As I noted last week, Karl Rove received his second subpoena from the U.S. Congress, but has yet to testify under oath.  I'm deeply skeptical that he will appear before Congress, based on the past history of Rove and others using supposed "executive privilege" to defy Congress and of Congress failing to function as an effective check on executive power.

So color me cynical.  But the Grey Lady's staff has some hope left -- here's a few snippets from today's lead editorial, "Mr. Rove Talks, but Doesn't Answer":

"Ensuring that [your] executive authority is not thwarted" and "finding out the truth" mean more than strongly-worded letters and subpoenas that end up in Karl Rove's recycle bin.

House Judiciary Committee subpoenas Rove over the still-unresolved issue of the U.S. attorneys scandal.

We know that the White House believes that this falls under "executive privilege" and will compel Rove not to comply -- the same way they kept Josh Bolten and Harriet Miers from testifying before Congress.

Here's hoping this time turns out differently, and we get some accountability for once.

Alberto Gonzales may be gone from the Justice Department in a couple of weeks, but that doesn't mean his troubles are over.  According to a letter DoJ Inspector General Glenn Fine sent to Senate Judiciary Chairman Pat Leahy, Gonzales is under active investigation for a number of different things, including whether or not he lied to Congress in his testimony about the US Attorney firings.

The questionnaires are to find out if applicants for non-political positions were asked questions about party affiliation, voting histories, campaign contributions, issue opinions, etc.  Take a look at the questionnaire and accompanying cover letter.

Sen. Leahy welcomed the investigation, saying "The current Attorney General is leaving, but these questions remain."  Inspector General Fine is authorized to refer cases for criminal prosecution if he determines Gonzales or other officials have committed perjury or obstructed justice.

So, yeah...it ain't over.

TPM's Josh Marshall eulogizes Alberto Gonzales with a Top 10 hitlist:

It's been a long and tiring road for the eight US attorneys fired last year for political reasons.  Alberto Gonzales announcing his resignation yesterday, news outlets across the country called up the former prosecutors at the center of the scandal to find out what they were thinking.  

Inside you'll find a sampling of their comments. Needless to say, they don't go easy on the soon-to-be Former Attorney General.

I don't know what else to say, except...

HOORAY!!!

Now that's news to brighten up a Monday morning.

Meet David Iglesias:

David Iglesias was appointed by the President on August 2, 2001, to be the US Attorney for the District of New Mexico.  Prior to his appointment, Iglesias had a successful legal career as General Counsel to the New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department (1998 - 2001),  Chief Counsel to the New Mexico Risk Management Legal Office (1995 to 1998), and as an Assistant City Attorney for the City of Albuquerque (1991 - 1994) and an Assistant Attorney General in the New Mexico Attorney General's Office.

Iglesias performed his US Attorney duties to great satisfaction, according to his performance reviews, until 2005, when the Chairman of the New Mexico Republican Party, Allen Weh, began pressuring him to bring voter fraud indictments against Democrats; Iglesias did not feel the case was strong enough, and declined to do so.  The pressure was ratcheted up in the fall of 2006, when Rep. Heather Wilson (R-NM) and Sen. Pete Domenici (R-NM) each called Iglesias to pressure him to bring indictments against Democrats before the November elections.  He did not do so, and on December 7, 2006, he was dismissed.

Things have been a little slow on Common Blog lately, partially because it's August, and there's not a whole lot happening.  Also, because I'm working on a new section of the Common Cause website devoted to the US Attorney scandal.

A significant part of this section will be a Who's Who of the players involved in the controversy, from the major players in the White House and Justice Department, to the dismissed attorneys themselves, all the way down to the minor figures you may not have heard about.  It's still a ways off from being completed, but in the coming days I'll be periodically posting profiles of some of the players, to give you a taste of what's to come.

To start things off, let's get to know Carol Lam.