Wonkette

It’s so hard to decide sometimes whether Ashcroft is good or evil. He presided over the initial implementation of the Patriot Act, then got hounded by Gonzo on his deathbed about illegal wiretapping and now he’s gone back to defending the Patriot Act again. But, now, it’s with more torture-y goodness!

At a speech yesterday at the University of Colorado (at which he was heckled, naturally), Ashcroft defended his beloved Patriot Act to jeers from the crowd. But, the real fun came during the Q&A, when one audience member asked if he would agree to be waterboarded to prove it is as not-bad as the Administration says. Ashcroft’s response was, well, less than enthusiastic about the opportunity: “The things that I can survive, if it were necessary to do them to me, I would do.” So, does that mean survive politically? Or regular survival? Can we make it necessary? Sadly, the original questioner was not allowed a follow-up.

Ashcroft: Patriot Act respects rights, improves security [CNN]
Gonzales Hospital Episode Detailed [Washington Post]
Ashcroft defends the Patriot Act [Rocky Mountain News]