Reply #35: House Committee Threatens Rove with Subpoena (for Siegelman Testimony) [View All]

Source: Associated Press

May 1, 6:04 PM EDT

House committee threatens Rove with subpoena

By BEN EVANS
Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The House Judiciary Committee threatened Thursday to subpoena former White House adviser Karl Rove if he does not agree by May 12 to testify about former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman's corruption case.

In a letter to Rove's attorney, committee Democrats called it "completely unacceptable" that the Republican political strategist has rejected the panel's request for sworn testimony even as he discusses the matter publicly through the media.

"We can see no justification for his refusal to speak on the record to the committee," the letter states. "We urge you and your client to reconsider ... or we will have no choice but to consider the use of compulsory process."

Committee Democrats are investigating whether Rove and Republican appointees at the Justice Department influenced Siegelman's prosecution to kill his chances for re-election. It is part of a broader inquiry into whether U.S. attorneys were fired for not aggressively pursuing cases against Democrats.

Read more: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/R/ROVE_ALABAMA_GOVERNOR?SITE=AZCAS&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2008-05-01-18-04-40