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Rove and His Family's Future: Paying Legal Fees

By Jeralyn, Section Other Politics
Posted on Tue Aug 14, 2007 at 11:50:01 AM EST
Tags: Karl Rove (all tags)
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Peter Baker in the Washington Post quotes Karl Rove :

About a year and a half ago, it became apparent talking to my family that there are things happening, that it was time to go."

Marcy at Empty Wheel has been cataloguing the remaining investigations that could land Rove in hot soup and notes, "we have no clear denial that Rove is leaving because the investigations into his activities may soon bear fruit."

About a year and a half ago puts us at January - March, 2006. Rove had already skirted PlameGate. There was no U.S. Attorney firing investigation going on then, or congressional investigations into politicizing federal agencies. Investigation into missing e-mails weren't that big a deal.

Rove and his wife live in Washington, not Texas. I don't think they own a house in Texas any more, although I think they own one in Florida. They have one child who is off at college. Leaving now to spend more time with the family unless someone in the family is very ill doesn't ring true. We haven't heard about any severe illness.

What Rove did have a year and a half ago, that would worry any family, were big time legal bills from PlameGate. Now that Rove is facing congressional and other inquiries on so many fronts, the U.S. Attorney firing scandal, the improper use of federal agencies for lobbying activities, the RNC E-mails and even the continuation of the Abramoff investigation and possible troubles via former aide Susan Ralston, his legal bills can only be mounting. And his lawyer, Robert Luskin, doesn't come cheap.

More...

We've never heard of a committee behind Rove like there was behind Libby to pay legal fees. And typically, those "defense trusts" don't form until
after Indictment. Rove is a long way from any possible indictment in the congressional inquiries. The executive privilege battle, which his lawyers will argue cover former employees, could take years, well beyond the expiration of Bush's term.

A book makes perfect sense to me. The advance would bring Rove millions, enough to pay off his legal bills and relieve the stress of those bills on him and his family. I could see a publisher demanding that the book be done before the 2008 election for maximum sales potential. Finding the time to write the book while still working for the White House could prove difficult.

So I'm writing off criminal exposure from the Congressional investigations and "family time" as reasons for Rove to quit. But I can't write off the Abramoff probe as easily. Rove knew a year and a half ago his Abramoff connections had been and would continue to be investigated by the Justice Department, not Congress, and a federal grand jury with the power to indict.

I'm not saying Rove will be indicted in the Abramoff case. But, if he is, he wouldn't be able to stay on in the White House. And his legal bills to defend against an Indictment, when coupled with his congressional investigation legal fees, would be enormous.

While I would fully expect Bush to pardon Rove, he might not do it until his remaining days in office. That leaves more than a year of legal bills for Rove to pay until then.

So, I'm going with legal bills as the real reason Rove has resigned. They affect his family, making his public explanations misleading but not a lie and square with his vow to continue fighting Congressional subpoenas and other calls for his hide.

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    Rove and His Family's Future: Paying Legal Fees | 4 comments (4 topical)

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    Some interesting points on the Rove departure (none / 0) (#1)
    by Ellie on Tue Aug 14, 2007 at 01:39:49 PM EST
    "The silence has been deafening from Republicans. From Republican presidential contenders, from members of Congress who by the way, are out of town, another good reason for Rove to leave now. I haven't heard a word from any Republican leader about Karl Rove because they don't like Karl Rove. And the reason they don't like Karl Rove is that his so[le] focus has been on George Bush. [...eliding the one-party CW ...]"  

    (Howard Fineman 08/13/2007 on Countdown with Keith Olbermann, MSNBC, via Crooks and Liars 08/13/2007 (Video at link available for download or to view at site), also here at Countdown with Keith Olbermann (search site))

    Dirty Tom DeLay had tangible support from congress critters and RNC leadership because he helped more of them directly (and presumably had more accumulated favors to call in.) But when DeLay was posing for mugshots, Bush and his coterie pretended they barely KNEW the guy on the excuse that GWB  had to stay "above the fray."

    Maybe it's just me, but if I were taking hits for this guy, so famous for his paranoid insistence on "loyalty", I'd definitely be pissed at this rogue play to carve out a nice little accountability- dodging niche for himself and his Architect to shunt the accumulation in dustbin of history out back onto others.

    Fineman (and others on Countdown) added that, in typical Rove fashion, the plan has already been unveiled: Rove will assume command of the swift boating aimed at the Dem candidate (he's thinking it will be "deeply flawed" Sen. Clinton), and GW Bush will use his self-endowed Tinpot Dictatorship simply to hold existing gains to hand off to his (Repug) successor. I can already think of over a dozen reasons this is Bad Budo on KR's part but this post is far too long already.

    Another good roundup in the smorgasbord (though not as detailed as Wheeler's always-impeccably researched and astute observations) is Salon's War Room Rove Roundup beginning here and scrolling upward.

    Looking at even a short cursory laundry list is nauseating. Damn that dirty trickster was busy, and dirty! He's got so much garbage buried I'm amazed not to have seen him in an orange jumpsuit yet, whether dressed for a penal colony or to move around accumulated physical trash.

    And if there's any one thing that can make the sight or thought of him even more Repulsive than it already is, (this, including the sad but mercifully brief career of MC Rove) it's the brain searing image of him loping around in an orange jumpsuit.

    Gagggghhh.

    Paying Legal fees--or not (none / 0) (#2)
    by OtisIsHungry on Tue Aug 14, 2007 at 01:44:25 PM EST
    Let's not forget that in order for Rove to claim the protections of Florida Homestead law he has to be actually domiciled in Florida, not DC.  That law would allow him to shelter a big chunk of his assets from creditors, lawyers or otherwise, by dumping a pile of money into a McMansion on the Emerald coast of Florida.

    What's taking so long? (none / 0) (#3)
    by RedHead on Wed Aug 15, 2007 at 07:35:04 PM EST
    Abramoff has been "cooperating."

    so what taking so long?

    its been a year and half since delay's ex aides copped a plea.

    what's next?  and when?

    Curiosity (none / 0) (#4)
    by msobel on Thu Aug 16, 2007 at 10:15:53 AM EST
    Jeralyn:
    If you were offered the job, would you take Rove as a client ?

    Rove and His Family's Future: Paying Legal Fees | 4 comments (4 topical)

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