitive in nature. And this administration for that reason needs to lay down clear markers on what is in the U.S. interests and not play these bureaucratic nonsense games about: There's a process.
Yes, there is a process, Mr. President. It's called running this government effectively and in the national interests. Novel concept.
Thank you very much, Christine Romans.
Well, China tried to shift the blame back to the United States for the massive recalls of those contaminated and defective Chinese toys. Mattel, which is the world's largest toymaker, has recalled almost 20 million toys over recent weeks because of the dangers in some cases of choking on small magnets, fears of contamination of lead paint.
A top Chinese official today said designers and importers should also take responsibility for product safety. The design is seriously defective, said the head of China's industry watchdog agency, after inspecting some of those toys.
Let's take a look now at some of your thoughts.
Frank in New Jersey said: "We love you, but your job may be eligible for outsourcing, due to the terrific job done last week by Lisa Sylvester."
That's why I'm back tonight.
Robert in Florida: "War on the middle class is a manifesto for change, a positive change. Although I would have called it war on the American dream, you are the man, a patriot to the parchment that defines our nation."
I think most of us are.
And Derek in Texas: "This is a day of celebration. You should be wearing a Hawaiian shirt, and have a pina colada to celebrate the resignation of Alberto Gonzales. I know I am."
I look forward to joining you soon in that sartorial regard.
John in Arizona: "Lou, do you think the long overdue resignation of Attorney General Gonzales will enhance the possibility of finally achieving justice and freedom for Compean and Ramos? Let us all hope and pray that this will be the case. Like truth and justice in this country, they have suffered enough."
And Carol in Massachusetts: "Another one bites the dust. Bush's cronies are getting the message, even if he doesn't."
We will have more of your e-mails and thoughts later here in the broadcast.
Up next, we will have the latest details of Senator Craig's arrest for his behavior in a public restroom.
Alberto Gonzales' resignation has many asking just who's in charge at the Justice Department and other government agencies. We will have a special report.
And up next, one local government's push for tougher laws on illegal immigration. All of that and a great deal more straight ahead.
Stay with us. We're coming right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DOBBS: The mayor of Morristown, New Jersey, is advancing his fight for tougher enforcement of immigration laws. The mayor furious at a directive issued by New Jersey's attorney general to all law enforcement agencies.
As Bill Tucker now reports, that directive limits Morristown's efforts to enforce immigration laws.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BILL TUCKER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Morristown's Mayor Don Cresitello is a mayor of a mission. That mission is tougher, tighter enforcement of immigration law. The city is waiting to learn if his police officers will be accepted for training in federal immigration law enforcement, also known as 287-G training.
The announcement last week from New Jersey's attorney general, Anne Milgram, has only fuelled his anger about the way the state has ignored what he calls the illegal alien crisis in the state. Her order instructed all law enforcement in the state to check the immigration status in only two circumstances, indictable offenses or drunken driving.
The attorney general says it's because she doesn't want the police resources misapplied, a spokesman for her office saying -- quote -- "It is the primary responsibility of New Jersey police to enforce state laws."
It adds up to missed opportunities in the eyes of Mayor Cresitello, who says -- quote -- "There are thousands of other opportunities when people are arrested and we will no longer have the right to check immigration status. I'm not sure she intended to do what she did, but it's a fact."
The mayor believes an immigration status check should be routine for everyone arrested. But he's not getting much official support from the state or federal authorities.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TUCKER: Now, Mayor Cresitello had written U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie, asking for his support in a crackdown, particularly on employers hiring illegal aliens. The response from Christie's office was that they don't typically do task forces with local police and that, in any event, his hands were tied in working with the Morristown police now because the directive, as issued by the attorney general, Anne Milgram, limits their ability to work with them.
And, Lou, there's nothing stopping Christie's office from cracking down on his own, except for an apparent lack of will in the U.S. attorney's office.
DOBBS: Yes. And the U.S. attorney too, to be really candid, there are all sorts of task forces in association with the U.S. attorney's offices, all 93 of them around the country. So, that's a completely mindless statement.
It's being done on gang task forces. It's being done in drug, you know, task forces. This is a ridiculous statement. To put this in some context, the attorney general, the state attorney general of New Jersey, actually did something very positive, calling upon law enforcement agencies, local law enforcement agencies and state, to enforce those immigration laws in those cases. That wasn't there before. It just so happens that in the case of Morristown, the mayor is calling for an even more aggressive approach.
TUCKER: Correct.
DOBBS: So, we should not, in any way, in my opinion, take away from the net positive of what the state attorney general did. She certainly has the opportunity to do better. But she should be given credit as well, I think, don't you, that she's taken steps.
TUCKER: Yes, she's done something that's never been done in the state of New Jersey before last week.
DOBBS: And let's also be clear to put this in further perspective and proportion. The fact is that we are asking Immigrations and Customs Enforcement in this country, so understaffed, so undermanned and under-resourced, to go after what are basically an estimated 500,000 to 600,000 criminal illegal aliens at large within the United States, and no one knows where the heck they are.
Thank you very much, Bill Tucker.
Coming up here next, Senator Larry Craig, Republican of Idaho, fined for disorderly conduct, pleading guilty following his arrest in an airport restroom -- a statement just issued by the senator. We will have the latest and more.
And one of the largest employers of illegal workers is, you guessed it, your federal government. Congressman Steve King wants it to stop. He's in Mexico City trying to do just that. He will join us from Mexico City here.
And there are many high-level job openings in the Bush administration. Do all of those job vacancies mean no one wants to work for this government? The federal government? The Bush administration? Can government work? We will have a report. And NFL quarterback Michael Vick pleads guilty to dogfighting charges. Will he go to jail? Should he go to jail? How long will he go to jail? We will have the latest.
Stay with us -- all of that and more coming right up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DOBBS: We've learned, thanks to "Roll Call" publication in Washington, D.C. that Senator Larry Craig pleaded guilty this past month to a misdemeanor disorderly conduct charge after his arrest at the Minneapolis airport. The "Roll Call" newspaper reporting the Idaho Republican was arrested in June by a plainclothes police officer investigating lewd behavior in an airport men's room.
Dana Bash joins me now and has more on the story -- Dana.
DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Lou, CNN has confirmed the fact that Senator Larry Craig did, in fact, plead guilty to a misdemeanor for disorderly conduct this month for the incident that happened, as you said, back in June.
In addition to that, "Roll Call" is reporting many more details, especially that this arrest was by a plainclothes police officer investigating lewd conduct complaints in a men's public restroom.
Now, we finally did just get a statement from Senator Craig through his spokesman, and I'll read it to. He said: "At the time of this incident, I complained to the police that they were misconstruing my actions. I was not involved in any inappropriate conduct. I should have had the advice of counsel in resolving this matter. In hindsight, I should not have plead guilty. I was trying to handle this matter myself quickly and expeditiously."
Now, although, as you just heard in that statement, although Senator Craig, a Republican of Idaho, somebody who is very well known for his conservative views here, married with three children, although he pleaded guilty to these charges and even paid $500 plus in fines, you're seeing in his statement he essentially is saying that he didn't really mean it, that he didn't actually get a lawyer before he did this.
Quickly, his spokesman followed up with this, telling us that he did just talk to the arresting officer and the prosecuting attorney himself, and that is how they came up with this plea agreement. Apparently this is, as you know, Lou, just the beginning of the reporting on this, because this essentially just popped up, even though it happened earlier this month.
But that is what we know at this point.
DOBBS: All right, thank you very much, Dana.
Dana Bash from Capitol Hill.
The resignation of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales this morning marks the end of a dynasty in Washington. With the departure of his long time friend, Alberto Gonzales, the last of the influential Texans President Bush brought with him to the White House is now gone.
John King has more on the changes in the Bush administration.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
JOHN KING, CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For the second time in two weeks, a good-bye that hit home.
GEORGE BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: In the long course of our work together, this trusted adviser became a close friend.
KING: Alberto Gonzales is stepping down. Like Karl Rove, he has been at this president's side dating back to his days at Texas governor. And like Rove, he had become a political pinata for an administration whose days are numbered.
BRUCE BUCHANAN, UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS: Well, there's a time when, you know, the train is almost past your station.
KING: Seventeen months left and lame duck is a term that makes him bristle. But the departures of old friends magnify this president's increasingly lonely place.
His approval ratings are in the dumps. The effort to define a post-Bush Republican agenda well underway, and the opposition Democrats run the Congress.
NEIL NEWHOUSE, GOP POLLSTER: The one saving grace is that the only group that's rated lower than the president right now is Congress. That doesn't bode well for Democrats in Congress, truthfully, but, you know, their numbers are even lower than the president's.
KING: Even most Republicans are dubious. But those close to Mr. Bush see a small window of opportunity. And to that end, a house cleaning makes sense. Say good-bye to political liabilities, even if it stings a bit, and move quickly to change the subject.
For the president, that means fresh pressure on the Democrats to give his Iraq strategy more time.
BUSH: I congratulate Iraq's leaders on the agreement reached yesterday in Baghdad.
KING: Placing confidence that Iraq's brawling political factions might finally find a path to reconciliation is a huge gamble, yet trademark Bush.
BUCHANAN: His hair is grayer, his wrinkles are deeper, but he still smiles. He still sustains the impression of being at peace with himself and confident in the decisions he's made.
(END VIDEO TAPE) KING: Also trademark Bush, Lou, the decision first by Karl Rove, now Alberto Gonzales, to leave the Bush White House after weeks and weeks, months, in some cases, of stiff White House denials that the president would let the Democrats push them out -- Lou.
DOBBS: John, the loss of Karen Hughes; Don Evans, his Commerce secretary, two very old and trusted friends; Karl Rove, obviously; Dan Bartlett; and now Alberto Gonzales.
Is there really a group of advisers in whom the president has as much confidence and is as comfortable as this group of people who have left him over the course of the two terms of his administration?
KING: Confidence, yes. Comfortable, obviously not, because of the personal friendships he had with those officials. And in some ways, the president is paying the price for having those people stay with him so long. This is an unusual administration in the sense that so many people, Lou, stayed into the second term. There's usually much more turnover in administrations.
The president does have full confidence in his chief of staff, Josh Bolten, in his counselor, Ed Gillespie. They are increasingly the political power and the management power inside the White House.
But, obviously, he is losing the advice of men and women with whom he has been with for 15, 20 years, in some cases, both as politics and his personal friends back in Texas.
So is he confident in his staff?
By all accounts, he is.
Does he have the comfort level, the more personal relationship with them?
No, he does not.
DOBBS: John, thank you very much.
John King from Washington.
The sudden resignation of the embattled attorney general opens up another vacancy at the very top of the Bush administration. But the void left by the Gonzales resignation is only the latest in a long list of what are now empty job slots in our federal government.
Lisa Sylvester has the latest on help wanted around the White House.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
LISA SYLVESTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Alberto Gonzales' departure from the Justice Department leaves a vacuum at the top. The top three positions are now vacant.
Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty stepped down in late July. The number three spot, associate attorney general, is also unfilled.
SEN. ARLEN SPECTER (R-PA), JUDICIARY COMMITTEE: There is no attorney general, no deputy attorney general, no associate attorney general. The lack of leadership has taken its toll on this department, whose mission is a sacred one.
SYLVESTER: The Bush administration has peppered its highest ranks with people who are fill-ins in an acting capacity. Other vacancies include the head of U.S. Agency for International Development. Randall Tobias resigned this spring after he was linked to a call girl agency.
The U.S. Surgeon General's position has been vacant for more than a year, since Richard Carmona's term expired. And the deputy head of the National Security Council recently announced his resignation.
And there are more exits on the way, including Veterans Affairs chief, Jim Nicholson, this fall.
Professor Cal Jillson says finding replacements takes longer for administrations looking for more than just talent.
CAL JILLSON, SOUTHERN METHODIST UNIVERSITY: They look for expertise, but more importantly, they look for political dependability, someone who will provide protection for the president while delivering the substance of his position. And those are difficult, sometimes, to find. So it leads to a lot of empty positions.
SYLVESTER: Jillson says the public suffers when it's unclear exactly who is in charge. The Consumer Products Safety Commission has been operating without a chair for more than a year. Without a quorum, the agency has been unable to set new standards and rules.
TONY AREND, GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY: Perhaps the signal which the public should be getting from these vacancies is that, to some degree, the administration is falling apart. The administration is in its last legs.
SYLVESTER: The vacancies can lead to lower morale among federal workers and a wobbly government signals a lame duck presidency.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
The White House brushed aside criticism that it's a lame duck administration, saying: "This is an natural time for turnover in any administration. We are getting some important things done and we're able to keep Congress from passing bad policy."
Now, the White House also noted that there is a U.S. AID nominee pending, who will be confirmed shortly, and it will have an attorney general nominee soon -- Lou.
DOBBS: Lisa, thank you very much.
Lisa Sylvester from Washington.
That brings us to the subject of our poll tonight.
Do you believe the Bush administration, by leaving a high number of vacancies in key federal positions, has damaged the government's ability to function effectively, yes or no?
Cast your vote at loudobbs.com.
We'll have the results here later.
NFL quarterback Michael Vick today pleaded guilty to dogfighting charges. Vick apologized, as well. And the NFL suspended him.
His team, the Atlanta Falcons, will not cut him as they try to recover $22 million in bonus money paid to Vick.
One of the animal rights groups pushing for Vick's punishment is the People for Ethical Treatment of Animals. But PETA's involvement in this case has some accusing it of hypocrisy.
A full-page ad running in newspapers around the country today claims PETA euthanized almost 15,000 animals since 1998. PETA doesn't deny those numbers and says it was necessary to kill the animals because they were unadoptable.
Pets claims it's an advocate for more animal rights because it believes animals are just like humans. The group's founder, Ingrid Newkirk, said: "When it comes to pain, love, joy, loneliness and fear, a rat is a pig is a dog is a boy."
PETA says all the controversy is just an effort by some groups to push a "anti-animal protection agenda."
PETA also claims those groups want to detract attraction from the Michael Vick dogfighting case.
Meanwhile, Michael Vick will be sentenced on the 10th of December and he could serve anywhere from one to five years in prison. Also, there is a possibility that he could receive even just probation.
Coming up right now, three of the top political analysts in the country join me. We'll be taking a look at just where this country is going now that the attorney general wants to go.
And you would never guess just who tops the list of illegal hires. It's not big business, it's big government. Our next guest looking for answers.
All of that and more coming right up, as we will soon be traveling the Mexico City here tonight.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DOBBS: Republican Congressman Steve King of Iowa is in Mexico City. He's there trying to find ways to stop the flood of people entering this country illegally.
The Congressman says one of the worst offenders in the United States is the U.S. government -- hiring foreigners without proper documents or papers.
Congressman King joins us tonight from Mexico City.
Congressman, good to have you here.
I know you're there with Congressman Berman of California, Congressman Capps (ph), Congresswoman Lofgren, Zoe Lofgren.
It's an interesting group.
What are you all trying to accomplish?
REP. STEVE KING (R), IOWA: Well, we're down here on a Woodrow Wilson International Scholarship study. And the idea is to expand our relations with Mexico. And we're talking directly about -- the terminology they use here is migration policy, our international relations between the United States and Mexico, what the long-term prospects are and the economics of this country here.
There's just a wealth of information to be exchanged and a lot of intractable problems that need to be addressed.
DOBBS: Well, that group, you seem to be the most, amongst that group, the most concerned about border security.
Any discussion at all of concern on the part of the Mexican government about border security?
Let's start there.
KING: Well, generally the theme that comes out of the Mexican government and their representatives that we've spoken to so far is the United States of America, you need to understand that you need to pass a comprehensive immigration plan.
DOBBS: Yes. Yes.
KING: What's good for Mexico is good for the United States.
DOBBS: Well, do they -- let me ask you about this, Congressman.
KING: I mean that's pretty much the White House line.
DOBBS: Are representatives of the Mexican government open to the idea that it's probably irresponsible and, I would think, embarrassing for them to be exporting their poverty and as many as 20 million of their citizens to this country because they are leaving impoverished half of their population. Their government has been so corrupt over these decades and so ineffective. And we're exporting billions of dollars in capital to Mexico. KING: Well, we have discussed those numbers. And I did give a presentation -- I guess I would say it was impromptu -- while the undersecretary for Foreign Relations for the North American continent ate his dessert today, about those points, about the dollars that flow from the United States into Mexico, $25 billion to $30 billion in transfer payments and wages; $65 billion in illegal drugs coming into the United States, of which somewhere between $13 billion and $48 billion of that finds its way back to Mexico.
The incentives in Mexico for them to help us with this really aren't there. And when you compare it to the billions of dollars of incentives that they have to let this happen, plus export (INAUDIBLE) the vitality of their nation.
DOBBS: Have you detected any appetite on the part of the Mexican government to cooperate and meaningfully secure that northern border and to end illegal and just shameless immigration of its people to this country?
KING: There were a few words that were spoken about working in partnership and cooperation. But I can tell you that in the room, I'm the only one that wants to build a fence and a wall. And they seem to think that that's counter-productive and offensive to them.
So you've heard this all before.
DOBBS: Yes. But it's not offensive...
KING: But it's the same mantra over and over again.
DOBBS: But it's not offensive to export poverty and 20 percent of their population to the United States. My God, what a sense of shame.
KING: Well, and...
DOBBS: Congressman, we thank you...
KING: And it's no way to run a country.
DOBBS: Indeed. Well, either there or here, for that matter.
KING: Yes. Yes.
DOBBS: Congressman Steve King, we thank you very much.
Appreciate it.
Up next, we'll have more on the resignation of the attorney general. Three of the best political analysts in the country join me for all of that and a lot more.
We're coming right back.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) DOBBS: Joining me now, three of the very best political analysts in the nation.
Republican strategist, former White House political director, Ed Rollins.
Good to see you, Ed.
ED ROLLINS, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Thank you.
DOBBS: Pulitzer Prize columnist, "New York Daily News," Michael Goodwin.
Michael, thank you for being here.
And, way out in West Babylon, New York, New York State Democratic National Committeeman, Robert Zimmerman; also a supporter of the Senator Hillary Clinton Campaign for President 2008.
Good to have you, Robert.
ROBERT ZIMMERMAN, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Good to be with you.
DOBBS: I hope the vacation is going well.
ZIMMERMAN: It's moving along well. The fish are safe as long as I'm fishing.
(LAUGHTER)
DOBBS: Well, let's turn to -- well, here's what your candidate, Senator Hillary Clinton -- this is the way she reacted to the news of Alberto Gonzales resigning his post.
(VIDEO CLIP OF SENATOR HILLARY CLINTON APPLAUDING)
DOBBS: What do you think, Robert?
ZIMMERMAN: Well, I think, frankly, I'm cheering the fact that Congress showed accountability in this process and finally gave the American people what they wanted -- oversight and accountability. And they did it bipartisanly.
But I don't think there's great cause for cheers and applause just yet because if President Bush is going to find another Haliburton executive or another former lobbyist to put into that post -- or a Michael Chertoff -- then he's learned nothing from the experience.
DOBBS: Ooh, Michael Chertoff on Mr. Zimmerman's list of no-nos for appointees.
What do you think, Ed?
ROLLINS: Well, I don't think the president would want to go with Chertoff. I don't think he wants to have two confirmation hearings at the same time. (LAUGHTER)
ROLLINS: I think you would have a field day, basically, examining the record of the Homeland Security for the last two years.
I think this is a -- I think this was a good move on Gonzales and the White House. It's time to put this issue behind it. Whatever is still there will get out. And, obviously, the Congress may drag it out.
This guy could not lead the Justice Department and that was his mission. And I think, to a certain extent, the quicker we move on and get someone of impeccable credentials in there, the better we'll be.
DOBBS: We heard tonight, Michael, Lisa Sylvester reporting on the number of vacancies; John King and Ed Henry reporting on a Bush White House that is now bereft of the old Texas mafia.
What in -- how can this government function with this number of posts unfilled, this number of advisers departed, even though replaced in, at least by two personalities, as we're watching it wind down here?
MICHAEL GOODWIN, "NEW YORK DAILY NEWS": Right.
Well, I think what's happening is that the president really only cares about one thing now, and that's Iraq. And I think everything else is just being thrown overboard because he wants and hopes he can still...
DOBBS: Isn't that how we got here, Michael?
GOODWIN: Yes...
DOBBS: It seems like everything else in this administration has been thrown overboard in favor of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan.
GOODWIN: Right. Well, and I think what we had to do with Karl Rove -- first it was Rumsfeld, Rove and now Gonzales -- is basically clear the decks of any other distraction, any other fight with Congress and focus on his goal for the war. And I think that's -- we're going to see it more sharply drawn in September when Petraeus gives his testimony to Congress.
DOBBS: Well...
ZIMMERMAN: I think it would be a terrible mistake, if I may point out, if, in fact, Rove's departure and Gonzales' departure does clear the deck and the media and the Democrats in Congress let up and don't pursue the investigations that have to be explored about the firing of these U.S. attorneys and, for that matter, whether, in fact, perjury was committed by Attorney General Gonzales or, for that matter, that the members our Congress who were calling -- demanding investigations.
ROLLINS: Well, I hope the Demo...
(CROSSTALK)
ROLLINS: I hope the Democrats keep wanting to focus on those things and not focus on stopping the president and the war, because, obviously, this president is going to keep marching forward. And if the Democrats want to stay at 18 percent approval rating, which is what they are, they're going to go back on these issues that no one is going to care about anymore, whether there's an injustice that was done or what, I don't think that the public cares about it. I think the public just cares about the war right now. And I think that's -- that's the Democrat role today is either to stop it or to put forward an alternative.
DOBBS: See, I don't know about you, Michael, I disagree with you, Ed, on that. I think the public, based at least on the response of our viewers of this broadcast, care about a lot of things. They're concerned about failing public education. They're concerned about infrastructure. They're concerned about the war in Iraq and the war on terror, certainly, and the way that war is being conducted.
But there are a host of important issues that seemingly every candidate in both parties seeking their party's nomination are ignoring.
ROLLINS: I don't dispute that.
What I'm saying is if you want to argue about eight U.S. justices -- or U.S. attorneys who were fired for the rest of this term, you distract yourself from the more important things.
GOODWIN: Right. Right. I mean I think they're...
ZIMMERMAN: But, you know what?
GOODWIN: I mean I think you're right, Lou. There are really many, many issues in this country that matter to people. But I think in terms of this president and what he can achieve in the 17 months left is not very much, except try to keep the war from collapsing in Congress. And I think -- so that's why I think -- we're talking about what he cares about. I think that's all he cares about now is defending his legacy in Iraq.
DOBBS: And, as we watch this economy...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well...
DOBBS: ...being shaken by a credit crisis, as we watch home mortgage foreclosures skyrocket -- we're looking at the prospect of somewhere between two and two-and-a-half million foreclosures this year, record personal bankruptcies. I mean I don't know where we go from here.
Do you, Robert?
ZIMMERMAN: Well, I think one of the saddest moments of the Bush White House or the Bush administration was watching President Bush blame those homeowners who didn't read the fine print. The White House should have been -- and the president should have been responding to those predatory lenders who took advantage of individuals. And his administration should be calling them to task.
So I think, ultimately, this -- you talk about saving the president. At this stage, all the president is doing is restructuring the deck chairs on the Titanic. I don't think he has any concept of how to move this administration forward.
DOBBS: Well, honestly, Robert, that was a more compelling way to say things, I thought, before the Democrats took over both houses of Congress. You're talking about investigations, accountability and so forth.
There's going to be great accountability, it seems to me, Robert. The American people -- Ed alluded to that 18 percent approval rating, the lowest in the 35 years in which it's been tracked for Congress.
I mean if this government does not come together and start functioning in behalf of working men and women in this country, and the middle class of this country, I mean I'll say it without reservation -- a pox on both their houses.
ROLLINS: Well, I think that...
ZIMMERMAN: But you know something, Lou?
(CROSSTALK)
ZIMMERMAN: I'm sorry, Ed, please.
Go ahead.
ROLLINS: I think, really, it's an opportunity for the candidates to -- of both parties -- to stand up here and really talk about the issues you're talking about. If the Democrats want to stop this war, they'd better do it pretty quick. Otherwise, it's going to overshadow everything else.
If the candidates want to talk about things that are relevant to the American public, they take up the agenda you laid out.
ZIMMERMAN: Lou...
GOODWIN: Well, and I think that is one of the reasons the campaign began so early was everyone saw the Bush administration going nowhere and kind of dying on the vine, so everyone wanted to jump in and get it going.
DOBBS: You get the last 10 seconds, Robert Zimmerman.
ZIMMERMAN: Lou, the issue comes back to accountability.
Will the public hold the Democratic leadership accountable for putting forward new proposals and alternatives or will they blame the Republican leadership for not responding to alternatives?
DOBBS: And therein lies the question of the evening, to be resolved over the course of the next, oh, just about 14 months.
Thank you very much, Robert Zimmerman, Michael Goodwin, Ed Rollins, as always.
Coming up at the top of the hour, Wolf Blitzer and "THE SITUATION ROOM" -- Wolf.
WOLF BLITZER, HOST, "THE SITUATION ROOM": Thanks, Lou.
We're taking a closer look at the personal side of health care, politics and the campaign trail. It's a fight several of the candidates have had firsthand experience with. We're taking a look at the presidential candidates who themselves have had to deal with their own cancer.
Also, a new report says an American patrol nearly stumbled upon Osama bin Laden. We'll have details on how close they actually may have come and what the terrorist leader was reportedly going to do if they found him.
And remember Elian Gonzalez, the young refugee who was sent back to Cuba in 2000 after a long custody battle?
We'll tell you about a similar legal battle, this one involving a little girl that's brewing right now in South Florida.
All of that, Lou, coming up right here in "THE SITUATION ROOM."
DOBBS: Thank you very much, Wolf.
The results of our poll and more, straight ahead.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DOBBS: Eighty-five percent of you say the Bush administration has damaged our government's ability to function.
We thank you for being with us tonight.
Join us here tomorrow.
For all of us, thanks for watching.
Good night from New York.
"THE SITUATION ROOM" begins now with Wolf Blitzer -- Wolf.
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