Here Comes the Subpoenas

It's on.

The House Judiciary subcommittee has approved subpoenas for Karl Rove, Harriet Miers, Kyle Sampson and their aides. All that remains is the formality of officially issuing the subpoenas. The Senate Judiciary Committee will vote tomorrow on the subpoena issue.

But Mr. Snow said, “If they issue subpoenas, the offer is withdrawn, because it means that they will not have responded to the offer. They will have rejected the offer.”

“The moment subpoenas are issued, it means that they’ve rejected the offer,” Mr. Snow emphasized.

The White House is still talking tough. That didn't work yesterday. It won't work today.

"The White House is in a bunker mentality - won't listen, won't change," said Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif. "I believe there is even more to come out, and I think it's our duty to bring it out."

Tony Snow is making the administration sound out of touch with how much trouble they are in.

"At this point, it is our hope that Congress in fact is going to accept what is a generous, reasonable offer to enable them to do their jobs. . . . If they don't accept the offer, it lifts the veil on some of the motivations, which means that people are less interested in the truth than creating a political spectacle."

1. Democrats have made it quite clear they don't want the offer. "I want to hear Karl Rove testify under oath about the role he played in this whole affair," Harry Reid said.

2. It's a little late for an administration that has been extremely partisan to be crying wolf. Bush had much political collateral after 9/11. He used it to bash Democrats and question the patriotism of those whom disagreed with him. The President was full of tough bravado on television yesterday. He challenged Democrats and they responded with subpoenas. It was a tactically bad move and now he is suffering the consequences.