Bush official accuses Deputy Attorney General of misleading Congress

A Bush administration official involved in the controversy over sacked US prosecutors has accused the deputy attorney general, Paul McNulty, of misleading Congress over the dismissals. Monica Goodling, who resigned last month as the justice department's White House liaison, claimed McNulty's explanation of the sackings "was incomplete or inaccurate in a number of respects." "I believe the deputy was not fully candid," she said. Goodling provoked uproar in March by her refusal to testify before a Senate committee investigation into whether there were political motives for the sacking of the eight federal prosecutors. Goodling invoked the constitution's protection against self-incrimination, but on May 23 she broke her silence before a packed House of Representatives' judiciary committee. It was the first time Goodling has spoken publicly about her role in the scandal that has resulted in demands for the resignation of the attorney general, Alberto Gonzales. President Bush insists that Gonzales still has his support and that his close friend had done nothing wrong. In February, McNulty told a Senate panel that most of the prosecutors were dismissed because of their performances but at least one was asked to leave without cause. Goodling now admits she considered applicants for jobs as career prosecutors based on their political loyalties, which is against federal law. Democrats, who took power in Congress in January, accuse the administration of firing the prosecutors for political reasons, saying Republicans viewed them as not pursuing corruption allegations against Democrats strongly enough.