Raw Story:
Karl Rove will resign from his position in the Bush Administration and return to Texas Aug. 31, according to an interview published Monday with Paul Gigot, editorial page editor for The Wall Street Journal.
When asked by Gigot whether he's leaving "to avoid Congressional scrutiny," he said, "I know they'll say that. But I'm not going to stay or leave based on whether it pleases the mob."
Rove's scalp is one for which a special place has been reserved on most Democratic mantles. His ruthless pursuit of a permanent Republican smajority has left many bruised egos and damaged reputations in its wake. Rove's fingerprints are believed to smudge scandals ranging from the disclosure of covert CIA agent Valerie Plame's identity in 2003 to the dismissals of nine US Attorneys late last year. Congress has subpoenaed Rove's testimony in its investigation of the federal prosecutor-firings, but so far he has refused to appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
There's been some noise that Rove may not be covered by executive privilege now, but that's pretty much bullshit -- at least as I understand it. If your lawyer retires, that doesn't mean that discussions you've had with him are no longer privileged and logic would suggest that the same thing's at play here.
Rove may be trying to avoid the heat, but I doubt it'll work. It seems to me that it's more likely he'll wind up on someone's -- say, Fred Thompson's for the sake of argument -- presidential campaign. It's really the only thing he's good at.
