Gonzo for Gonzo! The Former AG Talks. . . and Talks . . . and Talks

[WSJ_law_blog]

We know we’ve done quite a bit in recent weeks about former AG Alberto Gonzales (here and here). And we know that you know that he’s moved down to Lubbock to take a one-year teaching position in the political-science department at Texas Tech. So we’ll forgive you if you view this post with an initial dose of skepticism: After all, you might be thinking: What’s left to say about the guy?

But we strongly suggest you take a look today at this interview with the Bush administration’s former top lawyer. It’s as extensive an interview as we’ve seen since he stepped down from his position in late 2007. While the conversation starts out focused on Lubbock — and the course he’s slated to start teaching soon — it quickly veers into his career as AG.

For starters: his description of his course made us want to run down to Lubbock and sign up:

I’m going to talk a lot about how does the White House actually work, how does legislation … really get passed, how does it work between the executive branch and the legislative branch. And how do you get ready for a Supreme Court nomination, how do you pick a nominee, how do you prepare that nominee, how do you get that nominee confirmed? We’re going to look at issues obviously related to the war on terrorism and some of the big issues that this president still confronts, like what do you do with Guantanamo, what do you do about long-term detention. So those are all issues that we’re going to be looking at. And maybe these are issues that, I have to say, will be covered in other courses by other professors around the country, but I dare say very few are going to have the same level of insight, the direct hands-on involvement that I can bring to the students.

Pretty cool, wethinks.

And for all those looking for a little more on the U.S. attorney scandal, Gonzales gives as comprehensive an answer as we can remember him giving.

The other thing I would want your readers to understand is over the course of four years and eight years, there is a great deal of turnover. And, certainly, more than seven or eight U.S. Attorneys leave or are asked to leave quietly during that period of time. What is unusual, I will concede, is the fact that there was a group that was asked to leave at one time. But the fact that seven or eight might have been asked to leave is not unusual during the course of four years or eight years. It happens, because unfortunately from time to time, individuals in those positions just aren’t doing their job. And from time to time they do something that is wrong. And from time to time, a president may simply want to make a change. He may want to have someone else in that position, which is perfectly appropriate. So during the course of four years or eight years changes occur in U.S. Attorneys’ offices. That happens in most positions.

But it doesn’t stop there. Gonzales talks fairly extensively on the Geneva Convention, the definition of torture, and the protests that his arrival in Lubbock have sparked. Good stuff.

Correction: An earlier version of this post stated that Gonzales will be teaching in the law school at Texas Tech.