Rove and Harriet Miers, the highest-ranking of the Bush White House advisors accused of improperly interfering at DoJ, were interviewed in private this summer by House Judiciary Committee staff and a Congressman from each party. But the rules did not require an oath. Upon release of the transcripts Aug. 11, Rove claimed vindication in his Wall Street Journal column.
A Real Probe Needed
But Rove and Miers also asserted memory loss many times on key questions during the interviews, and Rove misled his Journal readers by falsely claiming that Alabama whistle-blower Dana Jill Simpson has never testified.
An attorney, Simpson voluntarily testified in 2007 under House Judiciary Committee staff cross-examination. She swore that a prominent fellow Republican predicted in early 2005 that Siegelman would be re-indicted later that year after collapse of the government's first case against him. Also, she swore that she heard that Siegelman's next case would be steered to the Bush-nominee Fuller, who "hated Siegelman and would "hang him.
Rove's spin on these kinds of post-conviction issues shows why this summer's interviews should be just a first step in a more thorough probe and public hearing.
The Justice Department should live up to its name by welcoming cross-examination of witnesses under oath before a fair judge. Questions about this case and so many like it around the country will not be forgotten simply by imprisoning the defendants. Others care also.
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