All that talk about Karl Rove being in the clear was just talk. He was probably doing the spin himself...in some of his infamous super double secret background briefings. But whoever has been doing the spin has been pulling one over on the media...again. Murray Waas has the latest in National Journal:
Fitzgerald did not seek an indictment of Rove, opting to present any potential new evidence on the White House deputy chief of staff to a new grand jury. In recent days, Fitzgerald has reinterviewed several witnesses with knowledge of Rove's role in the Plame leak and talked with attorneys of other potential witnesses.In the article, he's being defended by Jack Abramoff's good pal, Grover Norquist. That just about sums it all up.
The ongoing investigation means that Rove's legal status is likely to remain up in the air until the final disposition of Libby's case. That could be two years from now, or even longer. Rove's predicament contradicts recent news accounts indicating that Fitzgerald will conclude his probe of Rove in the near future.
Rove and the White House had hoped that President Bush's most important political adviser was out of legal jeopardy when the Libby indictment was announced on October 28, and that the political fallout from the CIA leak scandal would recede with the expiration of the grand jury's term. That no longer appears to be the case.
Bush has no credibility anymore anyway. But his attacks on opponents of the war ring extra hollow while he is harboring a traitor at the White House.
