Image by Twolf
It was bound to happen. Matt Cooper, to whom Karl Rove leaked Valerie Wilson’s identity, is now reporting on Karl Rove again (at his new digs over at TPM). Better yet, Matt suggests Turdblossom may have miscalculated in his efforts to avoid testifying before the House Judiciary Committee.
I spoke with a Washington lawyer who has dealt with many presidential privilege issues and he (or is it she?) raised some interesting questions and offered a prediction.
The first interesting point the person raised is that Rove’s attorney, Robert Luskin, may have made a tactical mistake in writing to White House Counsel Greg Craig for an opinion. "Be careful what you ask for," the source said. After all, Craig could come up with a rationale for Rove testifying. And why rush to Craig at all when you might prevail in the courts? True, the courts have been loathe to offer hard and fast rules in these cases but it would seem worth pursuing such a legal avenue before going to the Democratic White House for solace. My source predicted that in the end there probably will be some kind of accomodation with Rove answering questions on some topics and not on others rather than a showdown that drags on endlessly. Interestingly, the source thought Obama’s executive order on presidential records differed enough from the question of testimony that it probably would not be determinative in the end. [my emphasis]
See? I’m not crazy!! There’s a difference between Executive Prvilege and Absolute Immunity (otherwise known as the claim that you can just blow off Congress). And Rove may not be playing this one correctly, not least because Greg Craig has a great deal of leeway in how he responds to Rove.
Jeebus, I hope Matt’s source is right that Luskin screwed up tactically. Because, thus far, Luskin has been really lucky (and, I have to begrudgingly admit, good) with his defense of Rove.
At some point the luck has to start turning against Turdblossom, doesn’t it?