Siegelman: White House Should Not Push a Deal with Rove

The Obama White House has indicated that it might encourage Congress to cut a deal with former Bush advisor Karl Rove in exchange for his testimony about possible crimes in the Bush administration.

But former Alabama Governor Don Siegelman, the best-known victim of an apparent political prosecution under the Bush Justice Department, says any deals with Rove would be a bad idea.

In an article written by Sam Stein of Huffington Post, Siegelman says the idea of a deal with Rove smacks of the kind of negotiation common in a civil matter. But Rove's testimony would go way beyond civil matters:

"This is not a matter involving civil damages. It is a matter of high crimes, abuse of power, the subversion of our country's constitution and of our individual rights and liberties," Siegelman wrote the Huffington Post.

"There should be no deal cut with Karl Rove that would provide him with any immunity whatsoever. There is too much at stake. U.S. Attorneys were fired because they wouldn't take on political cases and the DOJ was used as a political weapon to destroy people Karl Rove wanted out of the way. For Rove not to be held accountable means others in the future will feel more free to abuse power.

Under the law, Siegelman says, there is no reason to negotiate with Rove:

"The U.S. Supreme Court has made it clear that Congress has the right to get the testimony it needs when investigating a criminal matter. It is equally clear that executive privilege protects advice given to the President if it involves matters of military or diplomatic secrets."