Greg Craig has finally been pushed out as White House Counsel. But we can thank him for all of his efforts in crafting what has come to be known as the "deal with the devil" - the deal between Karl Rove and the House Judiciary Committee.
Here are some snips from an article I did on the deal:
A deal brokered by the Obama White House to obtain Karl Rove’s testimony before the House Judiciary Committee contains a number of unusual provisions, prominent legal scholars say.
Rove testified before the Judiciary Committee on July 7 concerning his alleged involvement in the December 2006 firings of seven US Attorneys and the prosecution of Don Siegelman. The Committee is being extremely tight-mouthed about the result, and Rove himself has also declined to comment.
The secrecy is in line with the agreement (pdf) worked out last March to secure testimony from Rove and from former White House Counsel Harriet Miers, which guaranteed that no information would be released until the completion of all interviews. However, under the terms of that agreement it appears likely that certain crucial facts, especially about the US Attorney firings, may never come out.
Legal experts consulted for this article are also concerned about the role played by current White House Council Greg Craig, who negotiated the arrangement made by Miers and Rove with the House Judiciary Committee.
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Former Nixon White House Counsel John Dean — who had previously served as chief minority counsel for the House Judiciary Committee — told Raw Story, “This is not a deal that could have pleased the Obama White House or the House Judiciary Committee and if anyone got the better of the deal it was Rove and Miers.”
But even before this, there was concern about Craig and Rove:
Alabama attorney Jill Simpson, a key whistleblower in the Don Siegelman case, says Craig has serious conflicts regarding certain members of the Republican Party. And we're not talking about reputable, mainstream Republicans like Richard Lugar or Olympia Snowe. We're talking Dr. Evil himself--Karl Rove.
A February 22 letter, from Simpson attorney Priscilla Black Duncan to Craig, outlines several serious charges against the White House counsel. He has represented Rove in a book deal. His close associate and mentor represents the Bush administration on executive-privilege issues regarding the firing of nine U.S. attorneys.
But most troubling is the possibility that Craig violated multiple ethical rules of the legal profession in his direct conversations with Simpson. The letter states that Craig held extensive discussions with Simpson about the possibility of representing her for her testimony before the U.S. House Judiciary Committee. After hearing a complete account of Simpson's story, Craig informed her that he had a conflict involving U.S. Senator Richard Shelby (R-AL) and could not represent her.
The tone of the letter makes it clear that Simpson suspects Craig took privileged information he gleaned from her and shared it with Rove or individuals close to him. Such action would represent a serious breach of legal ethics, and my understanding is that Craig could face sanctions, perhaps disbarment, if such a breach were proven.
For those interested in purging political influence and corruption from our justice system, this is a good start. But the questions about Craig still remain unanswered. Has he been asked about his relationship with Karl Rove? We know at least that Rove strongly approved of Craig's appointment to the Obama White House - which alone should have set off red flags. Recall this little scooplet from January:
Yet in the time-honored way of Washington, Mr. Craig, who will quit his partnership in the upscale law firm Williams & Connolly for the $172,200-a-year White House job, has found a way to make friends with the other side. He counts Karl Rove, Mr. Bush’s political guru, as a friend; Mr. Rove said Mr. Craig would “serve the new president and the country with great integrity.”
And this did not set off alarm bells in the Obama camp?
