I'm a bit mixed up about the impending showdown over the US attorney firings.  On the one hand, as a student of American government it's fascinating to examine the constitutional elements of arguments over executive privilege and congressional subpoena power.

On the other hand, the politicking disgusts me.

The White House has stated that any and all communication by former WH political director Sara Taylor and former counsel Harriet Miers - both internal and external - falls under executive privilege.  This unprecedented broad application of privilege has undercut and delayed the investigation into what really happened with the firing of the US attorneys for political reasons.

Yesterday, Sara Taylor testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee (you can see video here).  She used her letter from White House counsel Fred Fielding directing her not to answer questions pertaining to allegedly privileged communication as an excuse not to answer the majority of questions from Committee chair Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and other tough Democratic questioners.