“Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom”
                             - Thomas Jefferson

“After two years of stonewalling, it’s time for him to talk,” said House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers (D-MI) as he issued a subpoena to Karl Rove on Monday.  The subpoena requires Rove to testify regarding his role in the Bush Administration’s politicization of the Department of Justice, including the US Attorney firings and the prosecution of former Alabama Governor Don Siegelman. 

This comes after months of attempts by House Democrats to force the Bush White House to disclose information about the firing of the attorneys and the prosecution of Siegelman. 

Until now, Rove has refused to appear in response to a Judiciary Committee subpoena, claiming that former presidential advisers cannot be compelled to testify before Congress.  This “absolute immunity” position, which was used by Bush to keep pretty much anyone in the executive branch from appearing before Congress, has been rejected by U.S. District Judge John Bates.

President Obama has previously dismissed the claim as “completely misguided,” and Rep. Conyers noted that the change in administration may impact the legal arguments available to Rove in this long-running dispute.  Mr. Conyers added, “Change has come to Washington, and I hope Karl Rove is ready for it.”

In May of 2008, the House Judiciary Committee, while investigating allegations that Rove and his White House allies dismissed U.S. attorneys and prosecuted officials who they saw as political opponents, subpoenaed Rove.  In July, Rove, President Bush’s longtime political guru, refused the order to testify, with his lawyer asserting that Rove was “immune” from the subpoena the committee had issued, arguing that the committee could not compel him to testify due to “executive privilege.”

The House was unable to get Rove in front of Conyers’ committee under the Bush administration because Bush extended his cloak of “executive privilege” to engulf just about anyone who had knowledge Bush wished to keep from the Congress.  With Bush no longer able to shield him, it will be interesting to see how Rove fairs.