Conyers to Rove: I Mean It This Time!
Since Rep. John Conyers (D-Mi.) said back in April that he was going to kick Karl Rove's ass, hardly a week has gone by without the House Judiciary Committee chairman demanding Rove's testimony before Congress. Today a judiciary subcommittee held a hearing on alleged selective prosecution of Democratic officials within the Bush Justice Dept. Rove was subpoenaed to testify, but he didn't show up, claiming executive privilege.
This appeared to upset Conyers. "Mr. Rove's absence today is an insult to the American people and to the system of checks and balances that are the basis of our constitution and our democracy,"Conyers said today. He added that it's necessary to ensure "that no one-- not the President and certainly not Karl Rove is above the law."
To this end Conyers and Linda Sanchez, (D-Ca.) the chairwoman of the commercial and administrative law subcommittee that convened the hearing, said they wrote a letter to Rove's lawyer "urging him to reconsider his refusal to testify as required by the subpoena." Rove and his legal team have been given five days to respond.
What does Conyers want Rove to talk about? “We want him for so many things, it’s hard to keep track,” the veteran lawmaker said in May. Rove is at least wanted to discuss the dubious prosecution of Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman (D) and the leaking of Valerie Plame's identity. Rove has gone years now without being candid about these subjects. But it's strangely inspirational, if not terribly effective, to see Conyers relentlessly pester him.
Comments:
Posted 07/10/2008 04:19pm with
Sent a letter strongly urging him to reconsider? Wow, that’s quite an ass-kicking. Thanks, Democrats! Way to stand up for democracy!
Posted 07/10/2008 06:47pm with
Contempt of Congress? Maybe others will follow Rove example and ignore Congress. Not a good sign!
Posted 07/11/2008 06:04am with
Welcome to the world of the Slim Majority. Just enough power to sit at the front of the bus, but not enough to tell the bus driver what route he should take.
I do wonder if the voting public recognizes the repug’s hand, in both the Legislature and Executive branches, at sabotaging the Democrats attempts to change the Legislative Branch from a rubber-stamping agency of the Executive Branch to the independent Institution it was before the repug’s took control.