Early on, AG seemed to think combative was the way to go in the hearing today. Understandable he doesn’t want to be a punching bag. But, CAUTION: It takes a certain supremely confident character type for a witness to carry off a combative approach – think Ollie North. Gonzales has never struck me as that type. (I don’t mean that as a dig — it just doesn’t seem to be his personality. Gonzales seems naturally reserved and respectful. When you prep a witness, you have to keep him/her within the witness’s own personality. Anything else risks making the witness come off as strange or uncomfortable — which can make the witness look shifty even if he’s telling the truth.)

He tried a combative interjection with Sen. Specter, saying with an edge, “I prepare for every hearing” when Specter said, offhandedly, ”I know you have been preparing for this hearing.” The result: the AG got clobbered: Specter — eyebrows raised and a dripping ”Oh yeah?” tone — replied, “Do you prepare for every press conference?” — patently referring to Gonzales’ presser when he denied any involvement in deliberation over the firings.

Gonzales ended up apologizing and adding something like, “Senator I don’t want to fight with you.” That’s not where you want to end up if you’re going combative. The goal of being combative, if the witness can carry it off, is to discourage the questioner. This had the opposite effect. Gonzales ended up aggravating Specter, who is a very good cross-examiner … and responded to what he plainly saw as a provocation by going into aggressive trial lawyer mode, targeting the issue of whether Gonzales was being forthright. (Ouch! — and I imagine, going in, the AG had to be hoping Specter would be more sympathetic — not an ally, but someone open to being brought around. All the stranger that the AG would provoke a nasty exchange.).

In any event, the AG seems chastened by the exchange and less like he’s looking for a fight in the last several minutes.