White House- President Bush has named his administration's most prominent Hispanic to succeed John Ashcroft as the nation's top law enforcement officer.
Alberto Gonzales grew up with seven siblings in a two-bedroom house in Texas. Now he's in line to be the nation's first Hispanic attorney general.
Bush cited Gonzales' "sharp intellect and sound judgment" in the war on terror. As the White House's top lawyer for the past four years, Gonzales has been at the center of Bush's positions on torture and civil liberties.
Before that, Gonzales was general counsel under Bush in Texas.
He was also the Texas secretary of state and served on that state's Supreme Court.
Accepting the nomination and quoting a prayer, Gonzales said, "Just give me a chance to prove myself."
One liberal Democrat has already welcomed the appointment of "someone less polarizing" to the position. Senator Charles Schumer says Gonzales is already "a better candidate than John Ashcroft."
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