Moderate Republicans lend sympathetic ears to McKay blasts

[n2doc]

Moderate Republicans lend sympathetic ears to McKay blasts
By NEIL MODIE
P-I REPORTER

WENATCHEE -- Fired U.S. Attorney John McKay accused senior Justice Department officials Sunday of "lies and cover-ups" and possibly criminal acts, and he found a sympathetic audience -- of Republicans, no less.

Some GOP loyalists might consider him a political traitor for helping to fuel bipartisan congressional demands for the ouster of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales in the wake of the firings of McKay and nine fellow U.S. attorneys, possibly for political reasons. But the Mainstream Republicans of Washington viewed McKay as worthy of repeated applause.

At their annual convention here, the statewide organizaton of moderate and center-right Republicans clapped enthusiastically when McKay, the former U.S. attorney for Western Washington, declared that the "enormous power" vested in federal prosecutors "cannot be associated with partisan politics."

More applause came when he recited his Republican Party credentials and declared his fealty to GOP principles but criticized some of the party's tactics:

"What we've done is take issues like gay marriage and rubbed people's noses in it ... We raise abortion up on the flagpole every single time to create dissension, to create some line that has nothing to do with what Republicans are about. We should accept people into the party who have divergent views, on immigration, on gay marriage."

more:
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/316501_mckay21.html

[originalpckelly]

1. I'm glad there are still good Republicans willing to admit when something goes wrong.

It's not like McKay did anything wrong, he never should have been fired. It's a disgrace.

I think this may be a sign that the Republicans are slowly turning against Bush.

[elocs]

2. Want impeachment AND conviction of Bushco?

There are moderate and honest Republicans in this country have the opportunity to rescue their party. Outside of the extremism, Republicans do have a legitimate alternative political philosophy. It is one that I do not agree with, but the tension between Democratic and Republican philosophies should be what keeps them honest. Unfortunately, that does not always work. For the Republicans, the extremists and the neocons have hijacked their party, leaving many honest Republicans stranded. They have an opportunity now to come clean with what Bushco has done and maybe rescue the soul of their party. These are the people the Democrats need to work with to not only purge their party, but to save our country. The world is not black and white as much as some people like to view it that way. Democrats need help from moderate Republicans and we need a Republican senator like Senator Howard Baker who asked concerning Nixon, "What did the President know and when did he know it?" When that happens, Bushco will start to crumble and there will be no saving it.

See this editorial from Carl Bernstein from 3 years ago about this very subject:
http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/editorials/2004-05-23-bush-edit_x.htm

"Thirty years ago, a Republican president, facing impeachment by the House of Representatives and conviction by the Senate, was forced to resign because of unprecedented crimes he and his aides committed against the Constitution and people of the United States. Ultimately, Richard Nixon left office voluntarily because courageous leaders of the Republican Party put principle above party and acted with heroism in defense of the Constitution and rule of law."