Mr. Torture Memo, Mr. Who-Needs-a-Warrant, Mr. Partisanship Kicks Ass, Senor Shit on the Constitution.  By any name, he is Gone-zo:

Alberto Gonzales, the nation’s first Hispanic attorney general, announced his resignation Monday, driven from office after a wrenching standoff with congressional critics over his honesty and competence.

*sniff*…do I smell spin already?

Republicans and Democrats alike had demanded his departure over the botched handling of FBI terror investigations and the firings of U.S. attorneys, but President Bush had defiantly stood by his Texas friend for months until accepting his resignation last Friday.

“After months of unfair treatment that has created a harmful distraction at the Justice Department, Judge Gonzales decided to resign his position and I accept his decision,” Bush said from Texas, where he is vacationing. (emphasis mine)

This guy politicizes the Justice Department so thoroughly that John fucking ASHCROFT looks like a sensible human being in comparison, and the claim slid into the sewage pond of talking points is “well, he couldn’t do his job anymore cuz of those mean ol’ Democrats”?  Those same pussies that barely even touched on the numerous crimes ironically committed by or with the approval of the nation’s #1 prosecutor?  The candy asses that hemmed and hawed about warrantless surveillance on US citizens only to LEGALIZE it?

If that’s bullying, then I’m a sentient ham sandwich.

Of course, there’s already discussion over who’ll fill the hole:

Homeland Security chief Michael Chertoff was among those mentioned as possible successors, though a senior administration official said the matter had not been raised with Chertoff. Bush leaves Washington next Monday for Australia, and Gonzales’ replacement might not be named by then, the official said. […]

Congressional aides and lawmakers agreed that any nomination of a new attorney general was almost certain to be acrimonious. The easiest prospects, some said, might be a current or former colleague of senators charged with the confirmation. Sen. Arlen Specter, the ranking Republican on the Judiciary Committee, told reporters Monday that he would not accept the job, if offered.

But, he said, another current or former senator “might be just the ticket.”

I have no idea why it popped into my head, but for some reason I can imagine him trying to nominate Lieberman.  He’s an authoritarian nutjob, prone to using fear for political leverage a lot like Bush, and as a twist he could claim “well damn, you guys said you wanted a non-partisan!” if anyone actually had the courage to still object.  Dear Vishnu I hope he doesn’t read this blog…

Unfortunately, though Gonzo won’t be there, somebody will.  The painful truth is, in the long term, this doesn’t matter, for one reason:

[T]he only way to change the policies of the Executive branch is to change Presidents.

Odds aren’t good that whoever comes in next will relinquish the power that the Bush regime seized.  That would be why I suspect over time scrapping the whole thing is going to stop being seen as crazy talk.  To deliberately butcher a Keynes quote, in the long run we’re all anarchists.