Alberto Gonzales would be my poster boy for the special twist this administration has given to Arendt’s "banality of evil." Gonzales is the empty shell of a human being true evil requires to accomplish its purposes. He is a smiling cipher who repeatedly allowed himself to be used all the while thinking, I’m sure, he did no wrong–he merely did what he was told, did what was expected of him.
I’d say good riddance if there were any possibility that someone with more integrity and honesty could replace him. That can’t happen because there’s too much at stake for this administration in keeping DOJ under its thumb. The administration will find ways to game the system with recess appointments or other strategies to play out the clock. Gonzales would not have been allowed to leave if the administration thought itself vulnerable to being forced to appoint someone with integrity. Would James Comey meet the integrity standard? Hard to say. In any event, I hope I’m proved wrong on that as with so many other things I write about here, but doubt it.
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