The Democrats' responsibility in the wake of Gonzales' resignation

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This is a real moment of truth for the Democratic Congress. Democrats, who have offered up little other than one failure after the next since taking power in January, can take a big step toward redeeming themselves here. No matter what, they must ensure that Gonzales' replacement is a genuinely trustworthy and independent figure.

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The standard excuse invoked by Democrats to justify their capitulations -- namely, that they cannot attract a filibuster-proof or veto-proof majority to defy the President -- will be unavailing here. They themselves can filibuster the confirmation of any proposed nominee to replace Gonzales. They do not need Blue Dogs or Bush Dogs or any of the other hideous cowards in their caucus who remain loyal to the most unpopular President in modern American history. The allegedly "Good Democrats" can accomplish this vital step all on their own. They only need 40 Senate votes to achieve it.

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UPDATE II: Oddly, the Drudge Report, for a period of no more than several minutes, apparently "reported" that the Bush administration would replace Gonzales via recess appointment, but has now taken that down. Identically, the publication most closely associated with Drudge, The Politico, briefly had a caption on its front page indicating the same thing, though nothing in its Gonzales article mentioned that. When I just went to the Politico site to screen capture the recess appointment reference, it, too, had been removed.

The Politico does have an article by the always-plugged-into-the-Bush-administration Mike Allen which signals the potential administration strategy here:

The acting attorney general with be Solicitor General Paul Clement. He "can stay in that position for quite a while," a senior administration official said.

That would avoid a bruising confirmation fight. Some Democratic senators have vowed not to confirm a Gonzales successor. . . .

An administration official explained: An individual may serve in an acting capacity for 210 days. However, if there is a pending nominee, the 210 day "clock" starts again when a nominee is announced. The 210 day "clock" would restart again if the nominee is voted down. The clock stops when there's a nominee, and restarts with a new 210 days if the nomination is withdrawn or fails.

Engaging in that tactic would be tantamount to a recess appointment -- allowing Bush to have an Attorney General in place more or less indefinitely without Senate confirmation.

http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2007/08/27/gonzales/index.html