JURIST - Paper Chase: Gonzales no-confidence vote set for mid-June in Senate

[JURIST] The US Senate has scheduled debate and a vote on a resolution expressing the Senate's lack of confidence [JURIST report] in Attorney General Alberto Gonzales [JURIST news archive] for mid-June. Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-NY) [official website] said Thursday that 26 Democratic senators join him in co-sponsoring the no-confidence resolution. A decision whether to recruit Republican co-sponsors will be made next week. Debate on the no-confidence resolution is expected to proceed after the Senate completes work on comprehensive immigration reform.

On Wednesday, former US Department of Justice (DOJ) aide Monica Goodling [JURIST news archive] testified before the House Judiciary Committee about the controversial firings of US attorneys [JURIST news archive], contradicting claims by Gonzales in March that he "was not involved in any discussions" about the firings. Documents disclosed in March also contradict Gonzales' claims of limited involvement [JURIST report]. Last Sunday, Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA) [official profile], the top Republican member on the Senate Judiciary Committee, said that he believed a "sizable number" of Republican members of Congress would join Democrats [JURIST report] in a vote of no-confidence. Specter also said he had a "sense" that Gonzales may step down before the vote. Bloomberg has more. AP has additional coverage.

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