Leahy: Gonzales must clarify statements

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WASHINGTON - Attorney General Alberto Gonzales must quickly clarify apparent
contradictions in his testimony about warrantless spring or risk a possible
perjury investigation, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee said
Sunday.

This is going to have a devastating effect on law enforcement throughout the
country if it's not cleared up," said Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt.
"If he doesn't correct it, then I think that there are so many errors in
there that the pressure will lead very, very heavily to whether it's a
special prosecutor, a special counsel, efforts within the Congress."



(...)



Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., one of the senators who has called for the
perjury investigation, said even if the latest contradiction was over a more
technical point, it still warranted a special review.

"The truth is that the attorney general, in my view, has at least lied to
Congress and may have committed perjury, and I think we need to have
somebody who's able to look at both the classified and nonclassified
material in a way that he can actually determine whether or not criminal
charges have to be pursued," Feingold said.

Leahy declined to say whether he would support a special investigation
should Gonzales fail to correct his testimony in a meaningful way. He said
he would discuss the matter with Specter in hopes of achieving a bipartisan
approach.

"He has a week," said Leahy, referring to Gonzales. "But you have to follow
the law. I have to follow the law. They should have to follow the law.
That's the bottom line."

Leahy sent a letter to Gonzales last Thursday giving him a week to resolve
any inconsistencies in his testimony.


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