New attorney general sworn in

WASHINGTON — President Bush used the swearing in of former Houston lawyer Alberto Gonzales as attorney general Monday to urge Congress to pass elements of the controversial Patriot Act, set to expire at the end of the year.

Gonzales, 49, the first Hispanic among 80 people who have held the office, promised that he and the other 110,000 Justice Department employees would "work together tirelessly to address terrorism and other threats to our nation and to confront injustice with integrity and devotion to our highest ideals."

The ceremony at the Justice Department marked a proud moment for members of the Texas legal community, some of whom were there to honor Gonzales.

Tom Phillips, recently retired chief justice of the Texas Supreme Court, called the rise of Gonzales from modest circumstances in Humble, Texas, to the highest ranking federal law enforcement official "a beacon and a point of inspiration for all Americans."

Gonzales, flanked by his wife and mother at the ceremony, talked about the role the two women and Bush, played in his success.

"Can a son repay the debt reflected in a lifetime of sacrifice by his parents?" said Gonzales, whose father died when he was 26.

"Can a husband express in appropriate words and deeds his love and respect for the many years of affection and loyalty of a loving wife?

"Can a friend compose a message of sufficient gratitude for a president who has been an inspiration and mentor?"

The ceremony was attended by colleagues of Gonzales from his career in Texas.

He was sworn in by Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, who added to the Texas tone of the event by noting that she was born in the Lone Star State. Gonzales has been tied to Bush since the then-governor plucked him from a Houston law firm, Vinson & Elkins, a decade ago and hired him as the governor's chief counsel. He served as White House counsel through Bush's first term.

Democratic critics have wondered whether Gonzales will be able to separate himself from Bush in a job that requires a transition from the president's advocate to the chief law enforcement representative for all Americans.