Bush Selects Ashcroft to be Attorney General

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A41101-2000Dec22.html

Bush Selects Ashcroft to be Attorney General By Mike Allen

Washington Post Staff Writer

Friday, December 22, 2000; 1:03 PM

AUSTIN, Dec. 22 –– President-elect Bush chose Sen. John D. Ashcroft of Missouri, a leading conservative, to be his attorney general today, restoring Ashcroft to the zenith of politics just six weeks after he was defeated for reelection.

Ashcroft, 58, also was Missouri's governor for two terms and was state attorney general. He was elected to the Senate in 1994 and lost this fall to Gov. Mel Carnahan, who had been killed in a plane crash and whose widow, Jean, was appointed to replace him. Ashcroft pondered, but ultimately rejected, the pleas of Christian conservatives that he enter the race for the Republican presidential nomination last year.

Later in the day, Bush announced that he had chosen New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman to be the next administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. Whitman, a moderate Republican who favors abortion rights, has often incurred criticism from the rightwing of the party, which is most delighted by Ashcroft’s nomination. He also appeared at a separate news conference with Virginia Gov. James S. Gilmore III, who Bush has chosen to run the Republican National Committee.

Announcing his choice of Ashcroft in the ballroom of the Driskill Hotel, near the Texas Capitol, Bush said Ashcroft has “a very good record of reaching out to people from all walks of life.”

"As I looked around to find the appropriate person to lead this important office, I looked for three things: one, a person of unquestionable integrity; secondly, somebody who knows how to manage –– an executive, somebody who can handle a large agency; and thirdly, I wanted someone who would have a commitment to fair and firm and impartial administration of justice. I am confident I've found that person in John Ashcroft."

Ashcroft used the word "integrity" four times in his brief acceptance remarks. "Quite simply, we will strive to be a guardian of liberty and equal justice," Ashcroft said. "For freedom, as President-elect Bush has noted, can flourish only in a culture defined by the rule of law, a rule of law that knows no class, that sees no color and bows to no creed. It is a rule of law that has been elemental to the American experiment since our very first days. The pursuit of liberty and equal justice for every citizen requires that we foster integrity in the nation's highest law-enforcement office."

Michael P. Farris, a leader of the home-school movement and president of Patrick Henry College in Loudoun County, said he is "ecstatic" about the choice. "Ashcroft is a hero to conservatives," Farris said. "He has a long track record of supporting the conservative agenda. He's pro-life and strongly in favor of parental involvement in education." Farris also cited Ashcroft's recent work on Internet privacy issues.

In his remarks today, Bush drew only implicit contrasts with the current Justice Department. "John Ashcroft will perform his duties guided by principle, not by politics," Bush said. "He will be faithful to the law, pursuing justice without favor. He will enforce the law and he will follow the truth. It is my honor to send this good man's name to the United States Senate to be the 79th attorney general of the United States."

But asked how the integrity and ethics of his Justice Department would differ from Clinton's, Bush said, "During the course of the transition, I'm sure there's going to be ample opportunity to be critical of the administration, which I'm not going to do. It is now time to move forward. That's what the election was all about. It is time –– we've had our debates, we've had our discussions, and this administration is going to move forward."

Ashcroft was elected Missouri governor in 1984 and 1988 and was state attorney general from 1976 until 1985. He graduated from Yale University in 1964 and earned a law degree from the University of Chicago in 1967. He and his wife, Janet, have three children and one grandchild.

"Political defeat, as my old colleague and college classmate Joe Lieberman has written, brings more than emotion and pain –– it brings perspective," Ashcroft said today. "And today, for Janet and me, it brings a renewed and noble call to public service."

A biography distributed by Bush's press office said Ashcroft "enjoys the outdoors, family time, and singing and song writing." He is the baritone voice of a quarter of senators who call themselves the Singing Senators.

Ashcroft and Bush met at the Texas governor's mansion Thursday night and the offer was formally extended, a Bush official said. Ashcroft took a commercial flight to Austin on Thursday and was recognized by people on the plane and he feared word of his impending appointment would get out, the official said.

Bush aides chortled at having kept such a big secret. No one outside Bush's tightest circle was told until this morning, aides said. Ashcroft called a few friends an hour before the announcement, and Bush aides began notifying congressional leaders about half an hour ahead of time, the Bush official said.

Bush has selected a number of other officials for his White House staff and those could be announced any time, aides said.

After today, Bush is not scheduled to make any more formal news until Thursday. He plans private Christmas activities at his ranch and at the governor's mansion, then is taking a two-day vacation at a Florida island before heading to Washington at the end of next week for two days of transition work.

© 2000 The Washington Post Company

-- (in@the.news), December 22, 2000


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