Bush defends Gonzales

KONGENS LYNGBY, Denmark — President Bush tried yesterday to quell the conservative criticism engulfing his longtime adviser, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, and lashed out at special-interest groups for exploiting the debate over the next Supreme Court justice to raise money.

In his first news conference since Justice Sandra Day O'Connor announced her retirement Friday, Bush said he would not require her replacement to pass a litmus test on abortion or same-sex marriage. He offered a robust defense of Gonzales, the one potential nominee who has stirred vigorous opposition among the president's own conservative supporters for not aggressively opposing abortion and affirmative action.

The continued focus on the attorney general underscored how the selection process has swiftly evolved into a Gonzales-or-someone-else choice. Whether Bush views it that way or not, senators and interest groups on both sides have concentrated their attention on Gonzales' record and perceived views on the theory that the president's friend and confidant has emerged as the front-runner.

Bush seemed annoyed by the attacks on his friend, who followed him from Texas to Washington and served as White House counsel before taking over the Justice Department in February. "All of a sudden this fellow, who is a good public servant and a really fine person, is under fire," Bush told reporters at a news conference with Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen. "I don't like it at all."

Bush offered no clues to his thinking about various candidates but promised to probe the character, not the legal rulings, of prospective justices during interviews at the White House after he returns at the end of the week. Senators, he added, should ignore the intense pressure coming from partisan groups, which plan to spend an unprecedented $100 million to influence the choice.

"I hope the United States Senate conducts themselves in a way that brings dignity to the process and that the senators don't listen to the special-interest groups, particularly those on the extremes that are trying to exploit this opportunity for not only ... what they may think is right but also for their own fund-raising capabilities," Bush said.

Meanwhile, Bush named former Sen. Fred Thompson, R-Tenn., to escort the eventual nominee around the Senate. Thompson, who retired from public office two years ago to return to his acting career, now plays a district attorney on NBC's "Law & Order."

Bush got support from an unexpected quarter yesterday when Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., spoke out favorably about Gonzales and criticized "the far right" for attacking him while the president is overseas.

"Alberto Gonzales is qualified," Reid told reporters in Las Vegas. "He's attorney general of the United States and a former Texas judge. But having said that he's qualified, I don't know if he'd have an easy way through."

The positive assessment contrasted with the broader Democratic critique of Gonzales for his role in drafting detention policies that critics say led to torture of suspected terrorists and other prisoners. Reid joined most Senate Democrats in voting against Gonzales' confirmation as attorney general in February.

Bush's entreaty to conservatives to stop assailing Gonzales was reinforced by White House allies making conference calls emphasizing that such internal division only helps the opposition.

While Bush initially considered announcing his pick next week, aides said there is talk of delaying the decision to protect the nominee from prolonged attacks from the left or right. Either way, Bush wants the new justice approved by early October.