Karl Rove ain't coming. And he ain't talking. Except on Fox News. Despite being subpoenaed by the House Judiciary Committee to testify on his role in politicizing the Justice Department -- and in using the Department to selectively prosecute Democratic officials -- the erstwhile Boy Genius has announced that he won't be showing up at tomorrow's scheduled hearing. He claims that the president's assertion of executive privilege "obligates" him to disregard the Congressional order. By doing so, Rove is thumbing his nose at Congress, legal precedent, the public's right to know the truth -- about, among other things, the firing of nine U.S. attorneys and the blackballing of Justice Department hires -- and the Constitution. In 1776, Thomas Paine -- America's first blogger -- wrote in Common Sense: "in America the law is King. For as in absolute governments the King is law, so in free countries the law ought to be King; and there ought to be no other." But throughout its seven-plus years, the Bush administration has demonstrated an unwavering belief that it is above the law and a deep-rooted disdain for checks and balances, and the Constitutional imperative of coequal branches of government. Rove's refusal is, of course, part and parcel of the Bush White House's ongoing efforts to keep its actions cloaked in secrecy. But beyond that, it is further evidence that for Bush/Cheney and company the ultimate power in America lies in their hands ...
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