Bush is speaking now on immigration. What do you think?

News analysis here.

Update: He supports a 5 part program.

1. Must secure borders. It must be open to trade and lawful immigration and shut to illegals, drug dealers and terrorists. By the end of 2008, border patrol officers will increase by 6,000. Will install high tech fences, motion censors, etc. along the borders.

Immediate steps: Use the National Guard, up to 6,000 guard members will be deployed to the southern borders. They will not be involved in direct law enforcement activities. For one year. We will not militarize our borders.

Comment: Did Bush just make the second most unpopular proposal of his presidency, after the War in Iraq? I think so. This will cause outrage among many different groups, including those who have previously supported him.

Robert Luskin, Karl Rove's attorney, has officially denied the allegations in Jason Leopold's article reporting Rove has been indicted and that there was a Fitzgerald-Luskin meeting on Friday.

I received the denial directly from Robert Luskin this afternoon.

1. Luskin stands by his April 26 statement in its entirety.

2. Karl Rove's status has not changed. They remain confident Fitzgerald will decline to bring any charges.

3. There is "no truth whatsoever" to any of Jason Leopold's recent stories about Karl Rove's resignation, the alleged meeting in his office or the Indictment. The denial he gave me Saturday night was and was intended to be "all purpose."

4. As far as he knows, Patrick Fitzgerald was in Chicago on Friday.

5. People should not interpret their "unwillingness to comment on every wild and malicious rumor as a change in position."

Duke Lacrosse team co-captain Dave Evans was indicted today for forcible rape, sexual assault and kidnapping by the Durham grand jury in the Duke alleged rape case.

Evans is represented by Joe Cheshire. I know Joe, and he is a great attorney.

Press Conference: An absolutely compelling denial. [Update: Video here.]

Live blogging:

Dave is here to surrender, he will bond out today.

David wants to make a statement. He won't take questions. Joe will then make a statement and take questions. All seniors on Duke lacrosse team are present. They are there to support the three charged players as they know no crime was committed on the evening in question at that house. They won't answer questions either. Evans' parents are there. Evans has been wrongly accused.

Think Progress reports that Karl Rove gave a lecture this morning at American Enterprise Institute. During the Q and A, reporter David Corn asked him why he denied to Scott McClellan that he was involved in the Valerie Plame leaks probe. Video is here.

From the transcript:

CORN: David Corn from "The Nation Magazine" on a different subject. Scott McClellan told the White House press corps, many who are here today, that he had spoken to you and you were not involved in the CIA leak. Can you explain why the American public, almost two and a half years later, hasn't been given an explanation and don't you think it deserves one for that misinformation because it does seem you were to some degree, though maybe disputed, involved in that leak?

ROVE: My attorney Mr. Luskin made a statement on April 26th. I refer to you that statement. I have nothing more to add to it. Nice try, though.

Think Progress reports that ABC investigative reporters say that the Government is monitoring their phone calls to ascertain their confidential courses.

A senior federal law enforcement official tells ABC News the government is tracking the phone numbers we call in an effort to root out confidential sources.

"It's time for you to get some new cell phones, quick," the source told us in an in-person conversation.

The ABC reporters continue:

Karl Rove's spokesman, Mark Corallo, called me at 8:20 a.m. Mountain Time today. He said someone had read him my post over the phone about my conversation with Jason Leopold (and he had picked up my voice-mail from Saturday night) and he wanted to respond. Here is Mr. Corallo's version:

1. He has never spoken with someone identifying himself as "Jason Leopold." He did have conversations Saturday and Sunday along the lines I described, but the caller identified himself as Joel something or other from the Londay Sunday Times. The calls were to his home number. At one point during their last conversation, he offered to call Joel back, and was given a cell phone number that began with 917. When he called the number back, it turned out not to be be a number for Joel.

2. Josh Gerstein and Byron York called him, not the other way around.

3. There was no meeting or communication between Luskin and Fitzgerald on Friday. Bob was not in the office on Friday at all. He was home, taking care of a sick cat.

4. Karl Rove did not tell the President he would resign.

Last night, I spoke to Jason Leopold on the phone for a half hour or so. Here's what he had to say about Byron York's article stating that Karl Rove's spokesman Mark Corallo told him that Jason's article Saturday reporting sources told him Fitzgerald met with Luskin Friday and told him Rove has been indicted is false.

1. Jason says he spoke with Josh Gerstein of the New York Sun and Gerstein told him Corallo called both York and Gerstein, not the other way around. In other words, Corallo reached out to a few select reporters to debunk Jason's article. Corallo told Gerstein, as he told York, Jason's article reporting Rove has been indicted is a baseless lie. A New York Sun article today reports Carollo's comments to the paper.

2. Before Jason published his article, he left messages with both Corallo and Luskin offering an opportunity to respond. Neither returned his calls.

3. Jason spoke to Corallo twice on Saturday and twice on Sunday. The first time they spoke Saturday was after Jason's article was published. Corallo told Jason the article was lies and hung up. As I reported here, I e-mailed with Jason Saturday evening. Jason had provided me with two numbers each for Mark Corallo and Robert Luskin. After my non-conversation with Robert Luskin, I e-mailed Jason that I had also left a message for Corallo at his office, since no one answered at the other number he gave me.

NRO's Byron York reports he spoke to Rove publicist Mark Corallo who stated unequivocally that Fitzgerald did not go to Robert Luskin's law office Friday or tell Luskin Rove has been indicted. He said Jason Leopold's article was false.

Did Patrick Fitzgerald come to Patton Boggs for 15 hours Friday?
No.
Did he come to Patton Boggs for any period of time Friday?
No.
Did he meet anywhere else with Karl Rove's representatives?
No.
Did he communicate in any way with Karl Rove's representatives?
No.
Did he inform Rove or Rove's representatives that Rove had been indicted?
No.

So, is this Corallo spin? Larry Johnson, or someone pretending to be him at Democratic Underground says Joseph Wilson was told the same thing as Leopold. York concludes:

Tonight's episode is "Moe and Joe."

Tony leverages Johnny's misfortune into a domestic upgrade; Bacala suffers vision impairment.

Will Tony end up taking Johnny's house? Will Johnny flip for the feds? Does Bobby get beat up by his new associates and suffer eye damage? Will tonight be a Vito night?

Those are some of my questions, it starts in 15 minutes.

Team Libby has filed yet another memorandum (pdf) in support of his requests for documents pertaining to potential trial witnesses and others.

Libby begins by noting:

So far, the defense has identified by name the following current and former government officials as potential defense witnesses: (1) Richard Armitage; (2) Colin Powell; (3) Stephen Hadley; (4) Bill Harlow; (5) Karl Rove; (6) Joseph Wilson; and (7) Valerie Wilson. See Mot. at 15-16. All of these persons were discussed by Mr.
Libby during his grand jury testimony.

by Last Night in Little Rock

Al Gore was the lead act on Saturday Night Live last night giving an address to the nation as President, and Crooks and Liars has the video in both WMP and QT.

This is the self-effacing, plain talking Al Gore who was locked in a closet (or lockbox) during the 2000 campaign. In my view, he is the front runner for the Democratic nomination as President, if he can just be himself and not be controlled too much by handlers and focus groups. His outrage in past speeches to the excesses of this Administration touched a nerve.

A happy Mother's Day to all from TalkLeft. I'm taking the day off from blogging, but here's a space for those of you online.

And don't forget to call your Mom.