Mukasey's U.S. attorney general bid improves

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Bush's nomination of Michael Mukasey to be the next U.S. attorney general appeared virtually assured Friday when two key Democrats declared their support, despite concerns by others about the retired judge's view of torture.

Sens. Charles Schumer of New York and Dianne Feinstein of California are both members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which is set to vote on Tuesday on whether to send the nomination to the full Senate for approval.

The full Senate would then have to approve the nomination.

"I will support Judge Michael Mukasey for attorney general," Schumer said, adding it was an "extremely difficult decision." Feinstein, noting the ex-judge's experience on national security issues, said Mukasey delivered "crisp and succinct" testimony to the Judiciary Committee.

In backing Mukasey, Feinstein also said that Congress should "explicitly ban 'waterboarding' and other so-called enhanced interrogation techniques for all parts of the government."

Schumer, following a meeting with the nominee, said that if Congress were to pass such a law, "He (Mukasey) flatly told me that the president would have absolutely no legal authority to ignore such a law."

Schumer and Feinstein's support for Mukasey came shortly after Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, a Vermont Democrat, announced his opposition.

"I like Michael Mukasey. I wish that I could support his nomination. But I cannot," Leahy said.

Mukasey, nominated for the job by Bush after the resignation of Alberto Gonzales, has come under increasing criticism from Democrats for his refusal to reject an interrogation technique known as "waterboarding" that simulates drowning.

PUSH FROM BUSH

Speaking in Columbia, South Carolina, Bush made another pitch for Mukasey, saying, "I strongly urge the United States Senate to confirm this man so that I can have an attorney general to work with to protect the United States of America from further attack."

But Leahy was not persuaded.

"There may be interrogation techniques that require close examination and extensive briefings," Leahy said. "Waterboarding is not among them. No American should need a classified briefing to determine whether waterboarding is torture."

Since his confirmation hearings, Democrats have been asking Mukasey to clarify his position on waterboarding and whether the ex-judge considered it unlawful torture.

Bush has insisted that the United States does not engage in torture when questioning terrorism suspects. But he has refused to detail techniques U.S. officials have employed since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and critics have accused the United States of torturing suspects.

On Tuesday, Mukasey wrote to the Judiciary Committee's 10 Democrats that waterboarding as they described it was "repugnant to me." But he said he does not know if U.S. interrogation methods violate laws against torture.

If Mukasey were to declare waterboarding illegal, as attorney general he could find himself prosecuting cases if the technique was used by the CIA, for example.

"If an individual as qualified as Judge Mukasey can't be confirmed, it does raise a interesting question as to who could be confirmed," said Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, who urged quick confirmation of Mukasey.

The four Senate Democrats running for president have announced their opposition to Mukasey.