Gonzales: Deputy had charge of prosecutor firings

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said Tuesday he relied heavily on his deputy to oversee the firings of U.S. attorneys, appearing to distance himself from his departing second-in-command.
Gonzales' comments came the day after Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty said he would step down by the end of summer, a decision that people familiar with his plans said was hastened by the controversy over last year's firings of eight prosecutors.
"At the end of the day, the recommendations reflected the views of the deputy attorney general. He signed off on the names," Gonzales told reporters after a speech about Justice Department steps to curb rising violent crime.
McNulty, reached in San Antonio after Gonzales' remarks, declined to respond.
Gonzales has said he most valued McNulty's opinions about firing the prosecutors, now under investigation by Congress to determine if they were politically motivated.
But his remarks Tuesday, on the heels of McNulty's resignation, underscored weeks of strain between the two men and their staffs.
It also raised questions of whether McNulty's resignation also was ordered.
On Capitol Hill, lawmakers from both parties defended McNulty and rapped Gonzales' leadership of the Justice Department.
House Judiciary Chairman John Conyers, D-Mich., questioned whether McNulty was being made to take the blame for the department's botched handling of the firings.
"With this Justice Department, the buck always stops somewhere else, and the fall guy is always the last guy out of the door," said Conyers.
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