Karl Rove Resigns

Karl Rove Resigns

And now we wait for the triumphant bugling of the crazies who will now claim they brought down the great Darth Rove.

It is rather amusing.

And the AP ends with this rather lame assassination of character to end their seven year running battle with Rove:

The jury did not hear testimony that Rove was not indicted after testifying five times before the grand jury, occasionally correcting misstatements he made in his earlier testimony.

"Correcting statements" is called cross examination. Not being told that he was called before a grand jury five times is called eliminating prejudicial statements. It's the law, dummies.

Nor did the jury hear testimony about how Rove is credited as an architect of Republican political victories and has been accused by opponents of playing dirty tricks.

Like people don't know that Rove is the "architect of Republican political victories" and once again, the law does not allow people to make uncorroborated statements regarding unsubstantiated rumors and myth.

All that jurors heard is that Rove leaked Plame's identity and, from the outset, got political cover from the White House. He was never charged with a crime.

"Leaked" being the operative word here. Since he was not charged with a crime, he could not have "leaked" it in the classical sense of "letting out a secret". IE, there was no secret to tell. Ergo, it was not "leaked".

Mind you, I don't worship Darth Rove, believe he is infallible or that he controls the universe. Generally, I don't think about him much at all. However, this kind of, dare I say, "character assassination" disguised as reporting is some where between annoyingly predictable and amusingly contrived.

Actually, the most interesting aspect is this:

Karl Rove, President Bush's close friend and chief political strategist, plans to leave the White House at the end of August, joining a lengthening line of senior officials heading for the exits in the final 1 1/2 years of the administration.

Political analysis? President is a lame duck who is re-shuffling his cabinet to prepare for his final "legacy" year, wherein he will become reconciled to the majority Democrat congress?

Or, Rove has decided that the president's moves to become more detente in his final year by negotiating with Iran, Syria, etc, his services or no longer necessary?

Or, the president thinks that, now that the hot coals are out from underneath them regarding Plame and Gonzalez, it's a good time for the albatross to exit quietly "into that dark night", preserving the president's image as "loyal" to the end to those who have served him well?

Either way, while the netroots will go crazy, crowing about his alleged defeat at their hands, he actually exits from the battlefield an undefeated, unprosecuted, though slightly bloody, warrior.