The White House on Friday expressed full support for embattled Attorney General Alberto Gonzales despite mounting criticism from US lawmakers in Congress over his performance.
"The attorney general has the full confidence of the president," White House spokesman Tony Fratto told reporters.
"He is focused on the mission of the Department of Justice which is to keep Americans safe" from domestic terrorism and crimes against children, Fratto said.
Gonzales, the country's top law enforcement officer, has faced calls for his resignation over allegations he fired federal prosecutors last year for purely political reasons to benefit Bush's Republican party. He has denied the charges.
Several Republican lawmakers have joined Democrats in criticizing Gonzales, with Republican Senator Norm Coleman saying on Thursday that Gonzales should step down.
"We know it's been a difficult period (for Gonzales) dealing with the discussions and questions having to do with the US attorneys," Fratto said.
"But the attorney general is sticking to his job. We think he's been a very strong attorney general and we continue to support him."
Democrat senators said they plan to hold a no-confidence vote on Gonzales soon, a move dismissed by the White House.
"I think we would consider it to be just another political stunt," Fratto said.
Gonzales also faced accusations this week that as a White House aide three years ago he tried to circumvent Justice Department lawyers in seeking approval for a warrantless eavesdropping program.
The revelations came in dramatic testimony from a former deputy attorney general, James Comey, who told a congressional committee this week that Gonzales and another top White House aide lobbied the then attorney general, John Ashcroft, to authorize the domestic spying program over the objections of the Justice Department.
The two allegedly made their case to an ailing Ashcroft who was in a Washington hospital for an emergency gall bladder operation, said Comey, who argued against their request in the same hospital room. Ashcroft refused to renew the program.
The 2004 episode triggered a crisis in the Bush administration, Comey said, with Ashcroft, FBI Director Robert Mueller and other senior Justice Department officials threatening to resign in protest.
Bush was forced to intervene to defuse the revolt, according to Comey.
Fratto declined to comment on Comey's account, saying it involved classified programs and confidential deliberations by the president.
