Karl Rove has emerged unscathed in the justice system so far. But the New York Times puts out its claws today and draws blood.

I can't remember a time during PlameGate, the closest Karl Rove came to being indicted, that the New York Times so lambasted Rove.

Whatever the immediate objective, Mr. Rove seems focused on one overarching goal: creating a permanent Republican majority, even if that means politicizing every aspect of the White House and subverting the governmental functions of the executive branch.

....This was, perhaps, the inevitable result of taking the chief operative of a presidential campaign, one famous for his scorched-earth style, and ensconcing him in the White House — not in a political role, but as a key player in the formation of policy. Mr. Rove never had to submit to Senate confirmation hearings. Yet, from the very start, photographs of cabinet meetings showed him in the background, keeping an enforcer’s eye on the proceedings. After his re-election in 2004, President Bush formally put Mr. Rove in charge of all domestic policy.

The Times says Congress shouldn't let Rove skate on testifying under oath at hearings on the fired U.S. Attorneys.

The investigation of the firings of the United States attorneys seems to be closing in on Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, who should have been fired weeks ago. But Congress should bring equal scrutiny to the more powerful Mr. Rove. If it does, especially by forcing him to testify in public, it will find that he has been at the vortex of many of the biggest issues they are now investigating.

I think Karl Rove's bigger problem is that Bush is now a lame duck and the media figures his lieutenants are now fair game.

The whole bunch of them are about to see their power dwindle.

It's up to us in 2008 to ensure we get a regime change, not just a name change.

Edger has led the charge on the growing Out of Iraq Blogger Caucus.

E, we have a new prospect for membership, President Bush's former pollster, Matthew Dowd:

In a wide-ranging interview here, Mr. Dowd called for a withdrawal from Iraq and expressed his disappointment in Mr. Bush’s leadership.

. . . His views against the war began to harden last spring when, in a personal exercise, he wrote a draft opinion article and found himself agreeing with Mr. Kerry’s call for withdrawal from Iraq. He acknowledged that the expected deployment of his son Daniel was an important factor.

. . . “If the American public says they’re done with something, our leaders have to understand what they want,” Mr. Dowd said. “They’re saying ‘Get out of Iraq.’”

He has a blog with Joe Lockhart. Send him an invite Edger.

Seven days after Pat Tillman was killed by friendly fire, Lt. Gen. Stanley McChrystal sent a memo to Gen. John Abizaid warning against "any unknowing statements by our country's leaders which might cause public embarrassment if the circumstances of Cpl. Tillman's death become public." In other words, "don't pretend that Tillman was killed by the enemy, because the truth will come back to bite you in the rear."

Advising the government to be truthful proved to be a wasted effort. The memo was written on April 29, 2004.

The family was not told until May 29, 2004, what really happened. In the intervening weeks, the military continued to say Tillman died under enemy fire, and even awarded him the Silver Star, which is given for heroic battlefield action.

Pat Tillman's mother has this to say:

I have stated that:

The March 31, 2008 nonbinding date contained in the Senate provision should become the announced date certain for NOT funding the Iraq Debacle. . . . [T]he INTENTION to NOT fund the war past the date certain is essential to a political strategy that will allow the Congress to do this. The American People must be forewarned of the date. They must internalize it. They must then internalize that if Bush does not withdraw troops past that date, then it is he who is abandoning the troops in harm's way - [it is] President Bush.

According to Newsweek, the American People will support this:

Do you support or oppose the legislation passed this week by the U.S. Senate calling for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq by March 2008?

Support: 57%
Oppose: 36%
DK: 7%

Why should Talk Left readers root for the Florida Gators? Here's another reason why:

Some of Noah’s statements are nonverbal and are made off the court. When his championship team was invited to the White House this season, Noah at first was reluctant to go because he said he opposed President Bush and the war in Iraq.

Seriously though, Florida is an admirable team because it is a TEAM, evenly spreading the scoring among the 5 starters, averaging between 11 and 13 points per game each. The star at Florida is the TEAM, not Noah, not Horford, not Brewer, not Green, not Humphrey. You don't see that so much in this day of diaper dandies and sneaker contracts. Three of the players put a hold on the NBA in order to have another year of the college experience. That seemed pretty smart to me.

On the games, Florida is the best team, but the best team does not always win. UCLA is clearly much improved. It will be a close game. I think and hope the Gators will prevail. In the opening game, the matchup of Hibbert and Oden will be compelling. I think Georgetown is the better team and will win.

From TalkLeft reader lawyer Terry Kindlon:

While we're complaining about how bizarre and other-worldly the Guantanamo Military Commissions are, we should not fail to give sufficient credit to the powerful, pragmatic advocacy of Major Michael Mori, USMC, David Hicks's appointed counsel. Like Navy Commander Charles Swift, who sacrificed his career to effectively represent his client, Mori, a former enlisted Marine, has fearlessly taken on the United States Government at its worst and he's been routinely spectacular.

(As many TalkLeft readers know, Terry Kindlon of Albany, NY is an outstanding criminal defense lawyer who reads and comments often on TalkLeft about military service. He was a decorated Marine during Vietnam, sustained some injuries, is married to my friend Laurie Shanks, also an outstanding defense lawyer in Albany, and their son Lee, age 30, is a captain in the Marines and a military lawyer who recently returned from Fallujah, where he also served as a Judge Advocate.)

As TalkLeft reported weeks ago, Bernie Kerik, Giuliani pal and NYC former police commissioner Bernie Kerik, best known for his short-lived nomination by Bush as Homeland Security chief, appears headed for indictment.

Today's update:

Federal prosecutors have told Bernard B. Kerik, whose nomination as homeland security secretary in 2004 ended in scandal, that he is likely to be charged with several felonies, including tax evasion and conspiracy to commit wiretapping.

Kerik's indictment could set the stage for a courtroom battle that would draw attention to Kerik's extensive business and political dealings with former New York mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani, who personally recommended him to President Bush for the Cabinet. Giuliani, the front-runner for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination according to most polls, later called the recommendation a mistake.

At least Kerik should have plenty of money for legal fees.

Records filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission show Kerik had earned more than 6.2 million dollars in pretax profits through stock options he was granted by Taser International, a manufacturer of stun guns.

A Guantanamo military tribunal today approved a plea agreement between Australian David Hicks and the military and sentenced him to serve 9 more months, most of which will be served in Australia.

The sentence came at the end of a long day in Guantánamo’s military commission courtroom and followed the deliberations of an eight-member panel of military officers. Having deliberated for two hours, the panel returned at 8 p.m. with a sentence of seven years, the maximum it was permitted to impose under the deal in which Mr. Hicks pleaded guilty on Monday.

But the deal also provided that he actually serve the lesser of nine months or whatever sentence the panel arrived at. The balance of the seven years that could have been imposed is considered suspended.

The agreement for just nine additional months of imprisonment was remarkable for a detainee who, before the plea negotiations, had faced a potential life term and had become an international symbol of many of the 385 detainees here.

What did Hicks have to give up?

More...

For those of you who were wondering whether it's okay to smoke pot during Passover, the answer seems to be "no."

Every Sunday school student knows Pessah for its ban on food that rises, but a growing number of Jews are asking whether the holiday also precludes them from getting high.

....Following an inquiry by the Post, a spokeswoman for the party said the [Green Leaf Party] was sending out an e-mail to members warning them about hemp's possible kashrut problems.

"We are warning our people not to eat anything with hemp products if they follow the practice of kitniyot on Pessah," said party spokeswoman Michelle Levine. "We are considering announcing a ban on everything containing hemp just to be on the safe side. We are going with the rabbis on this. People should remove all cannabis and hemp from their homes."

Levine said one of the party's main arguments for cannabis legalization was biblical references to it.

Biblical references to pot?

Rep. Tom Tancredo will make it official Monday. He's running for President.

Like other presidential candidates using alternative forums to break the news that they are seeking the Oval Office, Tancredo, the anti-illegal immigration stalwart, is choosing the medium that has given him a home for almost a decade. "We're looking at a day of announcements on talk radio," a source close to the campaign said. "That's where the conservative movement has made its mark. That's where our people get their news."

So, Tancredo supporters get their news from right-wing talk radio, not the Denver Post, the Rocky Mountain News, the New York Times or even conservative blogs. How myopic. Then again, so is his vision for America. Does he even have a position on issues other than immigration?

I'm still hanging out with Jane in Connecticut. I don't know where the hours go, but there hasn't been much time for blogging. We're just now sitting on the couch for the first time all day, turning the tv on to see the news, and logging on to check our e-mails. The poodles are great. By the time I leave on Monday, I'll be able to tell Lucy from Katie (Kobe's easier, he's taller.)

As always, thanks to Big Tent and TChris for blogging while I'm away. And say hello to two new blogs:

• JusticeLA

A new social justice site with a (nominal) grant from the USC Annenberg Institute for Justice and Journalism and

• Sparkmeter:

The concept of the site is that users submit news and everyone ranks the recent news as having a left-leaning bias, right-leaning bias, or objective. The most active news rises to the top. Users are also given the ability to rate other users as left, right, or objective. (think digg/reddit but for political news)

This is also an open thread.

More....

mcjoan points out AG Alberto Gonzales' line in the sand defense:

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, amid a growing clamor for his resignation, acknowledged Friday confusion about of his role in firing eight U.S. attorneys but said he doesn't "recall being involved in deliberations" over which prosecutors were to be ousted.

. . . "I signed off on the recommendations and signed off on the implementation plan, and that's the extent of my involvement" . . .

So Gonzales' argument is, in essence, I am not a liar, I am just an incompetent. The firing of 8 US Attorneys did not merit his involvement. That is his defense?!

For Bush, saying you are not a liar is good enough. Think Brownie, Harriet Meirs, Rummy, Doan, Cheney . . .