Fight over Rove Testimony “Murky”

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There are a couple good articles out from The New York Times and Roll Call (sub. req.) this morning on the potential upcoming battle between the administration and Congress.

The central conflict is simple: The administration seems determined to avoid Karl Rove and other White House aides from testifying under oath, particularly public testimony; and leading Democrats are determined to get it.

But where the conflict goes is not simple: in fact, there seems to be no real precedent for the conflict — while many of President Clinton’s aides testified before Congress, that was done voluntarily, and as the Times reports, “each administration, in effect, writes its own rules.”

So if the White House says no, and the congressional committees go ahead, as they’ve warned they will do, to issue subpoenas for Karl Rove’s testimony, it’s not clear what happens next.

From Roll Call (sub. req.):

…Bruce Fein, a former associate deputy attorney general under Reagan, said the legal history surrounding aides’ testimony was a bit confusing — and the issue was less relevant when there were not so many presidential aides to begin with.

“The general rule has been as a matter of custom, the Congress will desist from asserting the subpoena power to compel the president and his aides” to testify, Fein explained. “It leaves the legal terrain very murky.”

“Certainly, there is no outstanding Supreme Court or other court of appeals precedent that says Congress cannot compel Karl Rove to testify,” he added.

If Congress does issue a subpoena, the White House could fight it in court or even choose to ignore it, though Fein said that would not be the smartest move as U.S. attorneys are supposed to enforce subpoenas.

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