Next Stop: Nirvana

And: "Partisan politics plays no part in either the bringing of charges or the timing of charges."

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From the looks of bliss on the dais, you'd think Mukasey was wearing a saffron robe. "This is a much more responsive witness and nominee," said Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.), a ferocious critic of Alberto Gonzales's Justice Department, "and I am grateful."

Ohmmm.

The calm suffused the hearing room as it became clear that there would be no conflict. A demonstrator from the left-wing group Code Pink played quietly with her camera strap. Audience members stretched, yawned and perused newspapers. Nina Totenberg of National Public Radio completed a crossword puzzle.

Part of Mukasey's magic came from the fact that senators were just relieved to see somebody -- anybody -- other than Gonzales, whose disastrous tenure at the Justice Department became a display of partisanship and incompetence. And Mukasey cut an unassuming figure: He wore big glasses, hunched over the witness table and swapped his leather chair for a mesh model with the operating instructions still dangling from it.

But Mukasey also enhanced his appeal with his eager determination to show space between himself and his predecessor.

Leahy asked about the memo justifying torture of terrorism suspects. "Worse than sin," Mukasey replied. "It was a mistake. It was unnecessary."

Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) asked what he'd do if Bush wanted to do something unconstitutional. "I would have two choices," Mukasey replied. "I could either try to talk him out of it, or leave."

Sen. Herb Kohl (D-Wis.) inquired about politically motivated hiring and firing of U.S. attorneys. "I'm going to get in the middle of it very fast and stop it," the nominee vowed.

Feinstein asked whether Bush could take military actions without advising Congress. "The president would be, at the very least, unwise to undertake major initiatives without making sure that everybody's on the same page," he answered.

The heresies piled up. "There is no excuse," Mukasey said, for making gang violence less than a top priority. He said he would end Gonzales's blanket refusal to prosecute contempt-of-Congress cases. He declared that "unilateralism, across the board, is a bad idea." He promised a review of policies regarding detention, surveillance and torture. And he admitted that one claim of executive privilege by the Bush administration left him with a simple reaction: "Huh?"

Schumer asked him about a book by a former Justice Department official who is highly critical of the administration's legal policies. "I thought it was superb," the nominee raved. "I mean, talk about 'couldn't put it down.' I was in a way sorry when I finished it."

The senators were in bipartisan nirvana.

"A refreshing change," Schumer pronounced.

"I've grown in admiration of your fine record," Sen. John Cornyn (R-Tex.) added.

"You seem to have the gifts and graces at this time to do the job," Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) agreed.

"I'm very impressed," concurred Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.).

Ohmmm.