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Situation Wanted: Protesters Optional

On paper, his credentials appear impeccable. A child of poor Mexican immigrants who graduates from Harvard Law School. First Hispanic U.S. attorney. Texas secretary of state. Texas Supreme Court justice. White House counsel. U.S. attorney general. Short-listed for U.S. Supreme Court. With a resume like that, why can't Alberto R. Gonzales find a job? The New York Times offers an explanation:

The greatest impediment to Mr. Gonzales’s being offered the kind of high-salary job being snagged these days by lesser Justice Department officials, many lawyers agree, is his performance during his last few months in office. In that period, he was openly criticized by lawmakers for being untruthful in his sworn testimony. His conduct is being investigated by the Office of the Inspector General of the Justice Department, which could recommend actions from exonerating him to recommending criminal charges. Friends set up a fund to help pay his legal bills.

Is that a sense of glee I detect from some corners of the legal blogosphere over Gonzales's situation? Norm Pattis prefers to call it "merciless delight" and sees some level of poetic justice in it all:

I find it reassuring that Gonzales is not being met with open arms in the world of Big Law. He wasn't just following orders. The Nuremburg defense is no option for this field commander. The man winked when fundamental freedoms he swore to protect were placed in jeopardy. Is it any wonder there are concerns about his ability to serve as fiduciary for more modest interests?

As for the former AG's job search, one Washington lawyer whose own firm passed on him commented to the NYT: "Maybe the passage of time will provide some opportunity for him." Meanwhile, Gonzales is hardly going hungry. He is on the lecture circuit at $30,000 an appearance, where friends say he is no doubt earning more than he did as AG. As Bill Clinton's recent financial disclosures made clear, one can do quite well, thank you, on the lecture circuit.

Posted by Robert J. Ambrogi on April 15, 2008 at 10:55 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

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