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Rachel reports on the latest revelations to come out of the U.S. Attorney firings scandal.

Maddow: In 2006, nine U.S. federal attorneys, prosecutors, were surprisingly and suddenly fired by the Department of Justice under George W. Bush. U.S. Attorney Paulson Charlton of Arizona was fired while he was in the midst of building a case against Republican Congressman Rick Renzi for an allegedly illegal land swap deal that would eventually lead to a 35-count indictment, including charges of conspiracy, wire fraud, money laundering and extortion.

And in San Diego, U.S. Attorney Carol Lam had spearheaded the corruption investigation that brought down Republican Congressman Duke Cunningham, who eventually pled guilty to accepting at least $2.4 million in bribes. The "Dukester" is still doing more than eight years in prison for that.

And then there was U.S. attorney David Iglesias. And Mr. Iglesias' dismissal really caught people's attention and the House Judiciary Committee has been looking into his case and the cases of the eight attorneys for more than two years now.

Well, today, that committee released emails and transcripts of closed-door testimony by Bush's White House counsel, Harriet Miers, and Bush's political guru, Karl Rove. Ms. Miers testified that the White House, specifically Karl Rove and his staff, were intimately involved in the decision-making process about whether or not the supposedly independent U.S. attorneys, the supposedly apolitical prosecutors, were going to be allowed to keep their jobs.

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Yeah, we were right about the U.S. Attorney firings. (See above video, which is ten months old.) Even Karl Rove and Harriet Miers admit it now:

The dismissal of New Mexico U.S. Attorney David C. Iglesias in December 2006 followed extensive communication among lawyers and political aides in the White House who hashed over complaints about his work on public corruption cases against Democrats, according to newly released e-mails and transcripts of closed-door House testimony by former Bush counsel Harriet Miers and political chief Karl Rove.

A campaign to oust Iglesias intensified after state party officials and GOP members of the congressional delegation apparently concluded he was not pursuing the cases against Democrats in a way that would help then- Rep. Heather Wilson in a tight releection race, according to interviews and Bush White House e-mails released Tuesday by congressional investigators. The documents place the genesis of Iglesias's dismissal earlier than previously known.

The disclosures mark the end of a two-and-a-half year investigation by the House Judiciary Committee, which sued to gain access to Bush White House documents in a dispute that struck at the heart of a president's executive power. House members have reserved the right to hold a public hearing at which Rove, Miers, and other aides could appear this fall.

House Judiciary Chairman John M. Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.) Tuesday characterized the role of Bush White House figures in the firing episode as improper and inappropriate.

It took two years, but it finally happened - thanks to an agreement with the White House that deposing Rove would not infringe on executive privilege. Now everyone wants to know: What did Karl say? And don't you wish you were the fly on the wall?

Former White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove was deposed Tuesday by attorneys for the House Judiciary Committee, according to Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), the panel’s chairman.

Rove’s deposition began at 10 a.m. and ended around 6:30 p.m, with several breaks, Conyers said.

Conyers would not comment on what Rove told congressional investigators, what the next step in the long-running Judiciary Committee investigation would be or whether Rove would face additional questioning.

“He was deposed today,” Conyers said in an interview. “That’s all I can tell you.”

Rove's attorney, Robert Luskin, declined to confirm or deny that his client had appeared before the committee. Luskin said there was an agreement that the depositions would remain confidential until they were completed. However, in a court filing Monday, the Justice Department indicated that the deposition set for this week would be the committee's last.

Conyers’ panel had first subpoenaed Rove in 2007 as part of its probe into the firing of nine U.S. attorneys. But the Bush White House, citing executive privilege, refused to make Rove or White House Counsel Harriet Miers available for any deposition.

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Joan Walsh calls out Pat Buchanan for describing Sonia Sotomayor as an "affirmative action" pick and trying to compare her to Harriet Miers. Why does Matthews think anyone cares what this racist, sexist, relic thinks? I swear I think Buchanan has a cot in the MSNBC studio and just sleeps there they have him on so much. Buchanan backs down a bit after Walsh gets onto him and points out Sotomayor's educational background and the number of years she's served as a judge, but mark my words he'll be right back on Morning Joe repeating the same nonsense with Scarborough or one of their other guests chiming in with him.

Pat still hasn't gotten over Nixon getting run out of office. He's always a sure bet to be out there fighting for the poor, downtrodden white man who just hasn't gotten a fair shake in this country.

Obsidian Wings: Obama's Harriet Miers? (h/t Reader labrador)

Scott Horton: Condi's really bad day

Sadly, No!: Brave Sir Andy ran away and this  'principled' sh*theel is in full flight from reality

Firedoglake: Chrysler Bankruptcy: Vulture Fund guy gets even

D-Day: The news leaking out from the bank stress tests just got worse

HOLY CRAP: Catholic Bigotry Rides Again...Christian douchebag, and "Dean" of Liberty U. Law School weighs in on torture...Which begs the question: Who Would Jesus Torture?...And what about the Islamofascists?...Thanks for noticing...“Mormon Mafia”...Stay Classy, Florida...Texas Intellect Massacre...Meet R. J. Rushdoony, mentor to Christianist bigots...God Squad attacks Holocaust history...The FundamentaList...The hell we aint!...

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From The Cafferty File:

Former top Bush aides Karl Rove and Harriet Miers have finally agreed to testify under oath before Congress about the firings of those U.S. attorneys.

The Bush White House had fought attempts to force them to testify — citing executive privilege — but an agreement has now been reached between lawyers for Presidents Bush and Obama. Rove and Miers will appear before the House Judiciary Committee in closed depositions. The committee says it might also call on them for public testimony. Rove was President Bush’s top political adviser for most of his presidency; and Miers was the top White House legal adviser for about two years.

The controversy goes back to those 2006 firings of federal prosecutors in nine cities and includes allegations of political interference. According to an e-mail from a former Justice Department official, some of these U.S. attorneys were singled out because they were not “loyal Bushies.”

Committee chairman John Conyers says this is “a vindication of the search for truth.” And for his part, Karl Rove tells Fox News that he’s looking forward to telling the committee about his alleged role in the firing of federal prosecutors — although he says it could turn into a “show trial.” Rove says Conyers probably has more interest in him than other former White House aides, stating “I understand they may be the hors d’oeuvres, but I’m the main course. Some Democrats would love to have me barbecued.”

As documents continue to surface from the Bush era there’s a hunger in some corners to set the record straight about the legality of a lot of stuff that happened over the past eight years.

Here’s my question to you: What would you ask Karl Rove and Harriet Miers about the firing of those U.S. attorneys?

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Finally Karl Rove and Harriet Miers will testify, under oath, about their roles in the USA attorney firing scandal.

Here's Conyers' statement:

In an agreement reached today between the former Bush Administration and Congressman John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.), Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, Karl Rove and former White House Counsel Harriet Miers will testify before the House Judiciary Committee in transcribed depositions under penalty of perjury. The Committee has also reserved the right to have public testimony from Rove and Miers. It was agreed that invocations of official privileges would be significantly limited.

In addition, if the Committee uncovers information necessitating his testimony, the Committee will also have the right to depose William Kelley, a former White House lawyer who played a role in the U.S. Attorney firings.

The Committee will also receive Bush White House documents relevant to this inquiry. Under the agreement, the landmark ruling by Judge John Bates rejecting key Bush White House claims of executive immunity and privilege will be preserved. If the agreement is breached, the Committee can resume the litigation.

Chairman Conyers issued the following statement:

"I have long said that I would see this matter through to the end and am encouraged that we have finally broken through the Bush Administration's claims of absolute immunity. This is a victory for the separation of powers and congressional oversight. It is also a vindication of the search for truth. I am determined to have it known whether U.S. Attorneys in the Department of Justice were fired for political reasons, and if so, by whom."

CNN:

Former White House Counsel Harriet Miers and President Bush's current Chief of Staff Josh Bolten do not have to cooperate -- at least this year -- with a congressional committee investigating the firings of U.S. Attorneys, a three-judge federal appeals panel in Washington ruled Monday.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia said as a practical matter, the case cannot be resolved before the current session of Congress ends, so a new Congress will have to decide whether to pursue the matter.

In June, Democrats controlling the House Judiciary Committee issued a subpoena to Miers seeking to compel her to produce documents and to appear before the committee to testify about the firings of nine federal prosecutors.

The committee also issued a subpoena to Bolten to produce documents.

Both fought the subpoenas, and District Court Judge John Bates ruled Miers and Bolten must honor the congressional demands.

The appeals court reversed that ruling.

"The present dispute is of potentially great significance for the balance of power between the Legislative and Executive Branches. But the Committee recognizes that even if expedited, this will not be fully and finally resolved by the Judicial Branch ... before the 110th Congress ends on January 3, 2009," the ruling said.

Bush League Justice strikes again.

(h/t Heather) Robert Wexler on the House floor Feb. 14 speaking out for the Constitution and the rule of law during the debate over potential contempt charges of Miers and Bolton.

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The Republicans disrupted the Lantos memorial service also. What a classy move...

Christy Hardin Smith says: Nancy Pelosi was absolutely right today  (YouTube):  "President Bush tells the American people he has nothing to offer but fear."

The Gavel:

Today, the House has just approved H.Res. 982, which provides for the adoption of H.Res. 979, recommending that the House of Representatives find Harriet Miers, former White House Counsel, and Joshua Bolten, the White House Chief of Staff, in contempt of Congress for refusal to comply with subpoenas issued by the Judiciary Committee. These subpoenas were issued as part of the Committee’s investigation into the firings of a number of United States Attorneys and matters concerning the politicization of the Justice Department.