Taking aim at the next Karl Rove
By Alexander Bolton
Posted: 07/07/08 07:50 PM [ET]

Source

Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), who has primary jurisdiction over the executive branch, is considering legislation to eliminate Karl Rove-type advisers in future administrations.


The chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hints broadly that such a bill could ban the use of federal funds to finance such a politically partisan office.



“Why should we be using taxpayer dollars to have a person solely in charge of politics in the White House?” Waxman said in an interview. “Can you imagine the reaction if each member of Congress had a campaign person paid for with taxpayer dollars?”


Waxman, one of President Bush’s most dogged opponents, will decide in September whether to press ahead this year or wait until next in hope of having a Democratic president sign such a bill.


Waxman says the White House operates under looser political ethics rules than does Congress, where chiefs of staff and other high-ranking officials are prohibited from using government phones, computers and facilities for political purposes.


Rove focused on President Bush’s reelection while working on a West Wing salary during the first four years of the Bush administration.


As Bush’s senior adviser, Rove headed the Office of Political Affairs, which interacts with the party’s political committees, and the Office of Public Liaison, which works with outside groups such as business, religious and advocacy organizations that want to communicate with the president.


Rove’s political activity at the White House sparked fierce disputes with congressional Democrats.


They accused Rove of making the White House too political, pointing to reports that Rove told political appointees throughout the administration to stage official announcements and federal grants in ways that would help Republican candidates.


Waxman’s committee found that senior White House aides sent tens of thousands of political communications through government e-mail accounts. This led to a public fight over copies of the messages, many of which were erased because Bush advisers stopped using an e-mail archiving system dating from the Clinton administration.

Continued

That's all very well and good but could we please put the Karl Rove we have presently in jail please?

Yeah!