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After learning Maine's U.S. attorney was targeted for ouster, Maine's senators rebuke Alberto Gonzales.

By KEVIN WACK, Staff Writer May 18, 2007

Following the revelation that the Bush administration long considered firing Maine's U.S. attorney, the state's two Republican senators sharply criticized Attorney General Alberto Gonzales but stopped short of calling for his resignation.

"Although Mr. Gonzales serves at the pleasure of the President," Sen. Olympia Snowe said Thursday in a written statement, "the President must recognize that the cumulative and troubling pattern of developments that have been disclosed over the past several months has undermined confidence in the Attorney General's ability to serve as the chief law enforcement officer of the United States."

"The President should give these facts serious consideration."

Sen. Susan Collins stressed in a telephone interview that the decision is President Bush's, but also said, "I think the attorney general's credibility has been incredibly damaged."

Gonzales is under growing pressure from Congress, largely over last year's firings of eight U.S. attorneys and lingering questions about their motivation. Five Republican senators have joined Democrats in calling for his resignation.

Gonzales testified last week that the Justice Department's effort was limited to the eight ousted U.S. attorneys, but The Washington Post reported Thursday that 26 federal prosecutors had been considered for firing. Among them was Maine U.S. Attorney Paula Silsby, who appeared on four different lists of candidates for removal between January 2005 and November 2006.

Silsby, a career prosecutor, remains in her post as the top federal law-enforcement official in Maine, where she has strong bipartisan support.

"She's done an outstanding job," Collins said. "I have no idea why she would be included on that list, but I am confident that her inclusion did not reflect an assessment of her performance."

Democratic Rep. Tom Allen, who is challenging Collins in a 2008 Senate race, speculated that the Bush administration may have considered firing Silsby for political reasons.

"I can't think of any performance reason why she might have been there," Allen said. "But I would speculate that because she's a professional and not necessarily a political loyalist that she was put on the list."

Allen is among the members of Congress calling for Gonzales' resignation, saying that the attorney general is weakened by staying under an ethical cloud.

Staff Writer Kevin Wack can be contacted at 791-6365 or at:

kwack@pressherald.com