Four on the floor

Justice | Another top Justice Department official resigns—yet Alberto Gonzales remains | Mark Bergin

The irony seemed lost on Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. His new crime-prevention program, "Don't Lie for the Other Guy," launched the day after yet another Justice Department official stepped down amid the controversy over last year's botched mass firing of U.S. attorneys, for which Gonzales is ultimately responsible. Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty, the department's No. 2 man, became the fourth—and highest-ranking—official to go in the simmering controversy when he submitted his letter of resignation May 14.

Gonzales remains resolute that he will not resign unless asked by President George W. Bush, who has expressed only support for his embattled appointee. Bush has likewise protected his executive aides, vowing to resist subpoenas for testimony about White House involvement in the firings of nine U.S. attorneys. The administration's wagon circling has stopped short of departed officials Kyle Sampson, Monica Goodling, Michael Battle, and now McNulty.