July 25, 2007 (LPAC)--Two Senators and other members of Congress are disputing Attorney General Alberto Gonzales's account of the background of the late-night visit to the bedside of the seriously-ill then-Attorney General John Ashcroft in March 2004.

In his testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee yesterday, Gonzales for the first time, said that on the afternoon of the trip to the hospital, there had been an emergency meeting in the White House Situation Room with senior Administration members and the Congressional leadership plus the leadership of the Senate and House Intelligence Committees, known as the "Gang of Eight." The purpose of the meeting, Gonzales said, was to advise the Congress that Deputy Attorney General James Comey would not authorize the continuation of "vitally important intelligence activities" -- presumed to be related to the NSA domestic surveillance program.

"The consensus in the room from the Congressional leadership," Gonzales testified, was "that we should continue the activities, at least for now, despite the objections of Mr. Comey."

The reactions from a number of those in the meeting were quick in coming. Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), who at the time was the senior Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said there was no consensus about the legality of the program, nor, he said, were the Congressional leaders ever expected to give their approval to the program. "(Gonzales) once again is making something up to protect himself," Rockefeller said, as quoted by the Washington Post. Former Senate Democratic Leader Tom Daschle said he could not recall the meeting, and he is "quite certain at no time did we encourage the Attorney General or anyone else to take such actions."