Rove Meets The Special Prosecutor - Again

Karl Rove had a three and a half hour visit with Nora Dannehy yesterday.

Former Bush administration official Karl Rove was interviewed Friday at the office of his attorney about why nine U.S. attorneys were fired in 2006.

After the meeting, Rove's attorney, Robert Luskin, issued a statement: "Mr. Rove was interviewed by prosecutors today and answered all of their questions. He intends to fully cooperate with the investigation."

Rove had no comment for reporters outside Luskin's Georgetown office in northwest Washington, saying only, "Have a nice weekend."

Congress held hearings on the firings amid allegations that the prosecutors were sacked for political reasons. All were political appointees who served at the pleasure of the president, and the Bush Justice Department denied any impropriety.

A Justice Department report last year found that some of the firings were influenced by political considerations. Rove and other Bush officials refused to be interviewed for that investigation, and the Bush administration maintained that it acted properly.

I know that there are so many loose ends from the Bush Administration, but the US Attorneys probe and the perversion of the Justice Department into an adjunct of the Republican National Committee remains important. I expected Dannehy to pretty much have wrapped up by now, so the fact that she's still talking to the principals is reassuring.

Dannehy appeared to have focused in on the firing of David Iglesias, which was the most nakedly political and which includes elements of obstruction of justice. Iglesias was approached by then-Senator Pete Domenici (R-NM) about a corruption case in New Mexico, and pressured to hurry up the investigation. When Iglesias refused, Domenici hung up, and later discussed firing Iglesias with White House officials. And after the 2006 elections, that's precisely what happened. Rove, Domenici and even George W. Bush are exposed by this one.

The focus on torture has obscured these additional instances of lawbreaking during the Bush Administration. It was truly a breathtaking time.