Democrats Won't Reschedule Gonzales

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales gestures as he addresses reporters during a media availability after he conducted a round table discussion with law enforcement officials about his Project Safe Childhood initiative in Boston, Friday, March 30, 2007. (AP Photo/Stephan Savoia) (Stephan Savoia - AP)

"We are absolutely confused by the White House position," said Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the No. 2 Senate Democrat. "For the longest time, Alberto Gonzales wasn't going to come, maybe much later. Now the White House can't wait to bring him in."

Gonzales himself instructed a top aide on Saturday to see if the testimony date could be moved up.

He did so, said Justice spokeswoman Tasia Scolinos, because he is eager to testify and "move on as soon as possible to the other important work before the committee and the department." She said a key reason that Gonzales and the committee settled on April 17 in the first place was because Gonzales was scheduled to testify before another committee, Senate Appropriations, on April 10.

Meanwhile, during the congressional recess, Senate Democrats are interviewing lower-level Justice Department officials in private to lay the groundwork for their session with Gonzales.

The clarity and substance of his testimony may influence whether Gonzales keeps his job. President Bush has stood by him, issuing another vote of confidence on Saturday. But Bush has bluntly told Gonzales to explain himself better to Congress.

Lawmakers have demanded to know whether the prosecutors were fired as part of a plan to fill the jobs with political cronies, or as payback for not pursuing cases that were politically important to Republicans.

Not a single allegation of wrongdoing has been backed up by documents and testimony provided so far, Bartlett said.

Congress and the White House remain in a standoff over whether Bush political adviser Karl Rove, former White House counsel Harriet Miers and other administration officials will testify in public about their roles in the firings. There appeared no signs of progress on Sunday.

Bartlett spoke on ABC's "This Week" and CBS' "Face the Nation." McConnell appeared on "Fox News Sunday." Leahy spoke on "Meet the Press."

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Associated Press writers Julie Hirschfeld Davis and Lara Jakes Jordan contributed to this story.