Great news. President Bush has withdrawn Timothy Flanigan's nomination for Deputy Attorney General. (Background here.) Senator Dick Durbin has just released this statement (received by e-mail.)

“Earlier this week, I asked for a follow-up hearing on the nomination of Timothy Flanigan to be Deputy Attorney General because serious concerns had been raised about his relationship with indicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff and about his role in crafting the Bush administration’s policies on torture. I wanted to make certain that no conflicts of interest would have prevented Mr. Flanigan from performing his duties.”

“While Mr. Flanigan’s nomination has been withdrawn, troubling questions remain about the Bush administration’s torture policies and Abramoff’s dealings with the administration and the Republican leadership of Congress. We have to answer these questions in order to restore the trust of the American people’s trust in their government. I encourage the President to nominate an individual of unimpeachable integrity as Deputy Attorney General. At this difficult time, the American people deserve no less.”