Senator rips White House for withholding nominee's memos

Attorney general nominee Alberto Gonzales' confirmation hearing this week may become more contentious because the White House has refused to provide copies of his memos on the questioning of terror suspects. ''We go into the hearing with some knowledge of what has occurred because of press reports or leaks but without the hard evidence that will either exonerate or implicate Judge Gonzales in this policy,'' complained Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the Senate's No. 2 Democrat, on Monday. Durbin and other Democrats plan to question Gonzales on his involvement in the crafting of policies concerning questioning -- policies that the Justice Department has backed away from. Still, the issue probably won't be enough to stop Republicans from confirming Gonzales as the first Hispanic attorney general. Republicans hold 55 seats in the new Senate, while Democrats control 45 seats. The Democrats have not yet decided whether to try to block Gonzales' confirmation. [more]

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