Emails Show Rove Knee-Deep in Attorney Firings

Karl Rove was intimately involved in the firing of at least three of the US Attorneys sacked for purportedly political reasons during the Bush administration, emails obtained by the Washington Post show. One note mentions a senator who “asked that we remove the US Atty” and “couldn’t be more serious about this request.” Though Rove says, “I’m not even sure I was still there”—he was—the attorney was fired.

“Yes, I was a recipient of complaints, and I passed them on to the counsel’s office to be passed onto Justice,” Rove tells the Post. He says those from state officials “had the sound of authenticity to me.” Adds the ex-Bush aide: “This is not at the top of my agenda. I don’t wake up in the morning and say, ‘What must I do today to advance the case of the US attorneys?’ I’ve got a few things on my plate.” (More Karl Rove stories.)