Thursday, August 13, 2009

NY Times: Evidence of a Rove Scandal



We have been documenting the political and legal consequences of the Rove Republican Racket and today, the gray lady, The New York Times, agreed with our general view on Rove's political firing of nine U.S. Attorneys in 2006, especially the firing in New Mexico.

From today's editorial, appropriately titled, "More Evidence of a Scandal:"

Documents released by Congress, including testimony from Karl Rove, offer powerful new evidence that the Bush administration fired top prosecutors who refused to use their offices to promote the electoral fortunes of Republicans.

Turning law enforcement into a tool of partisan politics is a serious offense, and a Justice Department investigation is under way. Congress must also continue its investigation and call Mr. Rove and others to testify publicly so the American people can hear for themselves how the justice system was hijacked.
The materials released on Tuesday paint an ugly picture of fair-minded prosecutors under siege by the White House for refusing to politicize their offices. And it puts Mr. Rove, former President George W. Bush’s chief political operative, at the center of it.

Some of the most disturbing revelations concern the firing of David Iglesias, the United States Attorney in New Mexico. He was put on a list to be fired shortly after a White House aide complained to Mr. Rove that Mr. Iglesias was not doing enough — including refusing to bring politically useful public corruption cases — to help Heather Wilson, a Republican member of the House of Representatives, fend off a Democratic challenger in the 2006 election.

Harriet Miers, the former White House counsel, told investigators that an “agitated” Mr. Rove called her before the election to say that Mr. Iglesias was a serious problem, and he wanted something done. Mr. Iglesias had received high marks from the Justice Department for the quality of his work.
Read the full editorial here.