Politics, Politics and more Politics

A real he-said/he-said burns in D.C. Plainview Daily Herald reports on the latest Karl Rove craziness. In focus is Matthew Cooper of Time Magazine's grand jury testimony. Here's his take:

Time magazine's Matthew Cooper says a 2003 phone call with White House political adviser Karl Rove was the first he heard about the wife of Bush administration critic Joseph Wilson apparently working for the CIA.

Giving a first-person account of his role in a case that nearly landed him in jail, the reporter recalled that Rove told him, "I've already said too much" after revealing that the wife of the former ambassador apparently was with the CIA.

Cooper speculated in the piece, released Sunday, that Rove could have been "worried about being indiscreet, or it could have meant he was late for a meeting or something else."

I say "A plague on both their houses"! The Democrats smell blood in the water. Foaming at the mouth at the thought of the satanic genius Karl Rove out of the White House, they trample all over the investigation in their stampede for a microphone. Meanwhile, Republicans, foaming nealy as much in defense of their guy, exonerate Mr. Rove of wrongdoing before every video feed they can find. Neither side seems interested in allowing an aggressive investigation to take it's course. Each manuevers to take the maximum amount of leverage it can.

Both have a lot to gain. Or lose. The Democrats face slumping poll numbers a year plus out of mid-term Congressional elections in 2006. The POTUS has at least one and possibly three nominations to the SCOTUS before him. If they wratchet up the Nixon-esque rhetoric around Rove's alleged felonious leaks, the Dems can generate sympathy from the public should they filibuster the President's nominations. Plus, if they actually force Mr. Rove to resign, they gain a significant tactical advantage for 2006 and possibly 2008. The Republicans, for their part, had boxed the Dems into a corner. They need a fully cleared Karl Rove to keep them there. Should he be exonerated by the investigation, the Dems loses any leverage they gained from the issue. That means they risk 2006 if they filibuster SCOTUS nominations of the president. Such is the price of compromise.

Meanwhile, they're political jockying continues to make a joke out of the Rule of Law. I thought everyone is innocent until proven guilty. Mr. Rove hasn't even been formally charged. That's why there is an investigation. Both parties would do well to drop this issue for the good of the country. Let the investigation uncover the truth. Then the parties can blast each other into the Potomic for all I care.

Unfortunately, politics trumps truth in D.C. once again. Rove is too seductive a prize to leave to the legal process alone. Expect no halt to the hostile rhetoric anytime soon.