Gonzales Exiled to Texas Panhandle
Whatever his sins, does he really deserve a semester in Lubbock?
By SARA K. SMITH
Updated 10:55 PM CST, Thu, Jul 9, 2009
Former Bush Attorney General Alberto Gonzales may never have been convicted of any crimes, but he has been sentenced to one of the harshest punishments known to humankind: living in Lubbock, Texas.
Lubbock is located in the wasteland of the Texas panhandle, a barren stretch of sun-baked gristle and misery with no redeeming quality except for the fact that it isn't a war zone.
This unhappy town is home to Texas Tech University, which finally took in Alberto Gonzales after the former AG spent months searching for work. And in spite of all his sterling credentials -- including harassing old men under the influence of powerful anesthetics and conveniently forgetting the details of a huge scandal at the department he headed -- nobody seemed to want to give him an honest-to-goodness job. A guy like him should be able to get a tenure-track position at a decent law school, at least! And yet ... he has settled for being a college recruiter, in Lubbock:
In a press release ... the university said that as of Aug. 1, Gonzales will join the Texas Tech University System to assist both Texas Tech University and Angelo State University (in San Angelo) with recruiting and retaining first generation and under-represented students. [...]Their statement continues that he also will teach a junior-level seminar course, “Contemporary Issues in the Executive Branch” in the Department of Political Science at Texas Tech. As a visiting professor Gonzales will guest lecture to classes across the campus.
This is, to put it modestly, a travesty. There is something terribly wrong in America when we send former Guantanamo detainees to live in beautiful island paradises while honorable men like Alberto Gonzales have to settle for Texas Tech.
Sara K. Smith prefers the charms of scenic Abilene. She writes for NBC and Wonkette.
Copyright NBC Local Media
First Published: Jul 8, 2009 11:25 PM CST
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