Bush: No attorney general if not Mukasey

[kurth]

Bush: No attorney general if not Mukasey
By LAURIE KELLMAN, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - President Bush sought to save Michael Mukasey's troubled nomination for attorney general Thursday, defending the retired judge's refusal to say whether he considers waterboarding torture and warning of a leaderless Justice Department if Democrats don't confirm him.

"If the Senate Judiciary Committee were to block Judge Mukasey on these grounds, they would set a new standard for confirmation that could not be met by any responsible nominee for attorney general," Bush said in a speech at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.

"That would guarantee that America would have no attorney general during this time of war," the president said.

Nonetheless, opposition continued to grow. Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., became the fourth of 10 Democrats on the 19-member Judiciary Committee to declare he will vote against Mukasey when the panel decides Tuesday whether to endorse or reject his nomination...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071102/ap_on_go_pr_wh/senate_mukasey;_ylt=ArFZ3ueCAfrmkFtX4MtOhaKs0NUE