Bush Invokes Executive Privilege

Harriet Miers and Sara Taylor were covered by the president invoking executive privilege and won't be testifying at either Senate or House committees.

From the AP:

Bush denies Congress access to aides
By LAURIE KELLMAN, Associated Press Writer
1 hour, 57 minutes ago

President Bush invoked executive privilege Monday to deny requests by Congress for testimony from two former aides about the firings of federal prosecutors.

The White House, however, did offer again to make former counsel Harriet Miers and one-time political director Sara Taylor available for private, off-the-record interviews.

In a letter to the heads of the House and Senate Judiciary panels, White House counsel Fred Fielding insisted that Bush was acting in good faith and refused lawmakers' demand that the president explain the basis for invoking the privilege.

"You may be assured that the president's assertion here comports with prior practices in similar contexts, and that it has been appropriately documented," the letter said.

Retorted House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers:

"Contrary what the White House may believe, it is the Congress and the courts that will decide whether an invocation of executive privilege is valid, not the White House unilaterally," the Michigan Democrat said in a statement.

The exchange Monday was the latest step in a slow-motion legal waltz between the White House and lawmakers toward eventual contempt-of-Congress citations. If neither side yields, the matter could land in federal court.

In his letter regarding subpoenas the Judiciary panels issued, Fielding said, "The president feels compelled to assert executive privilege with respect to the testimony sought from Sara M. Taylor and Harriet E. Miers."

To become familiar with executive privilege there are three excellent blogs to visit:

Fire Dog Lake

Talk Left

The Next Hurrah

And all those blogs have much more legal info on the Libby case, the US Attorneys, and the Supremes